In the latest episode of Locked On Heat, the hosts dive into Miami’s win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
- Game-Winning Play: The Heat beat the Wolves, 95-94, after Nikola Jovic drove to the rim, and drew a foul to put Miami up by one. It was a well-designed play by head coach Erik Spoelstra, who chose to have Jovic take the game-winning shot instead of leading scorer Tyler Herro. Jovic finished the night with 15 points including the clutch basket.
- Bam Adebayo’s Struggles: Adebayo continues to struggle, shooting just 3-of-11 from the floor for a total of 9 points. While Adebayo contributed in other ways, the same problems that have been there for the most of the season were evident in the game, including an unwillingness to shoot when open and being uncomfortable as the hub of the team’s offense.
- Tyler Herro’s Excellence: Herro led the team in scoring with 26 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter and was Miami’s most consistent scoring option. If there’s a beneficiary from the team’s overhauled offense, it’s Herro, who looks more and more comfortable with every game and is looking like an All-Star caliber player.
- Lineup Changes: Haywood Highsmith started in place of Jimmy Butler, out due to an injury in Friday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets. While his offense was mostly a nonfactor, his defense played a pivotal role in limiting Wolves superstar Anthony Edwards to just 22 points on 8-of-24 shooting. Highsmith had five steals in the win. Kevin Love, in his first action of the season, also started in place of Jovic, playing just 13 minutes but contributing some key rebounding, and value as a floor-spacing big.
- Kel’el Ware’s Performance: Rookie Ware got more playing time as Adebayo’s backup, showing some promise defensively, finishing the night with 3 blocks. While Love’s role as a starter doesn’t seem quite cemented, it’s possible that Spoelstra will continue to give the rookie more playing time as a shot-blocker and versatile scorer.
- Salvaging Road Trip: After two tough losses to start this 6-game road trip, the win in Minnesota was crucial to help provide some positivity and a potential building block to string some needed wins together. Coach Spoelstra deserves some credit for being willing to change the lineups and rotations, but also continues to give some players far too much playing time despite their inability to contribute in any meaningful way.
Can the Heat build off this win to close out the road trip on a positive note? And should Erik Spoelstra continue to lean into the team’s younger players in search of answers? For answers to these questions and more, make sure to subscribe to and listen to the latest episodes of Locked on Heat.
