3 Heat takeaways from the close preseason win vs. Spurs
10/15/2024 09:58 PM
After the Miami Heat won the home preseason opener last Sunday, they win two straight Tuesday night beating the San Antonio Spurs, 120-117. The Heat are on the quest to compete against a tough East as they look to prepare their players during the preseason before the games get meaningful later in the month.
Here are three takeaways from the Heat’s win:
The second appearance of the Heat’s projected starting five
One of the biggest aspects for the Heat this season is the projected starting five of Terry Rozier, Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Nikola Jovic, and Bam Adebayo. In Sunday’s preseason home opener win against the New Orleans Pelicans, they started slow due to the five having never played with each other in a game, but ended on a good note giving a taste of what could be.
Tuesday night saw the Heat’s starting five have success in a lot more areas compared to their last outing as they flowed much better in transition, got the exact shots they wanted, and capitalize on the opportunties. There is no doubt that it will be a work in progress since it’s their second game together, but it’s hopefully a good sign of things to come for the regular season.
To start the game, they weren’t making all of the shots that were open to them as they made seven of their 17 attempts from the field and three of 10 from deep. Still, they were finding their spots and getting the looks they want while the Spurs had to work for their buckets as Miami played stifling defense.
When they got out of the first quarter, each had a +4 which improved to a +6 by the end of the first half where they played even smoother, looking like a cohesive unit instead of a lineup with a mish-mash of talent.
More time for starting five in the second half
The starting five would even come back out for the second half which didn’t happen in the last game as Spoelstra wants as much time with this lineup as possible. It does make sense as the Heat have the backend of the back to back the next day which is likely to not see any of the starters play and if they do, it would be a brief appearance.
Playing crucial stars on a back to back in the preseason wouldn’t be the ideal move as the Heat are preparing for a fully healthy lineup this season which has been a well documented issue the past few years. What is the projected starting five is still a work in progress as they did end their time in the game on a middling note as the team had their worst period up until that point in the third where they scored 22 points while San Antonio had their best at 33.
At any rate, Adebayo led the five with 20, Herro with 14, Butler with 12, Jovic with seven, and Rozier with five. The next time fans could see them is the game after Wednesday which is on Friday against the Memphis Grizzlies on the road.
How the Heat’s second unit looked
Alec Burks came back to the lineup after a day off in the win over the Pelicans in exchange for Haywood Highsmith who didn’t play as one would assume he has the same reasoning. The first five off the bench after the starters was Dru Smith, Duncan Robinson, Alec Burks, Jaime Jaquez Jr., and Kevin Love.
They continued what the starters gave which was complimentary basketball, especially with some noticeable exceptional ball movement as at one point, Miami had 10 assists on 13 made baskets. The unit would come back in the second half with a slight change at center with Thomas Bryant and continued the slippage that the starting lineup had.
However, they got a groove back after losing a lead and got it back with over 10 minutes left in the game thought it became a close one at the end with the Heat squeaking it out. Wednesday’s game against the Hawks should be a full display of the Heat’s young talent looking to make a name for themselves whether they are rookies or unproven players.
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