The Heat, supposed masters of the zone, were inept against it and later wiped out in the fourth by the team that played one night earlier and lost its second-best player, Brandon Ingram. On top of that, the hosts were maimed on the glass by 22.

When commenting on the group’s frustration offensively, Heat analyst John Crotty said it was hard to believe. It ain’t. Its best marksmen were in the clinic, but that doesn’t change the reality of it being immune to consistency as it dropped its 17th match at Kaseya Center.

Gag.

Tyler Herro (foot), Kevin Love (heel) and Duncan Robinson (back) were out for the Heat. The Pelicans were absent Brandon Ingram (knee) and Dyson Daniels (knee).

The Heat’s first three tries were deep shots- all misses- foreshadowing its evening settling on the perimeter. But early, Nikola Jović splashed two trays and broke into the lane for a layup. He looked around for some help on offense, yet aside from Bam Adebayo’s two paint jumpers, the rest of the Heatles deserted him. Although, on defense, it forced six turnovers and held Zion Williamson to three failures in the lane.

On the other side, the Pelicans’ zone and transition protection forced eight straight Heat misfires in nearly four minutes. On the attack, Trey Murphy III sprayed a pull-up triple over Jaime Jaquez Jr. on the wing and two more consecutive threes at the end of the frame. Jose Alvarado and Larry Nance Jr. each put up five points, too.

Through one quarter, the Heat was below 20-21, shooting 33.3% to the Pelicans’ 40%.

Next, the Pelicans opened the second interval with five members making eight of 11 baskets in seven minutes. In that span, the Heat made 33% of its ventures facing the zone and man coverage. If not for Cole Swider downing two trays and Butler cracking the scheme once plus scoring on the break, the stretch would have been a complete abasement.

As intermission approached, McCollum dribbled downcourt on the right side past Terry Rozier for a layup in transition and zoomed by Swider from the wing to the paint, dropping a floater over Adebayo’s outstretched limbs.

At halftime, the Heat was down 42-46. The squad had 16 paint points, five on the break, two via second chances, 16 after turnovers and eight from the reserves.

Jović picked up 10 points on four of six shots, with one assist and a steal. Butler logged nine points on 40% accuracy, with two two rebounds, an assist and a steal. And Adebayo had six on his scorecard plus nine rebounds and two blocks.

The Pelicans had 12 interior points, nine in the open court, three on extra tries, two after turnovers and 16 from the bench.

CJ McCollum was the high Pelican, registering a dozen points on five of 10 looks, with three rebounds and four assists. Murphy added nine to his ledger on six attempts and recovered five rebounds. Alvarado supplied nine points off the bench, with four boards and two assists. And Williamson had barely contributed.

Instead of starting the third with Valančiūnas, Pelicans coach Willie Green shelved him until later in favor of Larry Nance Jr..

Butler uncorked the offense to start the third, driving on the baseline through Williamson for a layup. But the Heat didn’t score again until it was in a 12-point hole. Thomas Bryant provided eight points, and Butler cut through the center, catching and finishing at the cup twice, but the unit couldn’t get stops.

McCollum continued his barrage, getting into the paint for a pull-up jumper and connecting on two triples. And Marshall made three buckets late. He made a corner triple when left alone, beat Rozier from the top to the hoop for a left-handed scoop and hit a floater on the break.

The Heat started the fourth quarter behind 66-76, but before it could answer, Valančiūnas made an elbow jumper against the Heat’s zone, and McCollum raced into the paint, sinking a floater. The Pelicans converted six of 10 3-pointers in the sequence, shooting over openings plus drop coverage and pulling up off the dribble.

The only Heatles to log multiple field goals late were Adebayo and Swider, combining for five of six makes. The rest of the group made 21% of its tries to close as the hosts got outscored by 13 points in the fourth.

The Heat lost 88-111. It had 30 paint points, eight on the break, seven via second chances, 16 after turnovers and 32 from the bench.

Butler had a quiet 17 points on five of 12 looks, with four rebounds and five assists. Rozier poured in 13 points on 35.7% shooting and racked up four boards and two assists. Adebayo recorded 12 marks on seven attempts with 10 boards and two blocks. Martin had three rebounds, contributed a donut to the scoreboard, missing eight tries

The Pelicans stockpiled 38 interior points, 13 in the open court, 18 on extra tries, six after turnovers and 45 from the reserves.

McCollum produced 30 points on 57.1% shooting, with five rebounds and seven dimes. Alvarado had 17 points on six of 12 attempts, with seven rebounds and six assists. Murphy had 14 on his ledger and recovered eight boards. And Marshall added 13 points and seven rebounds.

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra said, “Our level of energy, detail, and willingness to go to different layers of our offense was not great.”

Butler said, “Nobody is scared to come in here and play us. Nobody is scared to play us on the road either.”

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The visiting Heat exchanged 10 leads with Simone Fontecchio’s Pistons in the first half, then shut off the hosts in quarters three and four, taking the first game of the weekend miniseries in Detroit.

The Heat were absent Tyler Herro (foot) and Kevin Love (heel). The Pistons were missing Quentin Grimes (knee) and Ausar Thompson (illness).

Jimmy Butler, Duncan Robinson, Terry Rozier and Nikola Jović powered up early, making the first five of seven baskets for the guests. After that flurry, the Pistons still couldn’t stop Butler and Jaime Jaquez Jr. from posting up smaller defenders for baskets or Jović, Robinson and Caleb Martin’s drive-bys in the paint.

Defensively, one of the few positives was that its pressure forced five turnovers-three were steals in the passing lane. But the Heat were picked apart by Jaden Ivey’s passing and roasted by Fontecchio. The latter canned a right-wing pick and pop three against no recovery, curled on the right side around Jalen Duren for a layup after the catch and a buried fadeaway over Robinson on the baseline.

Duren followed his lead, picking up four boards, dunking powerfully off a rim roll in the half-court, and slamming another, trailing in transition. Twelve-year veteran Evan Fournier added six points. The rest of the Pistons logged three of 12 shots to start.

Through 12 minutes, the Heat was behind 27-28.

Next, Ivey dished out four more assists. Duren flushed three vicious dunks, two off pick and roll, plus one on the break. Fontecchio, looking like a made man, hit a triple on each wing and flew into the paint, securing an offensive rebound away from Adebayo’s grasp and quickly put it back up. And the other Pistons converted 23% of shots.

On the Heat’s side, Adebayo was possessed. He recovered five boards and registered seven of nine attempts in the frame, totaling 16 points. Two of those seven baskets included a mean putback jam over Duren and a top-of-the-key catch-and-shoot banger.

JJJ was the sole other Heatle to make more than one field goal in the second quarter, but he recorded 29% of ventures. And Robinson swished the only extra 3-pointer in the frame.

At halftime, the Heat was ahead 56-54 but behind on the glass by three. The squad had 36 paint points, 13 on the break, 10 via second chances, 20 after turnovers and 11 from the bench. Adebayo punched in 16 points, making 70% of his field goal attempts, with seven boards. Butler and Martin had nine apiece on the scoring ledger. Rozier racked up eight points on a quarter of his tries, plus two rebounds.

The Pistons had 24 interior points, 11 in the open court, five on extra tries, 12 after turnovers and nine from the reserves. Fontecchio noted 16 points on six of 10 shots with four rebounds. Duren had 11 on his scorecard, and 10 rebounds. Ivey had eight points and nine dimes.

Afterward, the Heat held Ivey to zero assists and one of six makes from long and short distance in the third quarter. But Cunningham resumed playmaking duties, setting up two Fontecchio jumpers, and orchestrating layups to Duren and Isaiah Stewart. No Piston tallied more than two field goals, and the hosts shot 40% for the frame.

Adebayo and Co. outearned the Pistons by 10 on the scoreboard, but the burning Heatles were Robinson and Rozier. Robinson spilled three triples on consecutive possessions to give the crew an 18-point lead. Rozier made four freebies and beat Cunningham twice -spinning past him in the lane for a reverse layup and dribbling by him, dropping a left-handed floater. And Adebayo amassed three spare finishes in the square.

The fourth began with the Heat above 84-72. A Martin flurry provided nine points, helping push the lead to 19 over the quarter’s initial six minutes. Backup center Thomas Bryant checked in, adding 11 points on five of eight opportunities. The rest of the Heat made two of 10 tries.

Defensively, the Pistons were held to 45% shooting in the fourth. Cunningham and James Wiseman were the only hosts to record multiple field goals. And Ivey and Marcus Sasser combined to miss four makeable 3-pointers on the wings and corner.

The Heat won 108-95 and ended a four-game losing streak. The group tallied 64 paint points, 18 on the break, 10 on second chances, 33 after turnovers and 31 from the bench.

Adebayo had 22 points on 10 of 14 attempts, with nine rebounds, two assists and three blocks. Rozier scored 18 points on 33% shooting, plus picked up five rebounds. Martin notched 18 points and eight rebounds. And Butler had 14 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.

The Pistons had 38 interior points, 11 in the open court, nine on added chances, 12 after turnovers and 21 from the reserves.

Fontecchio supplied 24 points on nine of 16 looks with six rebounds. Duren had 15 points on 77.8% shooting, plus 17 rebounds. And Ivey produced 14 points on three of 14 attempts, with nine assists.

Bryant handled the on-court interview. When asked about the defense creating turnovers, he said, “It was a lot of activity out there. A lot of talk, communication… We just try to be as connected as we can out there with high hands. [It was a] great defensive effort out there.”

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra was asked about Adebayo’s domination. He said, “He wanted to make sure that he was going to impose his will on this game, and he did it on both ends of the court…That’s what your leaders do. In these tough moments of a season, they step up, and you just follow them.”

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The Champs came out blasting on offense, but we’re giving it up as easily because of inattentive defense and turnovers putting them on their heels. Then they got punked in the second quarter, getting outscored by 15 points. It was as if they were transported back to the Mesozoic era, and they were the prey of unfed velociraptors. They followed up the second half with a comeback from down 22 points behind Joker and Murray’s takeover.

Keep in mind the visitors were missing Immanuel Quickley, Jakob Poetl, Gary Trent Jr., Chris Boucher and Scottie Barnes.

Early, the Raptors couldn’t contain Aaron Gordon at close range. And Michael Porter Jr was dropping arrows from deep, middle and short distance.

In the second quarter, the offense fell apart, registering nine of 27 baskets. On the other side, RJ Barrett swished a left-corner triple, seized the baseline for a dunk and drove through the middle for another. Gradey Dick made three jumpers. Jalen McDaniels added six points. And with three minutes to go in the half, the hosts were down 22.

At intermission, the Nuggets were behind on the scoreboard 51-68. They accumulated 28 paint points, eight on the break, four via second chances, nine after turnovers and nine from the bench. MPJ scored 13 points on six of 11 ventures. AG had a dozen on 83.3% shooting. And the Joker had 12 as well, with seven assists, 10 boards and two steals.

The visitors had 28 interior points, 15 in the open court, 11 on extra tries, eight after turnovers and 19 from the reserves. Barrett racked up 15 on his scorecard on six of nine attempts. Dick followed with 13 on his ledger. Former Nugget Bruce Brown had nine. And Kelly Olynyk and Jontay Porter- MPJ’s brother- logged eight.

But Nikola Jokić cleaved coverages with his jumper, finished on the break, ran two-man actions with Jamal Murray, and boogied up close for four more baskets. He supplied 19 points in the frame and, contributed four helpings to Murray, Porter and Watson, and picked up four steals.

Murray produced nine points on three of five looks, but while he defended, Kelly Olynyk hunted him in the half court for a bucket from two feet away and drew a foul on him at the left elbow to take a trip to the charity line. Moreover, Olynyk recorded two more freebies and four field goals, totaling 14 points in the frame.

J. Porter dispatched six more points, and the rest of the Raptors made five of 15 baskets in the third quarter.

Following a 42-point outburst in quarter three and conceding 30, the fourth began with the Nuggets down 93-98, and Murray carelessly turning it over in the corner because he couldn’t hold on to the catch with one hand. In spite of that, he led the Nuggets in the last sequence, breaking down his cover from the wing to the paint, ripping apart the Raptors’ pick-and-roll defense, and getting loose twice after receiving Joker’s handoff. He also distributed six assists to Watson, Gordon, Jokić, KCP, Porter and Zeke Nnaji, generating 15 points.

With under seven minutes to go, the Nuggets took their first lead since the latter stage of the first quarter, when Murray dribbled past McDaniels, hitting a floater in the lane. On the Nuggets’ next possession, Jokić tipped in KCP’s missed pull-up, boosting the advantage to three points. The hosts made six of 10 baskets the rest of the way to close.

On the Raptors’ last possession, with 26 seconds left and down six points, Barrett raced down the floor, misfiring a layup, when taking a 3-pointer was the operative move. Had he made it, the visitors would have played for the steal before the foul.

Porter recovered the miss and the Raptors were extinct.

The Nuggets won 125-119. They had 66 paint points, 21 on the break, 11 on second opportunities, 19 after turnovers and 23 from the bench. Jokić’s stat line included 35 points on 14 of 26 attempts, with 17 rebounds, 12 assists, six steals and two blocks. Murray scored 26 on 57.9% shooting, plus 12 dimes, five boards and two rejections. AG and MPJ had 19 apiece.

The Raptors had 66 interior points, 19 in the open court, 20 on extra tries, eight after turnovers and 31 from the reserves. Barrett submitted 26 points on 10 of 20 looks. Olynyk filed 24 to his scorecard and six rebounds. And Dick noted 17 points.

Jokić handled on the on-court interview. He said, “The whole crew fought today, and we showed character that we are not quitters.”

At the postgame presser, coach Michael Malone said, “Do I like the fact that we didn’t play at all in the first half? No. But I’m really proud of the guys having the courage to not let go…we stayed with it. There was never any panic, which is what I loved about it as well.”

Despite controlling the game early on the second night of a road back-to-back, the Heat’s offense fell apart in the third quarter and its embers were extinguished late by Shai Gilgeous Alexander.

Early, Jimmy Butler attacked the basket, scoring the Heat’s first six points. But Bam Adebayo and Duncan Robinson were cold- the former missed a jumper badly on the baseline and was denied by Luguentz Dort’s help defense, and the latter missed a pair of well-contested triples.

Halfway through the frame, coach Erik Spoelstra subbed out Nikola Jović and put in rookie Jaimie Jaquez Jr.. JJJ saved the Heat from an embarrassing start, creating contact on drives, making four freebies, hooking over Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the post, beating everyone on the break and splashing a left-wing triple.

SGA countered for the hosts, registering 10 first-quarter points, primarily striking the lane against man coverage and the zone. Josh Giddey picked up three dimes. And the rest of the group made seven of 17 baskets, as no other Thunder player made more than one field goal.

After 12 minutes, the Heat led 29-27.

Then newcomer Patty Mills- the 15-year veteran who signed with the club on Wednesday- was unleashed. He registered four of five baskets, hitting three triples when the defense overreacted to inside pressure and nailed a midrange floater on the right side after Dort closed out too hard to the wing on the pass.

Butler scored twice in the second frame- a layup, low on the right side in the first minute and another in the last 42 seconds of the half, totaling five points. Additionally, Jaquez was still burning. He spun past Josh Giddey on the baseline for a layup over Chet Holmgren, successfully rolled right after the handoff from Adebayo and scored from the dunker spot when left alone.

Defensively, the Heat slowed down the Thunder and SGA. Help was sent when he beat Terry Rozier to the paint, stopping his layup. Two of his 3-point attempts were triumphantly contested, and Haywood Highsmith forced him into a difficult step-back jumper inside the right wing to end the half. His running mate, Jalen Williams, was the only host to record multiple field goals in the frame, and the Thunder was held to seven of 20 makes.

At halftime, the Heat was up 57-47 and up on the glass by five. The group had 28 paint points, eight on the break, one from an extra try, six after turnovers and 33 from the bench. Jaquez was the high Heatle with 17 points on six of seven attempts. Next were Butler and Mills, each with 11. And Adebayo struggled to score, logging three points, but had four assists and six rebounds.

The Thunder picked up 22 interior points, eight in the open court, 11 via second chances, seven after turnovers and 14 from the reserves. SGA dispensed 14 points on five of 12 attempts. And Williams had eight on 42.9% shooting.

Then, two-and-a-half minutes into the third quarter, the Heat climbed to a 14-point lead following a Robinson right-wing banger. The unit missed its next six field goals over five minutes as the Thunder neutralized Adebayo’s pick-and-pop jumper in the paint and disrupted three of Rozier’s shots from close, medium and long range.

In that span, as the Heat’s offense was useless, the Thunder rattled off 17 straight points courtesy of SGA getting anything he wanted in the middle, Giddey punishing a double team on SGA from distance, plus Williams piercing the zone and burying a 3-pointer. The Thunder out-produced the Heat by 16 points in the sequence to lead 77-73 to start the fourth.

The guests made six of 14 buckets over eight minutes but were down seven on the scoreboard. Following up with five in a row- Rozier’s transition gash, corner triple and pick and pop shot, a three-footer from Butler and fallaway three from Robinson- still had the club behind by four.

SGA’s impact was as loud as a high-voltage thunderstorm, pulling up on his jump shot going right and left for a dozen more marks. And Aaron Wiggins connected on a second-chance triple, beat Caleb Martin to the cup for a layup and dusted Haywood Highsmith on the baseline, dunking as Rozier got out of the way. The lever that brought down the guillotine was Williams dribbling past JJJ and Adebayo’s help for a left-handed finish.

The Heat lost 100-107. The crew had 48 paint points, eight on the break, five on added attempts, 10 after turnovers and 45 from the bench. Jaquez led the group with 25 points on 10 of 13 looks. Butler’s 20 on 50% shooting followed.

The Thunder collected 46 interior points, 12 in the open court, 23 on extra tries, 18 after turnovers and 28 from the reserves. SGA had 37 points on 13 of 25 shots. Williams dropped 15. And Giddey tallied 11.

At the postgame presser, Spoelstra said, “If we could have finished off a couple more possessions, we might’ve had an opportunity to hold them under 100 [points].

In the locker room, Jaquez said, “Unfortunately, we didn’t get it done tonight, but we are going to learn from this and get better.”

The Heat is 9-0 when holding teams under 100 points in 2023-24. The team will not practice on Saturday (3/9).
–

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The Miami Heat withstood the Detroit Pistons – arguably the most pitiful team in the NBA- after seven lead changes and one tie.

Early, Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier were passive, and Bam Adebayo chronically misfired for the Heat. But Duncan Robinson sprayed drop coverage, pierced the zone, burned Ausar Thompson on the baseline with a hesitation dribble plus the layup and made two freebies.

Additionally, understudy Nikola Jović followed Robinson’s lead, setting up two trays and scoring six points. And Caleb Martin canned two baskets in the lane.

On the other side, the Pistons made a meager one of eight 3-pointers in the first quarter against weak protection. Although, Cade Cunningham logged seven points on three of five looks, including a ferocious slam over Jović. Jaden Ivey hit a bucket at the nail, successfully isolated Adebayo from the top to the cup on the left side and dribbled left to the baseline for a jumper over Robinson.

Next, Detroit’s Jalen Duren threw his weight around on offense, registering four shots in the square, none meaner than the lob over Adebayo and dunk after leaving his counterpart stuck in the post. On top of that, forward Simone Fontecchio made two triples, a floater and three free throws.

Yet, Caleb Martin detonated for 11 points, off-setting the win-starved Pistons’s second-quarter production. The only other Heatle in the frame to log multiple field goals was Rozier, swishing two midrange jumpers.

At halftime, the Heat was up 61-60 and behind on the glass by two. It had 24 paint points, eight on the break, seven on second chances, seven after turnovers and 24 from the bench. Martin had 15 points. Robinson had 12 on his scoring ledger.

The Pistons scored 28 interior points, three in the open court, seven on extra tries, five after turnovers and 16 from the reserves. Cunningham supplied a dozen points on four of seven shots. Fontecchio and Ivey each had 11. And Duren had 10 points.

Subsequently, the Heat had a shaky start coming out of intermission. The Pistons converted its first four of six baskets out of the break. But Adebayo triumphantly went at Duren three times, at close and midrange. Rozier splashed a few trays. And the rest of the Heatles made four of 10 shots in the period.

Defensively, the Heat contained visitors to 33.3% shooting in the fourth quarter. Ivey got free on the break for a layup through traffic and scored off a handoff. And Cunningham drove right for a four-foot finish and broke a trap on the left side for an elbow jumper. No other Piston tallied multiple field goals in the quarter as the Heat slowed down dribble penetration and contested outside jumpers on time.

For the Miami team, Butler closed the deal with a rim roll, driving past Evan Fournier and Fontecchio on the left side for a couple of layups, a right-wing pull-up triple and six freebies. The next scoring leader for the club in the fourth was Jaime Jaquez Jr., who put up a second-chance effort and hit a floater over Duren.

The Heat won 118-110 and were tied on the glass at 42. Furthermore, the hosts racked up 48 paint points, 16 on the break, 15 on second chances, 25 after turnovers and 31 from the bench. Butler logged 26 points on seven of 13 attempts, with eight assists and six rebounds. Adebayo and Robinson dropped 18 apiece. And Rozier had 17 points.

The Pistons had 48 interior points, nine on the break, 16 on extra tries, 14 after turnovers and 35 from the bench. Cunningham contributed 23 points on eight of 20 shots with eight dimes and four rebounds. Fontecchio was next on the scorecard with 22 points, making 43.8% of field goals.

At the postgame presser, coach Erik Spoelstra said, “I anticipated it would be a physical, competitive game and it was every bit of that.”

In the locker room, Adebayo spoke on Jović’s impact. He said, “He is taking advantage of his opportunities. Obviously, he’s a great, willing passer.” The big man also added that Jović makes the team more dynamic.

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