Tag Archive for: Jimmy Butler

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss in Game 3

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The Miami Heat played in a back and forth battle in game 3 in Atlanta, and man was it a back and forth.

Jimmy Butler three to Trae Young three to PJ Tucker three to late Young floater to go up 1.

But here are some takeaways from this one, mostly focused on pre-late-game execution, which I’ll focus on later…

#1: Heat’s offensive first half recap: a little bit of Jimmy Butler, a lotta bit of Tyler Herro.

The Heat scored 54 points in the fourth quarter, yet exactly half of it was scored by Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro. Things weren’t fully going their way for a majority of that first 24, but it really was a transition of those two that I named. Butler came out in attack mode, basically spamming both ends of the PnR. Getting to his spots as the ball-handler, while forcing Trae Young to make a decision as a roller. Both were working, which put Miami in a comfortable spot early. Then as Miami tried to counter the Hawks run, it was solely Herro who kept them afloat. Playing a bit more off the ball and his catch and shoot three ball was falling, but he looked really free-flowing in terms of getting to his spots in the mid-range. After some were questioning his effectiveness a bit, he came out firing in game 3 for 15 first half points.

#2: The Hawks with the game 3, home team boost: collective shooting.

Looking at the first half stat sheet, it felt like the Hawks were shooting the ball from the outside at a much higher clip. The Heat struggled from three, shooting 6 of 23, which is 26%, while the Hawks were 5 of 14. But like I said, it felt like that number should be much higher. The reason was that it wasn’t the three-point shooting that was hurting them. It was a bit of interior play, and a lot of mid-range play. Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and De’Andre Hunter seemed to make it a priority to flow right into that face up jumper. Like most game threes go after trailing 2-0 in the series, that home team tries to make that big push in that first half out of pure desperation. But as I mentioned before this game, it wasn’t Young that was the worry. It was collective shooting, which is exactly what they provided.

#3: It’s clear the Heat do have a reliance on role players.

The way the Heat have gotten to this point as the 1 seed in the Eastern Conference has been through complete contributions from player 1 to player 17. Depth has been killer for this group, and the Heat have had big moments so far from their role guys. The big Duncan Robinson game 1, while PJ Tucker took over that third quarter. Full Gabe Vincent dominance on both ends of the floor in game 2, as Dewayne Dedmon provided a big second half. Yet in game three, that reliance showed a bit. Robinson, Vincent, and Max Strus were shooting 3 of 10 from the field, while almost all of the shots came from deep, which contributed to the poor shooting early that I mentioned. But we saw it begin to turnaround, as Strus caught some fire to begin the second half. The ups and downs of the game had a lot to do with the ups and downs of the role guys.

#4: PJ Tucker: the ultimate impact player being showcased again.

When you hear PJ Tucker, you think of impact. Being trucked in the corner as the close-out guy tries to get to the shooter, setting solid screen after solid screen, and locking up Trae Young as the primary assignment. For one, that needs to be the starting factor, as Young kept trying to throw him around with his maneuvers, and he wouldn’t bite. Not many guys move their feet like that at his size, but he just battles like no other, which was obviously bothersome. Now, on the offensive end, he gave a monstrous third quarter, much like he did in game 1. In that game it consisted of 3 corner triples in a 6 minute span, yet in this one it was just calculated slips for his signature floater in the middle of the floor. Two will fly to the guard each and every possession, and he’s the guy that can swing a run. He’s the ultimate impact player, and you can tell his game is rising.

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#5: Jimmy Butler takes a blow, Kyle Lowry goes out late. Just about getting out, yet they came out down 2-1.

Early in the game, there was a play where Butler drove and converted on the and-1, but there was deeper meaning to that play. Butler was laying on the floor holding his mid-section, which had people probably thinking worst case scenario. He ended up getting up and staying in the game, but that’s one of those things that possibly linger. Now, later in the second half, a report came out that Kyle Lowry would not return to the game due to a left leg injury, which kind of came out of nowhere. As the potential second round opponent Philadelphia 76ers took care of business late in their game 3, they should have a good amount of rest before that series would begin. And as the Heat continue to account for some scratches and bruises, rest themselves would be pretty ideal. But now they find themselves down 2-1 in the series…

 

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Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Hawks in Game 2

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The Miami Heat beat the Hawks in game 2 to go up 2-0 in the series, but it wasn’t as simple as the last time around.

Atlanta had a responding punch late in this one, but Miami came right back with one of their own.

All behind Jimmy Butler’s playoff high with 45 points.

Five takeaways from this one…

#1: Jimmy Butler playing his own game, after dominating the free flowing form in game 1.

Coming into this game, the main point I was making was that even though Jimmy Butler played a really complete offensive game on Sunday, it wasn’t his usual half court approach against this type of defense. By that, I mean he should be attacking weaker guards like Trae Young, or smaller bodies in general, down low in the post off switches. And well, we saw that more and more in this one. But more specifically, he was abusing the pump-fake down low to create advantages, and man were they biting on them every time. He even mixed in a few early triples, and the blueprint of each were completely different. A stand-still flat-footed one on the left wing, then a pull-up on the right wing much later where he rose up over the top completely. But that’s just Butler.

#2: Smaller lineups continues to be the trend here.

As talked about in game 1, the Heat went the Gabe Vincent route and it payed off. But zooming out from just Vincent specifically, it’s forced their lineups to downsize consequently. We saw a ton of Lowry-Vincent together, which works since the Hawks ran a ton of Wright-Young, but now it’s Tyler Herro sliding down to the 3. It worked really well for certain stretches, since the key to it is not being oversized on switches on the other end, which they weren’t. They don’t have any players to worry about in that state, other than maybe Danilo Gallinari. We should continue to see this throughout the series, as the Butler at the 4 has continued heavily. And speaking of small ball, after Bam picked up his fourth foul to begin the second half, Miami went small in the front-court with Caleb Martin slotting in. That sparked a run at that time, as Butler began to heat up even more.

#3: Keep an eye on the free throw trend.

The Heat got some of the Hawks’ perimeter guys in foul trouble early, including 3 fouls for both Huerter and Bogdanovic in that first half. In that span, they also shot 19 free throws, which pretty much doubled Atlanta’s number. A lot of that refers back to my first takeaway with Butler and his pump-fake, but the entire team was putting some pressure on the defense in that way as they increased their competitiveness on that end from game 1. The reason I say to keep an eye on it, and not to fully focus on it, is due to the fact there’s a certain team in their bracket that has been on a free throw frenzy. Joel Embiid, James Harden, and the Philadelphia 76ers could be up next, not to look too far ahead, and Miami semi-matching them at times would be interesting.

#4: I hate to use a cliche, but this team is just tougher than you.

I know I usually spend most of my time diving into specifics, but a game like this presents something pretty obvious: this team won’t back down. Whether if it’s the first 5 minutes of game 1 with Butler going at it with Young, Kyle Lowry getting a double tech in game 2, Max Strus going right back at John Collins in the third, Tyler Herro jawing at Young after he pushed Vincent, and much more antics, this team is just ready for the response to any jab that is thrown their way. Once again, yes it sounds cliche to be raving about toughness, but that’s what this group is based off of. Taking charges, being physical, and diving on the floor for every loose ball is what makes every game in a 7 game series hard to play against this group of guys. Which is also why the dynamic of 76ers-Heat would be so intriguing.

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#5: Dewayne Dedmon deserves some love.

On a night full of Jimmy Butler dominance, there were some mixed in performances worthy of noting. Herro began to find himself for stretches, Martin provided a nice boost, Strus did his thing on both ends. But the Heat’s physical back-up big needs to be discussed. His energy was shown in this one for sure, but he also cleaned things up around the rim well and had promising flashes for extended time with Adebayo in foul trouble. The reason I bring this up is that this ideally wasn’t his series. No Capela, Hawks go small, and he’s still out there keeping up with the crew. I know I keep foreshadowing to a potential second round matchup with Philly, but that’s his series. That’s when he will be needed most, and this type of consistency would be big.

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Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Hawks in Game One

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The Heat kicked off game 1 of the playoffs against the Hawks with a bang. High level offense, suffocating defense against Trae Young, and overall productive play 1 through 9.

So, here are some game 1 takeaways, which is hard to limit to 5…

#1: The rotation move with Gabe Vincent, clearly a timely one.

When looking into the Heat’s rotation, it has been a topic all season. Who would be the odd man out? Gabe Vincent? Caleb Martin? Duncan Robinson? And well, the answer to that question in game one was Martin. While I felt like Martin could be useful in the defensive planning of Trae Young, they saw more value in that extra ball handler who has shown can bother smaller guards. He continued to get into the grill of Young, bothering him to a 1 of 9 first half. The last play of the first quarter summed it up, as he doubled Young off pure instinct, leading to a chucked up three on the right wing. Plus he gave them two timely threes on the other end in that first half. The halftime takeaway: his impact was big.

#2: Duncan Robinson or Max Strus?

Max Strus may have stepped into Duncan Robinson’s starting spot, but that didn’t mean that pushed Robinson out all the way. Strus was still entering his first career playoff game, and we saw a minutes shift in that first half. Robinson at 15, Strus at 9. But it wasn’t about the 3 triples that stood out about Robinson early. After the second three, a run was building. The ball found him on the right wing, he gave a strong pump-fake, drove down the lane and got up in the air. He found Butler on the left wing, hit him, who swung it to Lowry for the corner three. The crowd went crazy, and at that very moment, you could see that was a confidence season high for Robinson. Having a shooting threat to this degree of the bench is absolutely major, and he can swing games depending on the match-up. This is one of them.

#3: Kyle Lowry: the calming hand.

There is a lot that can be taken away from this game, but Kyle Lowry’s overall control and leadership was evident. It’s not just the cliche stuff you hear people say all the time, but his fingerprints were on everything early on. Getting the crowd involved, hitting big shots, feeding confidence into others by being in their ear. That is the difference maker between this team and past ones. We know what Butler is. He’s the top threat who can get things chippy as he did with Young to start the game. But Lowry is the calming force who can keep everyone in check both on and off the floor. Veteran leadership shouldn’t be overlooked, and having that at point guard is showing to be a different beast in the playoffs.

#4: Defense, defense, defense.

When I say that Young shot 1 of 9 from the field in the first half, that doesn’t even do it justice. They were on him, with a fluctuating group of Vincent, Lowry, Butler, Tucker, and Adebayo all taking turns. Sending doubles, staying home on shooters, and allowing the guys within the action to handle Young, which worked out well. But Bam Adebayo individually deserves some love, since he was straight up covering major ground possession after possession. One play in the second quarter consisted of Young driving down the lane, Adebayo trailing, and him stealing it right out of his hands like he was taking his lunch money. Clearly, this team can ruin people’s days defensively, and even more-so when the focus is on one individual guy.

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#5: Back to the usual PJ Tucker experience.

We already knew PJ Tucker would be one of those highly useful deep playoff run guys, since his defense is super valuable, plus we’ve seen the corner shooting come up big late in games in the past. And well, we got a look at that in the third quarter tonight. 3 triples from the exact same spot to begin the quarter, and you guessed it: from the corner. But his flashes of impact as a roller struck once again. Nobody’s sticking with a Tucker pop or roll most possessions, since the goal is to send two at the shooter on the opposite end of the screen. Yet, that floater from earlier in the year becomes more and more useful. He’s going to have gaps like that against every team, and him taking advantage could swing a series. He’s a safety valve for the guards, and a pretty good one at that.

 

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Miami Heat-Atlanta Hawks Schematic Series Outlook

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The Miami Heat finally know their first round opponent about 38 hours before game 1 tips off at FTX arena, and that team would be the Atlanta Hawks.

They took down the Cavaliers on Friday night in a pretty uneven game overall, showcasing both the strengths and weaknesses of this Hawks group.

They can score with the best of them, behind Young’s second half masterclass which landed him with 38 on the night. Yet, it’s simple to say their defense is pretty atrocious.

Now that we’re here, and have no time for dragging things out as the game is edging closer, let’s take a quick dive into the specifics of this Heat-Hawks match-up…

Defensively:

Pick your Poison with Trae Young:

Trae Young the scorer and Trae Young the passer are two completely different beasts, yet equally elite. He can set others up by collapsing the defense like he did against Cleveland early on with 9 assists, then explode in the second half as a scorer for 38 points on the night.

So, how do you stop that? Or more importantly, which do you choose to stop?

Heading into each individual game, that choice has to be made. Are you going to make Young’s life miserable by blitzing pick and rolls, doubling him on isos, and getting the ball out of his hands? Or, do you stay home on shooters and allow the in-action defenders to handle Young while eliminating the backside?

It’s a legitimate argument for sure. And the key to it all is being a “game-by-game” thing. Coach Erik Spoelstra is one of the best in the business at mid-series adjustments, including feeling out a player early on then piling on the counters.

Looking at the play above, we saw Miami’s plan in that first half about a week ago was to stay home on the shooters and eliminate weak-side kicks. For further reference, watch Duncan Robinson and Gabe Vincent in that clip.

Young gets to his spot in the middle of the floor, and they simultaneously step up for the cut-off on the perimeter. In that game, Atlanta shot 8 of 34 from deep, which is 24% shooting.

He does eventually score on this play, (which should’ve been an up-and-down), but it’s clear Miami likes their odds with a guy of Caleb Martin’s caliber trailing him after a ball screen.

Which transitions me into my next topic…

The Shifting Match-ups with Atlanta:

PJ Tucker takes the guard, Bam Adebayo trots next to the upcoming screener. Tucker slides down, Adebayo locks up the perimeter, and they collectively crash to help out on the boards.

In a single regular season game without the counters to your counters, that works perfectly fine. Yet at this time of year, you need a bit more padding than that.

Not that Spo was showing his cards in that meaningless Hawks game a week ago, but we got a glimpse of something that will stick.

Looking at the play above, take a look at those match-ups to begin the possession.

Martin on Young, which will be a staple for extended periods. Adebayo guarding that screener in Capela, who could potentially miss time. Jimmy Butler in his happy place of weak-side looming. Oh, and there’s Kyle Lowry battling it out in that mid-post with Danilo Gallinari.

With a 1 guarding a 4, they must’ve forced a switch, right?

Wrong.

When a team contains a stretch 4 like Gallinari, who isn’t known for his inside presence, the Heat’s coaching staff have shown that they aren’t afraid of those initial match-ups to begin a possession.

Lowry can deny an entry pass just enough, help down off a baseline drive, and have Adebayo cover all of that up with a perfect contest up top. That’s what this Heat defense is.

In simpler terms, the anti-Hawks defense. The rotations are always picture perfect, they have more counters for the hunting than you may think, and the versatility of this group defensively is greater than ever.

Adebayo, Butler, Tucker, Martin, Lowry, Vincent are just a couple names that could potentially see time on Young in theory, and that just speaks not only to the depth of this group, but what this one seed was built off of.

Obvious Blitzing:

It doesn’t take a video of Miami’s pick and roll dissection against Young to realize that he will see blitzing at some point in this series.

But it’s not if he will see it, it’s when he will see it.

In terms of game preparation, one of the hardest things to try and get ready for is the timing for an adjustment. You can watch all of the game film in the world to know exactly what’s coming, but when that card is played in the third quarter of game 3, it isn’t easy to swiftly transition into.

With Spo, he won’t be eager to overplay this. This ties back into picking the poison of him as the scorer or the passer, but a lot of the time blitzing is utilized to hide something within the defense. Whether it’s to avoid the attack on a weaker guard, or send out a guy like Omer Yurtseven like they did during the season so he can’t pick apart drop, it just gets you further and further away from predictability.

Yet in this series, timing will be much more crucial than actual cards being played.

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Offensively:

Attacking the Bigs…Differently than You’d Think

When bringing up the attack on the Atlanta Hawks front-court, it should be noted quickly that this isn’t a normal Hawks front-court. No John Collins, and possibly no Capela, means that we should be seeing a lot more Gallinari, Onyeka Okongwu, and Gorgui Dieng.

We can attack those 3 names from three different angles, but I’ll start with Gallo, since that’s the one Miami has shown the most interest in exploiting.

A lot of the time we sit back and talk about attacking Young, which I’ll address later, but Miami has found a liking to drawing Gallinari out and going at him, specifically during times of need in the clutch.

Looking at the plays above, Lowry was able to force the switch and break him all the way down for the eventual spin around jumper late in the fourth. A staple of his game in these scenarios.

But on par with “staples” of certain guys games, there’s a common thread when Herro sees an uncomfortable big drawn out to the perimeter: a jumper from deep.

That usually isn’t the product of seeing that develop in front of most guards, since they quickly rely on a burst to the rim for obvious reasons. Herro, on the other hand, gets the feeling that he can rise over the top of him with zero way to a fast recovery, which he displays in that clip above.

Now, Okongwu could end up bringing a bit of a different look to this Hawks defense, but the striking weakness with that would be inexperience, quite simply. And when a guy like that gets bumped up a spot, somebody behind him is doing the same thing.

In this case, that guy is Dieng. After Duncan Robinson has so often seen flying doubles when getting schemed against, the play-book may be opening up for him in this first round.

His minutes would seem to be mirrored with Dieng early in the series, leading to a drop big sagging way back for Robinson to take advantage of. He’s one solid screen away from an open triple off a curl, which has made him so effective up to this point.

And getting him going early in this playoff run could be major.

Shooters Celebrating:

Now zooming out a bit from specifics, guys like Max Strus, Robinson, and other shooters have to be enjoying this outcome. Well, at least they should be.

If you watched the Cavs-Hawks play-in game, you may have walked away from the game with an abundance of takeaways. But one of the main ones had to be that this Hawks defense ranks in the bottom 5 for a reason.

Not even looking at personnel, they just allow open three after open three, strictly based off poor help decisions and even worse rotations. Most of the time they turn around watching that shooter take their time before the triple, just as you or me are while sitting on the couch at home.

The point is that shooters will thrive, and guys like Butler and Herro will be the reasons.

Just take a look at this possession for example, as four defenders collapse on a Herro drive, leading to an incredible find for a Vincent corner three. This isn’t one of those random plays that pop up that you won’t see again.

Trust me, we will see a lot of this, which has me eyeing increased assist numbers from both Herro and Butler in this series. The question becomes: who will be the shooter who steps up more than the others?

Robinson? Strus? Tucker? I guess only time will tell.

Hunting Trae Young or Eliminating Trae Young…Both are helpful for an offense:

Lastly, we must finish off with one of the more widely used phrases when bringing up playing the Hawks, which is the idea of hunting Young defensively.

It’s definitely something that will occur, which will be hugely based off Butler’s inverted pick and rolls, so he can get him on his back in that mid-post before continuing to make a play.

But a twist from Atlanta’s side in that last game against Miami is an important element, yet equally as exploitable.

Late in the game, the one guy who wasn’t a true offensive shot creating threat was Strus, who was in there solely for spacing purposes. So, they consequently placed Young onto him in the corner, basically eliminating the idea of him being hunted in theory.

But the thing about that is that could be used to your advantage just as well. If Young is in that weak-side corner, what does that also mean? You guessed it, that Young is also the weak-side helper. It allowed Miami’s lanes to open up much more in that game, which is another scenario of picking your poison.

Would you rather force the attack onto him, or allow a spaced out 4-on-4 on that back-side?

We will see what they choose once we get there, but the point of all this is that they have plenty of options on both sides of the basketball. When heading into that first round series against the Bucks last year, there weren’t a variety of choices on both sides.

It was a whole lot of individual match-ups with holding your ground, plus trying to dissect drop at the elbow over and over and over. Yet if the defense stopped that, we saw they had nothing else to get to.

This team, though, has a whole lot. And while we may not see it all in this first round, it’ll all be laid out there at one point or another.

 

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A Walk Through the 2nd Day of Miami Heat Practice Before Playoffs

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As the Heat completed their second day of practice before the start of the first round series Sunday at 1 pm, the goals of this team are clear:

Forgetting the past.

By that I don’t just mean leaving the negative stuff behind them, such as the sweep against the Milwaukee Bucks a year ago in the first round. It’s also about leaving the good stuff for when it really happened.

When Jimmy Butler was asked about some of the similarities between this team and the one that made the late push in the bubble, he quickly brushed them off.

He quickly made sure to note that this is a completely different team, which in many cases is true.

It may be a different team, but it’s the same Jimmy Butler. Going at it on the other side of the practice court in a king of the court session with Heat veteran Udonis Haslem and young two-way Javonte Smart.

Yelling, competing, exchanging words after stops or buckets…

He loves to battle, and he leans towards guys that love to battle as much as him. One being Haslem, who we all know. And two being Smart.

I asked Butler after practice about Smart’s potential in general after battling with him. “He’s a really good player, he works incredibly hard,”Butler says, then follows that up with: “He can’t guard me 1-on-1.”

Those are the type of words from Butler when you know somebody’s legate. When they are tough enough to compete, and already getting slandered in a fun way, they’re on the path from two-way to a normal contract.

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Now, if you’re looking to cement some bets on the Heat’s +1200 championship odds, the first bet promos for Caesars Sportsbook will give you an advantage on that bet because if it doesn’t play out accordingly, you’ll at least be getting your wager back in credit. Though, if you’re not the one that’s confident on that specific bet, just know that Tyler Herro is focused on shifting the future.

I asked Herro after practice about the major differences in his game when zooming out, comparing where he stood entering that Bucks series last year compared to now.

“I’ll be much better this playoffs, I’m sure of that.”

Not only is Herro ramping up right about now, but Kyle Lowry is piecing stuff together as well.

I asked Erik Spoelstra if he’s noticed an uptick with Lowry’s approach at this moment in time, where he highlighted one word to describe the main area that he’s been elevating:

“Detail.”

And well, that’s Kyle Lowry. You’re getting a much improved Herro, but the way for that to all fit in place is for Lowry to settle them, and provide that detail in every inch of practice and the game.

Finally, and most important of them all, I had to ask the important stuff to Butler as this will be his last time speaking to media before Sunday’s game.

After consistently saying the shooting sleeve is the reason for his hot shooting down the stretch of the season, I asked if it would be making a playoff appearance.

“I don’t know, I gotta find a way to keep my teammates smiling. So maybe double sleeve like Jae Crowder does it, who knows.”

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Five Takeaways from this Miami Heat Season

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On a pretty meaningless night of Miami Heat basketball, I wasn’t going to dissect the play of Sioux Falls against the Magic.

Instead, I wanted to zoom out a bit and go big picture.

So, here are some mainstream takeaways from the Heat this regular season…

#1: Tyler Herro’s leap, a Miami Heat leap.

Coming into the season, there were some decently high expectations for Tyler Herro on this team. He had a lot against him heading in with trade rumors and things of that nature, yet people still were projecting that 6th man of the year was in reach. But as we’ve seen, not only was he in reach, he’s the runaway favorite. And to that point, he’s exceeded all expectations since that first game in October, even after putting a target on his back that he was in similar “conversations” as some of the league’s best young talent. From a basketball perspective, we constantly look at the stuff he’s doing now under a microscope, but it’s pretty obvious that his leap has elevated this Heat team. On the offensive end, he’s allowed everything to gel together due to his shot creating surge. Yet when hearing the word “surge,” it feels like it applies to him in different ways week after week.

#2: Bam Adebayo capping off the staple of this team: a top defense.

After looking back at Herro’s play leading to offensive flexibility, that’s been the case for Bam Adebayo on the defensive end to an even further degree. Yes Miami added defensive talent, in guys like PJ Tucker, and lost certain liabilities, like Kendrick Nunn or Goran Dragic, but defense is very similar to offense: you can have skillful players, but you need the puzzle pieces to fit together. Bam Adebayo is the reason that they fit. The Miami Heat have won regular season games this year behind Bam’s impact on switches, weak-side help, or the pure fear factor. That’s why it just works, and ultimately why he should be the defensive player of the year. In terms of expectations, it’s fair to say that some expected he could potentially obtain that award, but becoming Spoelstra’s shifting defensive design isn’t normal. But he’s made it look as such.

#3: Jimmy Butler’s consistency and Kyle Lowry’s control providing positive signs.

In the off-season, we heard a lot of talk about timelines. The Herro-Adebayo timeline or the Butler-Lowry timeline. And well, they’re riding the line of both at this very moment in time, landing them in the 1 seed. I talked about that young pairing already, but that veteran combo shouldn’t be pushed to the side. Through pure numbers, there hasn’t been much change for them, but they’ve allowed this all to work. Lowry has led to a major shift in offensive schematics, as Miami has abandoned pure reliance on DHO’s, and relied much more heavily on ball screen sets and heavy movement actions. How can they quickly transition? Well, just credit Lowry’s passing. Butler also deserves credit for his overall consistency, not just in numbers, but in role. His rim pressure asset is nothing to play with, and we’re now seeing him taking a hypothetical step back for the young duo to shine. We know about the Lowry-Butler relationship off the floor, but the on-court duo is peaking at the right time.

#4: Do the Miami Heat have depth? Oh yeah, the Miami Heat definitely have depth.

The question that was posed often before the season when talking about this Heat team was: do they have enough depth? Not only rotationally, but to get through a regular season. Looking back at it now, both of those things are laughable. Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, and Caleb Martin ascending together this season has played a big part in that, which is where “getting through the regular season” comes into play. Lowry goes out, oh Vincent steps up big. Robinson goes out, Strus steps up big. Butler goes out, Martin steps up big. Adebayo goes out, Yurtseven steps up big. It was a never ending process that quickly blended into rotation strength. These guys were no longer fillers. They were legitimate playoff level bench pieces. Now fast forward a bit more, you have some other guys on the outside looking in, with Markieff Morris and Victor Oladipo, as Dipo goes off for 25 in the first half on game 82. Depth quickly shifted from weakness to strength, and now it’s leading to constant debates of who should play over who.

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#5: A 1 seed built for the playoffs.

Moving the goal posts is a common occurrence in the sports world. As many proclaimed before the season, this gritty Heat group would be one of those “tough outs” in a playoff setting, since they will be one of those middle of the pack teams nobody wants to play. All of a sudden they land in the 1 seed, due to the previous section of depth, and now they’re a regular season team that have questions surrounding entering true contention? Yeah, like I said, the goal posts move. But it’s pretty clear when watching this team that they are built for a playoff setting. For one, they have a coach of the year candidate that I haven’t touched on a lot here, who is better at mid-game, or mid-series, adjustments than most opponents he faces. But more importantly, they’ve found their identity at the right time. They’ve known what they are defensively, but discovering this new look offense with more spacers, expanded sets, and a changing rotation has broadened this team’s ceiling in my view.

 

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Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Hornets

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The Miami Heat faced the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday night, and really took care of business through and through.

Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, and Duncan Robinson come up big as Miami’s offense flows pretty perfectly throughout.

So, here are some takeaways from this one…

#1: Heat’s 3 point shooting continues to surge.

11 of 17 was Miami’s three point shooting line at the half, and man it didn’t look like it was heading that way at the start. The first 4 minutes of play in the first quarter looked like it was trending in a negative direction from a shooting perspective, but Max Strus kicked off a shooting display by dropping LaMelo Ball with a single jab step. But in all seriousness, the reason this shooting is important to note is that it isn’t just a hot stretch. This team’s shooting has made major strides ever since the rotation changes, and that isn’t a coincidence. They’ve found a constant blend of shooting and defense in all 5 man groups, going smaller opens up spacing, and the shooters going from focal points to beneficiaries has molded this offense greatly. Which blends into my next takeaway…

#2: Duncan Robinson?

In a season where there isn’t much to complain about, Duncan Robinson has felt like the consistent piece that gets brought up night in and night out to pick on. Some of it is viable since he hasn’t played to a level that some may have expected, but this bench shift seems to be the best thing for his production. As I noted before, this is no longer Duncan Robinson DHO”s being the primary action in the offense. It now revolves around a bunch of factors, leading to a swing, swing, Robinson triple. Even though his numbers haven’t spiked since this game, it’s been obvious that his looks are much more open than when he was starting. A big factor of that: ever since the change, he lines up next to Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro more than ever, which used to be more Bam Adebayo and PJ Tucker. Why is that important? Well, both Butler and Herro draw more bodies than anyone on this team, giving him open looks.

#3: Bam Adebayo’s rebounding needs a quick discussion.

I’m not going to dissect the X’s and O’s of Bam Adebayo’s rebounding right now, but to the naked eye, it has stood out to me that his crashing has been a lot more impactful. People love to point out the possessions where he switches out to the perimeter and an offensive rebound is the outcome, but it seems his strong collapses are pushed to the side. As the lineups continue to get smaller and smaller with guys like Martin at the 4 or Tucker at the 5, this is a crucial component to everything staying in tact. The surrounding pieces deserve some credit as well since they’ve been crashing hard ever since that Kings game, but Bam is still the focal point. His rebounds are much more noticeable right now with how he’s attacking the glass, and it must be noted.

#4: Miami’s lapses protecting the paint.

Toward the beginning of the third quarter, the Hornets just erased Miami’s 10 point halftime lead in the blink of an eye. How did they do that? Well, defense was pretty nonexistent in this game it felt, as the score was 102-97 at the end of the third quarter. Either way, the issue was that the Heat were allowing the Hornets into the paint way too often, leading to a line of 15 of 17 at the rim. Simply, not ideal. It’s one thing to allow a team to be that efficient, but it’s even worse that they were able to prance right by Miami’s front line every possession. Now, they’re getting two feet in the lane, Miami’s collapsing, and the shooters take advantage, which is far from great when the Hornets were shooting 61% from the field heading into the 4th. This is one of those coasting defensive performances at game 80, so it shouldn’t be too worrisome, but still not great from an individual perspective with some.

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#5: All about keeping an eye on seeding.

As the Heat inch closer and closer to officially locking up that 1 seed, all eyes are now on the 8 seed. As so many seem to be fearing Kevin Durant and the Brooklyn Nets, it’s looked more likely that could end up being their first round opponent. Or will it? Well, it seems clear that the Heat could end up deciding that since they play the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night. Beating Charlotte tonight helps Brooklyn out, and handing the Hawks a loss would help them even more. Why would Miami want to help the Nets, you may be wondering? Getting them to the 7-8 by the end of the regular season means they’re one win away from locking up that 7 seed in the play-in tournament, which puts them on the other side of the bracket. Now it’s all about monitoring others.

 

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Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Bulls

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The Miami Heat faced the Chicago Bulls on the front end of a back to back, and came away with a comfortable win in Chicago.

Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, Bam Adebayo, and Tyler Herro all stepped up at different moments, showcasing a minor switch being flipped as they edge closer to the playoffs.

So, here are some takeaways from this one…

#1: Jimmy Butler’s jumper revived?

Watching Jimmy Butler in the first half, two things were noticed. The jumper looked like it was peaking, and his play at the 4 is rising rapidly. Why is that important? Well, those two things go hand in hand. His play at the 4 has opened up his scoring lanes at another level, specifically in that mid-range area. There’s less crowding going on with only one of Adebayo or Tucker occupying the dunker spot, and spreading out three shooters. But the fact of the matter is this: the jumper is looking better than it has all year. However you may feel about the three ball, his teammates have been in his ear to shoot more of them, and he’s not shying away from it. There’s been less of that one-legged fade and more of that slight rise off two feet, and that’s the formula. And it’s clear, his jumper falling raises the ceiling of this offense majorly.

#2: The Heat’s first half adjustments from Erik Spoelstra: a product of 3 straight triples from Herro.

When looking at the first stint for Tyler Herro, he kicked off his opening stretch by getting blocked 3 straight times. Patrick Williams specifically was helping over a ton on that strong side to make impressive plays with his athletic build. But then came the adjustment. How do you eliminate that? Well, for one, you go to more empty corner stuff since that eliminates that type of help at the nail, and basically bends an entire defense. They shifted the ball into the hands of Jimmy Butler, since they noticed this over-helping combined with the extra shooting on the floor. The help came, a Herro corner three came out of it immediately, which is essentially the reasoning Miami was getting so many corner triples. The following two plays were driven by an attack by Butler or Bam, and a kick-out for an eventual swing. Both Herro threes again. Tyler Herro may have been the effect, but Coach Spo was the cause. Adjusting early was the key to this one.

#3: So, a healthy group in tact. Who’s the 9 man rotation?

One of the main things I had an eye on heading into this game was the new look rotation. Yes, Victor Oladipo and Markieff Morris are certified situational players right now, but there are still decisions to be made. The bench options consisted of Herro-Vincent-Robinson-Martin-Dedmon, yet it’s clear they want to go 9. So, who was the odd man out? Tonight, that guy was Martin. It feels like they’re trying to get Vincent into an offensive rhythm anyway heading into the post-season, so maybe that decision was predictable. But it wasn’t the final decision for sure. When looking at the options off the bench, I don’t know if it’s Martin or Vincent anymore like we’ve displayed it often. Could it actually be, Martin or Robinson? Yes, they’ve needed spacing, but Miami’s kind of figured it out with the alterations. Not saying that’ll be the case, but I’m sure it’ll go through some minds.

#4: Kyle Lowry’s shot attempts continuing to rise.

When Kyle Lowry previously said he would use a short ramp up period to prepare for the “real season,” he wasn’t kidding. Game after game, now that there’s a handful of games left, his shooting numbers fail to decline. As I’ve said after many games this season, and more specifically lately, that pull-up three shifts everything. Just taking it. Teams begin to worry about that, and the skip pass he was throwing early in the season sees a lot more space now that two are flashing to the ball. Fast forwarding to the third quarter, what may have seemed like a minor possession stuck out to me. Lowry-Bam pick and roll ends in a deep floater for Lowry trotting down the lane. The reason it stuck out is that he was passing that in the pocket a month ago. His shot attempts within the pick and roll were staggeringly low, but now he’s hitting strides at the right time. Just like he said.

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#5: Dewayne Dedmon providing solid minutes.

In a game that Bam Adebayo got in some early foul trouble, it meant an extended look at Dewayne Dedmon consequently. And well, after he’s had some rough nights as of late consisting of piled up moving screens, he had a really good night overall on both ends. He was active on the boards, moving as a roller, and scoring around the rim efficiently. But most importantly, he looked like he was moving really well, which is they key to his play in small stints. In the playoffs, if Adebayo is pushing 38 minutes, they just need two solid 5 minute stints from Dedmon to move the needle. He was their best post-season performer a year ago, but that was because he only played 16 regular season games before entering playoff mode. Now it’s a different circumstance, but they’re hoping for a similar form.

 

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Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over the Kings

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The Miami Heat had their roughest week of the season by far this week, but took care of business on Monday night against the Sacramento Kings. Some changes were made, the top guys elevated, and Miami got back in some type of a rhythm.

So, here are some of my primary evaluations from this one…

#1: The rotation changes in this one for the Heat.

Thirty minutes prior to the game, it was announced that Max Strus would start over Duncan Robinson, which raised an eyebrow. Other than some reasoning that involves allowing the starters to figure stuff out together, it was clear Spoelstra wanted some different looks and ultimately flow into a new look rotation. Gabe Vincent and Duncan Robinson came off the bench with the usual Tyler Herro and Dewayne Dedmon combo, which left Victor Oladipo and Markieff Morris out of the mix. To look even further, I don’t believe this will be the end game nine man rotation. Caleb Martin needs to play off the bench, meaning it all comes down to two players: who gets the final starting spot? Duncan Robinson or Max Strus.

#2: Another change that could be even more important: substitution patterns.

When looking at Miami’s usual substitution pattern, Jimmy Butler stays in the game to start as Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry exit, allowing him to run with Tyler Herro and the second unit. Tonight, though, Butler exited first. For Herro. That shift makes things look a lot cleaner for a few reasons. It means Herro and Adebayo can get a longer look together early on, plus it’s one of the lineups that allows Tucker at the 4 to fit in well. But more importantly, it means that Butler re-entering is him at the 4 with shooters, instead of him at the 3 next to Tucker and Dedmon. Certain patterns can change, but the point is more about zooming out. This team has revolved things around the depth all season, but now it’s time to make the changes that benefit the top four guys on the roster. That’s how they excel in the post-season.

#3: The constant question: how to maximize Butler and Adebayo offensively?

I’ve talked a lot about rotations and stuff of those sorts to start this piece, but one play kind of said a lot about how to maximize Butler and Bam together at times. Tyler Herro sets up the offense on the right wing, as two shooters line up on the weak-side, and Butler and Adebayo begin their action. As both are under the goal, Bam screens down for Butler to rise up, as Herro hits him in stride. But as I explained, this down screen wasn’t the usual look. The lower you screen for two guys of this caliber, the harder it is for a defense to manipulate. They can’t just recover by going under a screen, since there’s no room for any of that. Butler rises up for the and-1, which signifies a lot about how they can be used, beginning with Butler playing at the 4. Putting 3 shooters around them is always the way.

#4: Tyler Herro and Kyle Lowry controlling.

To carry on the theme of how things were being handled offensively for Miami, Kyle Lowry and Tyler Herro seemed to take total control of the handling duties for their half-court sets. Part of that ties into Herro entering for Butler, but this was a Spo change as he had to regroup after the 4 game losing streak. As the third quarter came to a close, Kyle Lowry and Tyler Herro had 6 assists a piece, and both of them had enough moments. Well, Herro had plenty at least. Watching him play with his food against this Kings’ defense was a sight, as he did it at all three levels. He’s specifically doing most of his work at the first and third level, which is interesting since the second level is probably his best area. Simply, the team needs those two guys to have the ball in their hands. That’s when things flow, and guys get their best looks.

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#5: Some of my most notable Heat set combos.

The Heat’s two man combo has been a staple of theirs for years. Even thinking in really recent years, the Robinson-Adebayo DHO basically got them through their season in the bubble year. But looking at some positive two-man combos at the moment, aside from the obvious ones, I’d start with the newly adjusted Tucker DHO. It’s just something he does quickly when the shot isn’t there, to basically trigger an action, but way too often was Butler on the receiving end. Defender goes under, Tucker in no man’s land, and a 24 second violation is on the way. In this one, we saw some Tucker-Lowry DHO’s which is as good as it gets. Defender has to go over and two are forced to go to the ball, leading to the floater. On the obvious side, as the spacing tries to be fixed around Butler, him screening for Herro is the way in the middle of the floor. Shooters waiting for the spray if they tag, and it’s a win-win all the way around.

 

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Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to the Nets

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The Miami Heat were looking for a bounce back night after being embarrassed three games in a row, and well, they followed all of that up with an absolute obliteration from the Brooklyn Nets.

The team isn’t in a good spot right now, obviously. The offense has hit a wall, hard, and just simply seems like it can’t hang with a Durant, Irving offense when playing this lackluster.

But, here are some takeaways from this one…

#1: The inconsistency of the Heat’s shot profile on display.

As the Heat fell behind by 21 at the half, many questions are presented. Some could be asked about Miami’s interior defense falling apart, but a lot of their buckets was Kevin Durant doing Kevin Durant things. But the main issue: the offense. When I say there’s inconsistencies in the team’s shot profile, I mean from possession to possession. Threes aren’t falling, the off-ball sets aren’t as crisp as they were early on, and their best players aren’t able to make plays on any given possession. It’s clear that the offense has hit a wall in that way. Kyle Lowry had moments, Tyler Herro was inefficient to start but did good things. But Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler have the eyes on them. Butler needs to figure out himself offensively at this stage, and Adebayo needs an obvious shift in his spots and scoring outlook.

#2: So, about Victor Oladipo…

Watching Victor Oladipo enter the game tonight, things quickly spiraled out of control from there. Not to say that was on him, but there are clear takeaways from getting an extended look at him. For starters, the gelling hasn’t been there. Tyler Herro and him haven’t been the greatest combo in that back-court, and Jimmy Butler has been mirrored with him a ton, which in my opinion isn’t a good thing. The reason for that is we’re watching two guys run the offense as the defense goes under the screen. We know how they defend Butler, but teams are daring Dipo to make that quick pull-up. Safe to say I’m not the biggest fan of those two together, as well as the constant pairing of Dedmon. If you’re going to go to Dipo, give him Bam who is a quick roller and shooters. If not, I think Gabe Vincent plugging back in come playoff time is a real possibility.

#3: PJ Tucker’s offensive need.

When talking about PJ Tucker as of late, we quickly equate every game he struggles to needing rest and simply missing that open corner three. But the thing about his play early in the season, was that he wasn’t strictly that corner threat. We praised the team for elevating his game from past corner spectating with past teams, but that has declined heavily since the all star break. Guys returning meant less offense would be worked through him, leaving me with a simple question: why? To maximize spacing in a lineup with Tucker and Butler, weak-side spot-ups isn’t the way. When the Heat caught some momentum in the 3rd against the Warriors after the altercation, the offense was being worked through Tucker for a good period of time. Some post-splits. Some fake hand-offs. Just something to give him more of a selection.

#4: Oh hey, Goran Dragic’s back. Yeah, that’s my takeaway from this one…

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#5: Time to look at the upcoming stretch.

This is about as bad of a 4 game stretch as it possibly gets. A loss to the 76ers without Joel Embiid and James Harden. A loss to the Warriors without Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, including a big bench blow up. A loss to the Knicks where the had a 17 point lead in the 4th. And now, an obliteration against the Brooklyn Nets. I’ve talked enough about that past stretch, so let’s take a quick look up ahead. They play Monday night against the Kings, which is the ultimate team to get back in the win column against, but we know how things have gone. Then Wednesday is against the red hot Boston Celtics, who provide their own problems with that switching defense. This blends into an April back to back on the weekend against the Bulls and Raptors, both on the road. The path isn’t getting much clearer, but the teams they’re playing aren’t the issue. It’s themselves. And there are clear issues.

 

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