Tag Archive for: Miami Heat

What is Next for the NBA and Miami Heat?

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The Miami Heat’s game against the Boston Celtics got postponed on Sunday night, after some things involving contact tracing needed to be sorted out.

The first thing that comes to mind when seeing this is that a postponement one night prior could’ve prevented some things, since issues have been obvious involving the Washington Wizards.

But ultimately, it was probably inevitable either way. There are Covid spikes happening across the country, which makes this NBA season very interesting over the next few weeks.

It seems like a viable option to put the season off for a few weeks, especially since Adm Silver says he is “optimistic about improvements in February,” according to the Athletic.

As Adrian Wojnarowski reported for ESPN, there will be a meeting today with team’s General Managers, as well as special Board of Governors meeting tomorrow.

All of the information being reported is subject to change, since there just truly is uncertainty about what could happen next.

Although Adam Silver and the NBA are very focused on continuing the season, this current stretch of time is crucial in many aspects involving the virus.

And as for the Miami Heat, Tim Reynolds reported the Heat are scheduled to fly to Philadelphia tonight, but once again things can change at any moment.

While they are still sorting out the specifics of the contact tracing for Miami, there is still unknown if they would have the required 8 players cleared for tomorrow’s game.

We will see what happens over the next 24 hours, but this stretch of time in the NBA, and in our country, are going to be very important when discussing Covid-19 moving forward.

Why is Attacking the Basket Essential for Tyler Herro?

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In Miami’s match-up with the Washington Wizards on Saturday night, Tyler Herro put on a scoring clinic, reaching a new career high 31 points.

The scoring wasn’t being generated from the perimeter though. Instead, he continued to attack the basket on Washington’s weak defenders, and used his craftiness to score around the rim.

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The reason that part of Tyler’s game is so important is because the rest of his strengths generate from it. Once Tyler gets into the paint a few possessions, it leads to more room on the perimeter for him to work. And when they began to play high on him, he found himself wide open off back door cuts for open layups.

And as I’ve mentioned in the past, it’s when his passing abilities are most visible. He is a great play-maker once he is in an offensive rhythm, since he makes instinctive decisions instead of over thinking.

When Tyler Herro is rolling with confidence, it’s when he is at his best.

Before this game, he mentioned throughout the week that the performance against Boston was totally on him, and he needs to be better. And well, he was.

This team is very confident with Tyler Herro having the keys on the offensive side of the ball, especially since it gives their two stars, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, a break from their efforts on the defensive end.

Another main reason Tyler Herro’s penetration is important for his overall game, is because it leads to increased effort on the defensive end.

When he sees the ball go through the net a few times, the energy levels naturally rise. And although Tyler struggles on that end, all you can ask for is effort.

If he can consistently score at the rim on a nightly basis, it makes everybody’s job easier, especially Duncan Robinson. Now that they’re sharing the floor quite a lot, it’s important for them to bounce off each other offensively.

It’ll be interesting to see if Tyler Herro can keep this up on the second night of a back to back, since they’re playing a short-handed Boston Celtics team.

5 Takeaways from Miami’s Win Over Washington

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The Miami Heat played a short-handed Washington Wizards team on Saturday night, and came away with the win. The Miami Heat looked pretty sharp offensively throughout, which clearly won them this game. Here are five takeaways from the game…

#1: Miami comes out on fire offensively, but invisible defensively.

The Miami Heat set a franchise first quarter record tonight, scoring 47 points on 78% shooting. Only issue was that Washington put up 44 points as well in that first quarter. As much as we can discuss Miami’s impressive shooting early, the defense is what truly needs to be keyed in on. The reason for that is because you’re playing a team without their two best players, Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal. A lack of individual efforts on defense was obvious, since there seemed to be a lack of urgency. That is not surprising, since that is what usually happens when going into a game against a team without their top players. It comes down to intensity on that end of the floor, and they didn’t have it early in this game.

#2: Kelly Olynyk having one of those Kelly Olynyk like games.

In Miami’s impressive first quarter scoring display, Kelly Olynyk was one of the players that truly shined. It is known that Kelly is capable of having those type of shooting games, but it just come down to consistency. Tonight was one of those games though, where he just couldn’t miss from deep. He also used his nightly fake hand-off, which usually ends up with an open layup at the rim. It was especially needed for Kelly Olynyk to have this type of performance tonight, since Bam Adebayo and Precious Achiuwa each had three early fouls. Obviously nothing can be replicated on defense or by rebounding, but the offensive boost was a huge positive for this team.

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#3: Goran Dragic getting back to his normal shooting abilities.

Goran Dragic, surprisingly, hasn’t been shooting the ball great to begin the year. Heading into this game, he was shooting 25% from beyond the arc. But he came out in the first quarter going 4 for 4 from three, which i discussed before the game since Washington’s lackluster defense can give those types of guys the rhythm they’ve been looking for. Those 4 triples were his only scores in the first half, and actually his only four attempts, but he used his passing to create for others on offense. The defense began to fly high, which led to him dribbling right by for a kick to the opposite wing or corner for a three. And that right there is the Goran Dragic effect.

#4: Tyler Herro showcases his great touch around the rim.

Tyler Herro was scoring the ball well tonight against the Wizards, mostly by attacking the basket with the ball in his hands. He seems to have great touch around the rim when using the basket, almost Goran-like, and showed his aggressiveness to get to the rim. He also cuts off the ball quite a lot, and against a defense like Washington, he found himself open a few times. And once he begins to get his scoring going, his play-making begins to look better and better. Not only did he score the ball well tonight, but he scored it efficiently, and that’s more important than anything.

#5: Jimmy Butler’s offensive initiative was this Heat team’s staple.

Although many of Miami’s players exploded on offense in that first quarter, nobody scored the ball as consistently as Jimmy Butler did tonight. He clearly could score the ball at will tonight against this poor Washington defense, and chose to do just that throughout the game. He probably could’ve done it a lot more, but that’s just not Jimmy’s game. Well, unless he’s in the finals. I’m pretty sure everybody is aware that Jimmy is more than capable of taking over on offense when needed, but if there was uncertainty, tonight should’ve cleared that up. Once again, there’s not much to takeaway when it’s against a team you’re supposed to beat, but Butler can do exactly that against pretty much anybody.

How Can Miami’s Game Against Washington Be the Big Turn-Around?

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One of the biggest issues for Miami has been the lack of getting a good amount of shot attempts up, which turnovers and rebounding have played into that.

Miami currently ranking 26th in the NBA in points per game mirrors that statement as well.

But how cam Miami turn things around in their match-up with Washington?

Although we can dive into things Miami can do better, looking sharper on offense will be the spark for everything else. And since Washington’s defense is known to not be very good, the Heat can use this game to get into a rhythm.

When the players spoke with media on Friday afternoon, there seemed to be a mutual statement and feeling towards the importance of this road trip. Tyler Herro even mentioned looking back at it later in the season, since it can be the turning point.

Tyler Herro is also the name that can benefit from this game tomorrow. He has taken major accountability for Miami’s struggles, saying “Everything is on me.” But I’m not so sure it’s all on him.

Many can point to his offensive struggles thus far, but he’s actually averaging the same exact numbers he put up in his rookie season, just with a bit better field goal percentage. Now, of course those numbers should be up since it’s supposed to be his second year breakout, but they’re only seven games in. He will begin to find a rhythm offensively, which can ultimately be a huge plus for this team.

His three point shooting has not been ideal this far especially, since he is currently shooting 30% from three. And even with Goran Dragic’s hot start, he is shooting 25% from beyond the arc up to this point.

Lastly, many figured Bam Adebayo would take a leap in aggressiveness and initiative to begin the season, but that hasn’t happened as much as many would’ve liked as well.

It’s a combination of a bunch of guys across the board that have contributed to Miami’s struggles, but each of them can look to benefit in this road trip, starting with the Washington Wizards.

Miami should be able to explode offensively on Saturday night, which would be even better due to the fact that they can rest for the following night against Boston.

And once offense begins to generate on this Heat team, that will make their other issues much less noticeable.

If they come out with the mindset of just getting the ball up when they have an opportunity, rhythm will begin to form.

Could Miami’s Biggest Downfall Be Unselfishness?

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I’ve gone through the different problems with this Heat team since the beginning of the season, including turnovers, lack of shot attempts, and rebounding. But the reason for a good portion of their issues seem to be unselfishness.

One thing I saw last night was that lineups that include their three best players, Goran Dragic, Jimmy Butler, and Bam Adebayo, did not seem to be as effective as when they played with only two of them.

But why is that exactly?

Well, all three of those guys are pretty unselfish players, which means there is a lack of clarity on who the main aggressor will be on any given possession.

The main reason Miami put themselves in a hole last night was due to one word: Over-Passing.

And that doesn’t just pertain to the lineup with Jimmy, Goran, and Bam, since Tyler Herro and others are guilty of doing it a ton.

There are moments in the game where Tyler just needs to be Tyler and get shots up on the basket. Instead, he gives an extra pass or throws it out to the corner on the drive, when his original shot would’ve been the best shot.

When players on a team are selfish, it impacts the quality of the locker room. When players on a team are unselfish, it impacts their play on the floor.

The turnovers and lack of shot attempts have a lot to do with the over-passing, since if they just focus on getting the ball up on their first opportunity, that fixes some things. As Coach Erik Spoelstra has said, the main thing is getting “shots on goal,” and when the shot attempts are 99-81 in a game, it’s hard to come out with a win.

And if there was any team where you’d feel better about the quantity of shots, instead of the quality, it would be this Heat team. They have plenty of offensive firepower to get them going, and that rhythm will ultimately carry over to their energy on the defensive end and the boards.

It just seems as if the unselfishness is the common factor between all of Miami’s issues. When Jimmy Butler began to be selfish offensively yesterday, it caused a huge Miami run to end the second quarter.

Jimmy Butler knows when it is time for him to be selfish, and that’s the trait that I believe is necessary for Bam Adebayo to pick up as well. There’s no reason for Daniel Theis to have more field goal attempts than Bam in a game like this. And once Miami’s young guys begin to realize being selfish is needed, things will begin to turnaround.

5 Takeaways from Miami’s Loss Against Boston

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The Miami Heat faced off against the Boston Celtics, in an Eastern Conference Finals rematch, and Miami fell short after the late efforts from Duncan Robinson. After trailing by 10 with less than 2 minutes to go, Miami tied the game with 10 seconds left, but a Payton Pritchard tip in gave them the lead with 0.2 seconds left. Here are five takeaways from the game…

#1: Precious Achiuwa continues to show promising flashes.

For starters, Precious Achiuwa had the only positive plus-minus at the half, +10, while Bam Adebayo was a -18 at the half. The parts that truly stood out for Precious were on the defensive side of the basketball, particularly guarding Jayson Tatum. One of the league’s top pure scorers taking a rookie one-on-one seems to be an obvious result, but not when Precious Achiuwa is lined up across from him. He had two promising possessions where he altered Tatum’s jump shot, which is not an easy thing to do. His constant movement on defense is another thing that stands out when watching him play, while his offensive game will continue to develop. His ability to be a threat on the roll is enough impact right now, since it’s a huge bonus for Goran Dragic.

#2: Miami’s top 3 players look to be more effective when their minutes are staggered.

One thing that stood out when I watched tonight’s game against Boston was the lineups that included Goran Dragic, Jimmy Butler, and Bam Adebayo. Automatically you’d think that lineup would be most effective since it includes your three best players, but I don’t know if that’s exactly the case. They seem to struggle when they share the floor together at times offensively, but why is that exactly? It could possibly be due to the uncertainty of who should take assertiveness. Most times when they share the court together, you begin to see an immense amount of over-passing. So does that mean these three guys are a bit too unselfish? I believe so. It’s only the seventh game, so that will change as the season progresses, but once playoff time hits I think they all know who the main aggressor will be.

#3: Boston takes advantage of Miami’s interior defense.

Boston began the game going 5/6 from three, which may have you looking at Miami’s defensive issues being out on the perimeter. But that wasn’t the case exactly. The Celtics began to take advantage of the paint area, especially when they were using their two big lineups with Daniel Theis and Tristan Thompson. Now, that may have had something to do with their priority changing to the perimeter talents of Jayson Tatum and Jaylon Brown getting hot, but allowing easy bucket after easy bucket around the basket does not help your chances against a team like Boston. The Heat have gone to a bunch of small lineups that have included Jimmy Butler or Andre Iguodala at the 4, and it doesn’t help when Bam Adebayo and Kelly Olynyk have less rebounds at the half than Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson. The lack of defensive stops in the paint have resulted in Miami being a bottom tier rebounding team.

#4: There’s one reason for Miami’s run at the end of the second quarter and early third quarter: Jimmy Butler.

Miami went on a little run to end the second quarter, once Jimmy Butler seemed to take control of the offense. Then they went on an even bigger run to start the third quarter, which was headlined by Duncan Robinson. Although Duncan was hitting some much needed shots, it was all set up by the gravity of Jimmy Butler. He was having one of those nights where he was going to take it into your chest on his way to the basket, and that ultimately means more opportunities on the perimeter. There was one common factor during this run, Jimmy Butler was on the floor the entire team. The impact of Jimmy should not be understated, since his presence alone makes his teammates better.

#5: Andre Iguodala’s impact against good teams proves to be a huge positive moving forward.

Andre Iguodala hit some much needed threes throughout the game tonight, which is all Miami needs from him. If he can hit the corner three at a good rate, that is huge for Miami’s bench unit offensively. Andre also did a good job of facilitating as well, setting up their shooters late in the game consistently. The games Iggy is needed most is when he is playing against a top team like Boston. High IQ veterans who can control the pace of the game are needed in these types of games. And more importantly, it provides clarity of what will be seen in a playoff setting. Andre is an important piece of this Heat team, mostly since the chemistry of that bench unit continues to be on display.

The Miami Heat have their Own Marcus Smart

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In my opinion, Marcus Smart is one of the biggest X-Factors for that Boston Celtics team.

An emerging Jayson Tatum and Jaylon Brown are the most talented on the roster, and do the most heavy lifting, but Smart is what truly put that team over the top in the past and currently.

And well, it seems as if Miami may have found their own Marcus Smart in Avery Bradley. There was a bit of uncertainty before the season about what Avery can specifically bring to this Heat team other than perimeter defense, and I’d say his offensive fit has been even more intriguing.

His outside jumper has looked good through the first six games, and he also has the ability to put the ball on the floor and control the mid-range. His offensive feel allows him to fit in Miami’s motion offense, since he seems to constantly be in the right place at the right time off of cuts and things of that nature.

Other than Marcus Smart’s better play-making abilities, they bring pretty similar things to their respective teams.

One of the main reasons Miami felt good about playing Milwaukee last season was that their scheme with Jae Crowder worked perfectly against Giannis Antetokounmpo. And I believe they feel the same way this year, but this time against Boston.

Miami has the luxury of putting Avery Bradley on Marcus instead of Goran Dragic, while Goran will still be guarded by Smart. That will open up many opportunities for Avery to make some plays on the offensive side of the ball, which can ultimately be the reason they win the game.

Bradley has a much different role than Smart has with Boston, since Smart has much more weight on his shoulders, but they’re equally important for their respective teams.

Not only will Avery be the X-Factor tonight for Miami, but more importantly in a playoff series if they were to meet in the postseason once again.

Miami Heat: Regaining Confidence and Regaining Clarity

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Although Miami won a game that they were expected to win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, it holds more value than you may think.

For starters, the confidence factor. This is across the board for everybody, but that starts with Jimmy Butler. He got some easy buckets at the start of the game, which was needed since him setting the tone was essential.

Also, the recent lack of 2 point shot attempts for Miami this season falls on Jimmy, since he is their primary attacker.

Duncan Robinson hitting 4 threes in the first half, after going 0-5 in the first half against Dallas is also very important. As I mentioned before the game, this match-up with OKC was a rhythm game. Getting Duncan back into his normal shooting rhythm holds value heading into Wednesday’s game against Boston.

So regaining that confidence was important for this team right now, but it wasn’t as important as regaining clarity.

Sixth different starting lineup in six games definitely doesn’t scream clarity, but maybe the slogan should be sixth time’s a charm.

Miami now has a clear 9 man rotation that they can go to on a regular basis, since this issue all along has been the 5th starter. I’ve been discussing keeping the main four guys off the bench together, since there is obvious continuity between them. The Goran Dragic and Precious Achiuwa offensive importance, and the Avery Bradley and Andre Iguodala defensive importance.

The fifth starter needed to be a guy that fits next to Bam Adebayo, can space the floor, and keep Miami in a good flow. And well, Kelly Olynyk did just that.

This does not mean Erik Spoelstra won’t change some things up with the starters or rotation going forward, but as of right now, he has his core group.

Miami needed both confidence and clarity these past few games, and it looks like they already have both after the sixth regular season game. And I believe that has a lot to do with the return of Jimmy Butler.

5 Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over OKC Thunder

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The Miami Heat were coming off of a poor offensive performance on Friday night against Dallas, but came out tonight with a purpose against the Oklahoma City Thunder to get the win. Not only were there some pretty great performances all around, but also some clarity on this team moving forward. Here are my five takeaways….

#1: Jimmy Butler gets going out the gate.

Jimmy Butler ended up with 14 points at the end of the first half, since he came out with a purpose to get to the basket. And if it wasn’t a bucket in the paint for him, it was a pass to someone else around the goal for a basket. It has been discussed that the key to the Heat getting back to normal revolves around Jimmy. He was needed to set the tone, even in a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and he did just that. And as discussed, having another ball-handler and play-maker on the floor makes everybody’s life easier. As many were wanting, Jimmy Butler played like Jimmy Butler tonight, and it was necessary heading into a match-up with the Boston Celtics on Wednesday.

#2: Duncan Robinson’s shooting back to normal.

Duncan Robinson shot 1-8 from three last game against the Dallas Mavericks, and 0-5 in the first half. And well, Duncan ended up going 4-7 from three in the first half tonight. That has a lot to do with Jimmy playing like Jimmy as well, since as I’ve mentioned, Duncan’s offensive game revolves around the production of Butler. When Jimmy begins to penetrate, the defense begins to shift and crash the interior, which allows Duncan to get open on the outside off of Bam Adebayo screen assists. It’s not that Duncan shot incredibly tonight, he just shot like himself. It was needed tonight since getting in a rhythm after that last game was important, especially approaching a big game against Boston as I mentioned prior.

#3: Tyler Herro looks good all-around, but still has flashes of hesitance.

When watching Tyler play tonight, it’s just clear that scoring isn’t his number one priority as it has been in the past. There were plenty of times that he beat his defender, but passed out to the corner instead of getting the ball up. There were also times that he made that extra pass, when the better shot would’ve been the opportunity that he got. Now, this definitely isn’t a huge knock against him tonight, since he played pretty well, it’s just something to look out for moving forward. He continued to look good as a passer, which looks even better when he shared the court with Jimmy Butler or Goran Dragic. And his rebounding abilities were on display as well, which is needed since Miami is last in the league in rebounds. Those extra efforts can make the difference to win you a basketball game.

#4: Miami finds a comfortable 9 man rotation.

Kelly Olynyk got inserted into the starting lineup tonight, which was the 6th different starting lineup in 6 games. But after getting a look at the rotation, it seems as if it may be here to stay. For one, I’ve been a proponent of keeping both Avery Bradley and Andre Iguodala on the bench, since they cause defensive havoc on the perimeter when they share the floor together. Goran Dragic and Precious Achiuwa also have a great offensive connection that they don’t want to mix up, which is why they’ve been labeled as the core four bench unit. Now, the fifth starter has been in question, but Kelly Olynyk makes the most sense. He fits well with Bam Adebayo, and it allows Bam to slide to the power forward position. Also Kelly spaces the floor perfectly for Bam and Jimmy to penetrate, which means a much more functional offense. It seems like this 9 man rotation will be one that will be seen on a nightly basis.

#5: Kelly Olynyk became an offensive spark once again.

Although I discussed Kelly Olynyk a bit previously moving forward in the rotation, I couldn’t allow his overall performance tonight to get overlooked. He has been looked at as an offensive spark for this team over the years, since he is very capable of putting on a shooting display that he put on tonight. But although you get nights like this from him, some not so good ones come with it. And that’s a risk this team will take, since adding size to this team was essential individually, but having that in a guy who can knock down 6 threes is even better. Many have been talking about that 5th starter not being on the roster, but I believe he might be. Well, at least for now. Kelly gives this team exactly what they need, especially since he seems to be the perfect fit next to Bam Adebayo.

A Familiar Starting Lineup Likely Against OKC

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Miami has played five games to this point, and each of those games have had a different starting lineup.

Until now. Well, I think.

The Miami Heat will be facing off against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and they match-up pretty well with them since Andre Iguodala is the placeholder 4 right now.

Oklahoma City basically starts three guards: George Hill, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Lu Dort. That most likely means Jimmy Butler will take the match-up of Shai, while Tyler Herro most likely guards Hill and Duncan guards Dort.

The Thunder also start an undersized four, Darius Bazely, and he’s coming off an impressive performance against the Orlando Magic. Andre Iguodala clearly matches up well with the 6’8 Bazely, and although there’s questions about what the future holds for Miami’s power forward position, they can win plenty of regular season games with him there.

And of course Bam Adebayo will match-up with Al Horford. There definitely isn’t much to dive into with that match-up since you feel comfortable with Bam on defense no matter who he is matched up with.

Now, the bench is where Miami really can pull away early. First off, having Goran Dragic head in with the bench unit is a positive in itself, but it’s even better when a rookie, Theo Maledon, will be matched up with him for some time.

Goran’s craftiness allows him to break down a lot of young guys without experience, which is why I wouldn’t be surprised if Theo gets in early foul trouble.

Another guy that will be utilized for some time tonight is Kelly Olynyk. The Thunder play a bunch of bigs off the bench, including Mike Muscala and rookie Aleksej Pokusevski.

When Muscala gets thrown in off the bench, I’d expect Spo to do the same with Olynyk. Precious Achiuwa can also see time on him, but there are plenty of athletic 4’s and bigs on the roster that make more sense for Achiuwa from a match-up perspective.

This is game that Miami should win, especially coming off of a terrible shooting night against the Dallas Mavericks.

Limiting turnovers will be a huge priority for Miami as well, since they average the most turnovers a game in the NBA.

It’ll also be necessary to see Jimmy Butler play like Jimmy Butler. Not Finals Jimmy, but the high energy Butler many are used to.

We will see what happens tonight, as Miami looks to go to 3-3 on the season.