Podcast: Overreactions (and more measured takes) from Heat’s opener. And our Finals picks
The Miami Heat was back in action Wednesday, but it sure didn’t look like the Heat we last saw in the 2020 NBA Finals.
Miami threw the ball all over the court at the Amway Center. The Heat only attempted 20 three-pointers. After stealing two games from the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals, Miami opened the 2020-21 NBA season with a 113-107 loss to the Orlando Magic.
Sure, it was only one game, but it was also the only game we have to judge so far, which means it’s time for some overreactions on a new episode of the Heat Check podcast. David Wilson and Anthony Chiang, the Miami Herald’s Heat beat writer, break down what went wrong in Orlando, including the turnover issues, the three-point and free-throw disparities, and the underwhelming Miami debut of forward Maurice Harkless.
Are these signs of persistent issues? Is the Heat regretting letting forward Jae Crowder leave for the Phoenix Suns? What’s up with the starting lineup?
After one game, we have some questions about what the first few weeks of the season will look like for Miami as coach Erik Spoelstra tries to put together an ideal supporting cast around All-Star forwards Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler.
There was some good stuff, though, too. Adebayo’s jumper looks great, guard Goran Dragic seems healthy and forward Precious Achiuwa already looked like a veteran in his NBA debut. Overreactions are fun, but we’re not worried about what the Heat will look like a month from now.
We wrap things up by doing our a-little-too-late season preview. We make our picks for the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and NBA Rookie of the Year, including the case for James Wiseman’s lofty upside and why Zion Williamson could be a dark horse in the MVP conversation.
To wrap up things up, we make some Finals picks. We went 2 for 2 last year, as both Wilson and Chiang picked the Lakers to win the title, but we’re split for the 2021 NBA Finals. We do agree on one thing, though: The Brooklyn Nets are going to be a problem in the Eastern Conference.
