Justise’s takeover, Derrick Jones dunks and rookie stars. What we learned from Heat opener
Five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s season-opening 120-101 win against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday at the AmericanAirlines Arena:
Justise Winslow handled go-to duties well.
Just hours before the season began, the Heat found out Jimmy Butler wouldn’t play Wednesday. The prized offseason acquisition was penciled in as Miami’s lead playmaker, scoring option and crunch-time finisher — a list of jobs which may have been Winslow’s had the Heat not landed the star wing.
Winslow provided a peak into an alternate timeline against the Magic in Miami. He led the Heat in points, field-goal attempts and assists. He finished with 27 points, seven rebounds and seven assists — a final line sometimes referred to as a “LeBron” because it aligns closely with LeBron James’ career averages.
“I knew we needed some of that scoring punch to be lifted up, but to me each game is kind of the same — just read and react, try to really play that point guard position and you just have to read the game,” Winslow said. “You have to know who has the hot hand and I kind of got it early, getting to the basket, getting fouled, so that kind of comes with playing that position, knowing who’s out there, knowing who’s hot. I was a little more aggressive, just knowing that Jimmy wasn’t there.”
Winslow started slow from the field — 1 of 4 in the first quarter — but made up for it by going 4 of 6 from the free-throw line in a disjointed opening period. When the offense clicked in the fourth quarter, Winslow was the driving force.
Miami (1-0) ripped off a 24-1 run early in the fourth quarter to pull away from the Grizzlies (0-1) and Winslow went into takeover mode. The power forward was 6 of 11 from the field, made both his free throws and hit his only three-point attempt. He also grabbed five rebounds and dished out three assists to finish the period with 15 points. Miami outscored Memphis by 25 points in the period while he was on the floor, the best of anyone on the team.
Jimmy Butler will still help, though.
The first quarter was the Heat at its best, then, almost immediately, at its worst.
The quarter began with a stop and then a tough runner by shooting guard Tyler Herro in the lane to put Miami up 2-0. The ensuing Grizzlies possession ended in a turnover, and Winslow connected for an alley-oop with post player Bam Adebayo to double the early lead. Point guard Kendrick Nunn hit one fadeaway jumper and flushed home another transition dunk in the opening four minutes.
The Heat played aggressive defense and turned it into offense. Miami’s exciting rookies hit tough shots. And then there was nothing.
From the 7:30 mark of the quarter until 4:46, the Heat scored just one point. Miami missed both of its shots and turned the ball over three times. Memphis staged a quick 12-1 run to take an 18-13 lead and force the Heat into a timeout. In one quarter, it was the full Heat experience from a year ago, when regular offensive lulls in nearly every game often crushed Miami’s chances at victory.
The proposed solution spent the night away from the team. Butler missed Miami’s opener for undisclosed personal reasons. Coach Erik Spoelstra didn’t give any timetable for the star wing’s return, but it was impossible to properly evaluate the new-look Heat without him in the arena, even after Miami found an offensive groove in the second half.
Kendrick Nunn is undeniable.
Nunn didn’t know what the future held for him right around this time last year. He was undrafted and unsigned after the Golden State Warriors opted to release him ahead of the regular season, and he was headed to a full year in the NBA G League with the Santa Cruz Warriors, Golden State’s affiliate.
The Heat prides itself on finding gems where no one else is looking and Nunn is looking like the latest. He dropped 40 in the preseason finale against the Houston Rockets on Friday to officially seal his already almost-certain roster spot. Like in the preseason finale, Butler didn’t play again Wednesday, which opened up an opportunity for Nunn to assert himself as the go-to scorer.
The 24-year-old got the starting nod in his NBA debut and quickly went to work. He hit a tough fadeaway for his first points, then, finished a dunk on a fast break for his next two. On Friday, he heated up in the second half and the same thing happened Tuesday. He breaks down defenders off the dribble and finishes at the rim, and it’s not even supposed to be his best skill. When Nunn was the No. 2 leading scorer in the country behind only Trae Young as a redshirt senior with the Oakland Grizzliies, Nunn was a sharpshooter, averaging nearly five three-pointers per game. He’s a weapon on the ball and he might be one off the ball once Butler is back.
“Kendrick, I’ve never seen him look like he’s ever under any stress, anxiety or pressure,” Spoelstra said. “That’s going back to preparing for summer league, in summer league. But he’s an experienced older young player. That’s part of the reason why you like him. He’s been in college, he played a year already in the pros. He has a pretty mature game and a mature disposition about him.
The Heat won with rookies.
Nunn wasn’t all. With Butler gone, Miami inserted Herro into the starting lineup, pairing him in the backcourt with Nunn. It was the first time the Heat started two rookies in the season opener since 2008, when Miami trotted out Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley for a forgettable team.
In the fourth quarter, they helped steer the Heat to a season-opening win with the help of a third rookie.
Herro played seven minutes in the final period. Nunn played 10. Chris Silva, a rookie forward on a two-way contract, played a team-high 11.
Miami knew it was going to get a major contribution from Nunn, who was poised to start even before Butler left the team. It knew Herro was going to play big minutes after a strong preseason positioned him as a dark-horse contender for Rookie of the Year. Silva, who might leave the team as early as Monday to join the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA G League, only played 32 seconds before the fourth quarter. Foul trouble pressed him into action and he elevated the Heat, which outscored the Grizzlies, 37-17, in the fourth quarter. The power forward went 3 for 3 from the field, 2 for 2 from the free throw line, grabbed six rebounds, blocked three shots, turned the ball over three times and committed five fouls.
“Sometimes he’s running around with his head cut off,” Winslow said.
In the same quarter, Nunn matched Winslow for a game-high 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting and Herro went 2 for 2 with five points. Nunn finished with 24 points — second most on the team — and Herro scored 14 despite only attempting two three-pointers.
Derrick Jones Jr. is the best dunker in the world.
Jonas Valanciunas, welcome to Derrick Jones Jr.’s wall of posters.
Please get this man in the Slam Dunk Contest.
This story was originally published October 24, 2019 at 12:17 AM.
