Dragic, Wade used to be Heat’s starting backcourt. Now, they are big part of ‘bench mob’
Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 116-107 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder (42-29) on Monday at Chesapeake Energy Arena. It marked the Heat’s seventh win in its past nine games.
1. The Goran Dragic-Dwyane Wade backcourt is alive and well.
The starting backcourt that led the Heat on its 2015-16 playoff run that ended one game away from the Eastern Conference Finals is still a thing. And it’s a thing that’s turned into a real weapon for Miami ... off the bench.
After combining for 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting on threes in the pivotal fourth quarter of Sunday’s win over the Hornets, Dragic and Wade teamed up as reserves to lead the Heat (34-36) to a win in Oklahoma City.
Dragic, 32, and Wade, 37, combined for 51 points on 19-of-34 shooting and 7-of-13 shooting on threes, nine rebounds, 16 assists and just two turnovers. With Dragic and Wade in the game together, the Heat outscored the Thunder by 18 points in 25 minutes.
“It gives us a different dynamic,” Wade said of playing with Dragic. “As you guys have seen tonight and saw the other night as well, he can score the basketball. He’s shooting the ball very well right now, but also someone else who can handle the basketball. It gives me an opportunity to play off the ball a lot. I can attack in different ways but also play on the ball.
“Like I said, I’m glad to be playing with him again. Haven’t played with him like this since 2016, so it feels good.”
Dragic finished with 26 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field and 6-of-9 shooting on threes, five rebounds, 11 assists and zero turnovers in 29 minutes.
One of the adjustments Dragic has made since returning from knee surgery last month is to shoot more threes and attempt less drives to the basket to help preserve his body, and it’s working because he’s shooting an ultra-efficient 47.7 percent from three-point range in the 10 games he’s played after coming back from injury.
“I’m playing a little bit different,” Dragic said. “I’’m not attacking the paint so much. I focus more, especially in practice, on shooting more. You can see I’ve been taking more threes. You know, you need to adapt in this league. You need to adapt. It’s not like you can play every year or your whole career like you did the first couple of years in the league. I was penetrating, I was getting inside the paint. Now it’s changed a little bit.”
Wade ended the night with 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field, four rebounds and five assists in 33 minutes, which is the second-most minutes he’s played in his final NBA season behind only the 34 minutes he logged in a Nov. 25 loss to the Raptors.
“I couldn’t [take him out]. I asked him a couple times in the fourth quarter,” coach Erik Spoelstra said of Wade. “The whole coaching staff was reminding me the entire fourth quarter to get him out. I think Dwyane and I are just falling back into our 2009 routine. You know, what are we saving him for? We have three and a half weeks left in the regular season. We’ve load managed him all season long. Let’s just go for it. He wants to play. I want him to play. We need him.”
The Heat has outscored its opponent by a combined 21 points in the 246 minutes Dragic and Wade have played together this season.
“We were talking before the game like, ‘Man, we the bench mob now,’” Wade said. “Years ago, we were the starting backcourt that took us a game away from the Eastern Conference Finals. But we’re just doing our job. And it’s great because you have two guys that can be on attack at different times, in different ways.
“I’m glad he’s back. I know he wishes he didn’t have to wear that brace, but he’s playing damn well with it right now. As he continues to get his legs under him and continues to get in great shape as we go down the stretch, he’s going to help us a lot, especially that second unit.”
Led by Dragic and Wade, the Heat’s bench outscored the Thunder’s bench 67-10. Reserve forward James Johnson contributed 14 points, three steals and two blocks in a solid performance for the second consecutive game after falling out of the rotation over the past month.
It was a quiet night for reserve center Hassan Whiteside, who scored two points and grabbed four rebounds in five minutes of action.
2. There was no Russell Westbrook for the Thunder, so All-Star forward Paul George was left to carry the load. Westbrook was out as he served a one-game suspension for receiving his 16th technical foul of the season.
George didn’t back down, scoring a team-high 31 on 9-of-19 shooting. He even got help from Jerami Grant, who scored a season-high 27 points, and Dennis Schroder, who finished with 20 points.
But in the end, the Thunder just didn’t make enough shots and committed too many turnovers. Oklahoma City shot 43.7 percent from the field and 10 of 37 on threes, and committed 19 turnovers.
Miami now owns the eighth-best defensive rating in the NBA for the season, and the top defensive rating in March. The Heat has allowed just 102.4 points per 100 possessions in nine games this month.
3. While Oklahoma City committed too many turnovers, the Heat played a clean game against an elite defense.
The Thunder forces the most turnovers in the league at 16.9 per game and owns the league’s fourth-best defensive rating. But Miami found a way to limit its mistakes, committing just nine turnovers Monday.
“A big key of that was Goran and Dwyane, having guys like that,” Spoelstra said. “So you have Justise [Winslow] out (because of a right thigh bruise), one of our primary ball handlers. I think in the first three minutes, I think we were a little bit unsettled by the pressure. But when you’re able to bring experienced players like that into the game, I say it: ‘They don’t get sick at sea.’ They’ve seen everything and that just gives you kind a calm to be able to execute and try to get something coherent.”
The Heat, which has averaged the seventh-most turnovers in the NBA this season at 14.9 per game, have done a much better job at taking care of the ball recently. Miami has committed 14 or fewer turnovers in six consecutive games and is averaging just 11.7 turnovers during this stretch.
The Heat is 19-7 this season when it finishes a game with fewer than 14 turnovers.
4. Josh Richardson’s shooting slump continues.
In Sunday’s win over the Hornets, Richardson turned in the worst shooting performance of his career from the field and three-point range. He scored seven on 2-of-17 shooting from the field and 0-of-9 shooting on threes.
Monday’s matchup against the Thunder wasn’t much better for Richardson, as he finished with nine points on 3-of-14 shooting from the field and 1-of-5 shooting on threes.
Over the past two games, Richardson has made just 5 of 31 shots (16.1 percent) from the field and 1 of 14 (7.1 percent) shots from three-point range.
This two-game slump comes after a solid stretch for Richardson, as he averaged 15 points on 46.3 percent shooting from the field and 38.6 percent shooting on threes over his previous nine games before this skid.
It’s been that type of up-and-down season for the 25-year-old wing players. He’s averaging a team-high 16.8 points on 41.3 percent shooting this season.
But to Richardson’s credit, he still found a way to make an impact Monday despite his poor shooting performance. He recorded seven rebounds and six assists, and Spoelstra was compelled enough to play him a team-high 40 minutes against the Thunder.
5. With Monday’s win, the Heat strengthened its hold on the Eastern Conference’s eighth and final playoff spot and also gained ground on the teams immediately in front of it in the standings.
With the Magic and Hornets both idle Monday, Miami moved 1.5 games ahead of No. 9 Orlando and 2.5 games ahead of No. 10 Charlotte. The Heat pulled within one game of No. 7 Brooklyn and two games of No. 6 Detroit.
Monday’s win marked the beginning of a challenging 13-game stretch for Miami that includes nine on the road to close the regular season. The win in Oklahoma City was a strong start.
Next up for the Heat is a Wednesday matchup against the Spurs in San Antonio, which is the second contest on Miami’s current four-game trip. The Spurs are on a nine-game winning streak.
