The Miami Heat lost 120-100 against the Detroit Pistons in embarrassing fashion. The ice cold Heat team once again couldn’t field a healthy team being down Jimmy Butler, Avery Bradley, Moe Harkless (COVID 19 protocol) and Tyler Herro (Neck Spasms) for Saturday’s game. This lead to field another unique starting 5 for Erik Spoelstra and company vs the worst team in the NBA record wise.
Turnovers
Entering Saturday Night’s game, the Miami Heat were second in the league in most turnovers per game (behind the Chicago Bulls) with 17.8 a game. Against the Pistons, the Heat had an abysmal 22 trunovers. A majority of the turnovers came from miscommunication and sloppy passes. It seems like players aren’t communicating with one another leading to very stagnate offense and not paying attention to the ball. This is leading to wasteful offensive possessions and easy points on the other end of the court.
The lack of a true ball handler is showing as the only true point guard on the team is Goran Dragic. The Miami Heat tried to move Tyler Herro to this position, but it wasn’t his natural fit. Kendrick Nunn last season filled this role nicely, but his regression has made him borderline unplayable at times. The Miami Heat need to fix this issue with the trade market, looking at guys like Derrick Rose, Marcus Smart, or Victor Oladipo to remove some of the pressure on Dragic.
Defense
It is now 4 games which the opposition has scored 120+ on a team known for the defensive prowess. The intensity and communication of this team looked off and it’s leading to very sloppy sets. This could result from a very short offseason and lack of a proper training camp and preseason, but this needs to change quickly. The loss of Jae Crowder also doesn’t help as he was very active on the defense side.
Players to Note
Bam Adebayo was a bright spot to watch tonight with 28 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 blocks on 8/11 shooting. He looked dominant on both sides on the floor, and his jumpshot has come a long way since his rookie year. Bam truly has no ceiling if he continues to shoot the ball well, especially if he develops a 3 point shot. However, what Bam needs to understand is that he is a max player now. He has to play aggressive every game. 11 shots doesn’t work for a max player, even if he got 12 free throws with it.
KZ Okpala has been a player on most fans radar for a while. On Saturday Night against the Pistons, Okpala had his first career start and delivered with 16 points, hitting 4 3’s in the process. He also played very active defensively, although he got cooked by Jerami Grant a few times. KZ once again has given HC Erik Spoelstra some key minutes when needed. This team has proven time and time again that it has a pulse in developing talent like no other, but it’s time to unleash KZ.
Conclusion
The Miami Heat lost against Detroit in very ugly fashion to continue the team’s cold streak. While the Heat have had problems with injuries and Covid protocols, they still had no excuse. The Heat now fall to 4-7 while the Pistons improve to 3-9, still bottom of the league. The Heat face the Pistons once again on Monday, with tipoff at 3:00 PM.