How does Heat stand after 50 games? ‘Super mediocre.’ Players, Spoelstra explain problems
Guard Terry Rozier has two words to describe the Heat 50 games into the season:
“Super mediocre.”
It is almost like there is some magnetic force always dragging the Heat back to .500.
Six times this season, Miami lost a game with a chance to move two games above .500. Three times in the past seven weeks, the Heat has lost three in a row after winning two or three in a row.
Friday’s 102-86 setback in Brooklyn - marked by a gruesome fourth quarter in which Miami was outscored 31-9 – left the Heat at 25-25.
Miami hasn’t been more than three games above .500 all season and has alternated between wins and losses for five consecutive games.
The cycle of mediocrity has created a new level of frustration.
“Tonight was devastating,” Rozier said Friday after Miami shot 2 for 21 in the fourth quarter and blew a six-point lead to start the fourth. “We said some things after the game, and I feel it will better us. We obviously have got to turn things around right now. That’s why we’re having these tough conversations.”
Poor defense has foiled the Heat on some nights. On Friday, the culprit was an offense that is 19th in points per 100 possessions.
“We’re inconsistent right now,” Erik Spoelstra said. “We’re inconsistent game to game, possession to possession. We put together three to four possessions in a row, and there is a natural human condition and we fall prey to it quickly. Managing success, we don’t manage it well.
“Transition defense, rebounding, that has plagued us at key times this year. Second half offense [on Friday] was about as poor as we can do it… We have the right intentions. We will figure this out.”
Adebayo cited defense as an ongoing issue, even though Miami is ninth in the NBA in points permitted per 100 possessions.
“When we don’t get stops, we’re not going to be able to win,” he said. “We can’t try to rely on outscoring people. That’s not the way our team is built. Our team is built to get stops, run in transition. That’s how you get easy baskets. That’s how we collectively start feeling great. You get stops, everyone feels like they’re doing their job; we secure a rebound and we run.”
Herro added: “When we’re not getting shots [to go down], it’s kind of hard setting our defense. It also puts a lot more pressure on our defense when we’re not scoring.”
But Adebayo said there are other factors holding Miami back:
“I don’t think me and Spo are going to stop driving this thing until we do [get more consistent]. For us, it’s not even big muscle areas. It’s small stuff: missing block outs, miscommunications, not knowing what coverage we’re in on defense. It’s those little things that great teams do.”
So how does the Heat escape this .500 spin cycle?
“Stay with it. It’s not a time to fold or feel sorry for ourselves,” Herro said.
Friday’s loss pushed Miami down a spot in the Eastern standings, to seventh, which would mean needing to qualify for a playoff spot through the play-in for a third consecutive year.
No. 6 Detroit (26-26) and the No. 7 Heat (25-25) have the same record, but the Pistons hold the tiebreaker. Orlando (25-28) and Atlanta (24-28) are eighth and ninth.
An immediate goal would be trying to catch No. 5 Milwaukee (27-23) or less likely, No. 4 Indiana (29-21).
On Sunday, Heat newcomers Andrew Wiggins, Davion Mitchell and Kyle Anderson are expected to practice with the team for the first time.
The biggest adjustment, Adebayo said, is “just getting them comfortable on the offensive side. We’ve got guys that fit in with the defensive standard… You can make mistakes as long as you play hard. I think they’ll be just fine.”
Herro said: “All three are great guys that you can throw in there and they know how to play really well. It won’t be a challenge, but it will something we’ll have to work through as we bring them into what we’re doing.”
And Rozier noted: “It’s pretty easy to fit into our system. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
