Going into the season, the Miami Heat’s identity was fixed around Chris Bosh and Josh McRoberts. On offense and defense, they were going to be the quickest, fastest, most versatile front court in the NBA. Or at least they would try to be. But with McRoberts out for the season we can throw that out the window. After missing eight games, Bosh practiced Sunday and will hopefully return soon. When he does come back, the Heat need to change their identity and move Bosh to power forward.
The Heat are playing at the slowest pace in the NBA. Small-ball lineups are typically played in order to push the pace and take advantage of a team’s speed. The Heat, however, are playing small-ball in a big way, slowing down the game and grinding to get open shots. Some of that is because the Heat don’t have many individual shot creators and rely on ball movement to get open looks.
Ball movement is important and a great way to get good shots. Just look at the Spurs. But Miami is having a hard time, and the ball movement is closer to nails on a chalkboard than a Spursian ballet.
The Heat take 26 percent of their shots in the final seven seconds of the shot clock, according to NBA.com/Stats. That’s insanely slow and dangerous. An average-to-slow team should take somewhere between 18-and-22 percent of their shots in the final seven seconds.
The NBA’s fastest teams take 13-15 percent of their shots in the final seven seconds. Most shots occur between 15 and 7 seconds, and the sweet spot is between 15 and 18 seconds. The best offensive teams like the Warriors and Mavericks take 18-20 percent of their shots here. They get good looks with organized, crisp ball movement that result in quick, open looks. The Heat take just 12 percent of their shots in that time slot.
Nov 1, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Miami Heat forward Chris Andersen (11) and Philadelphia 76ers forward Nerlens Noel (4) battle for position during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
The Heat are, by far, the worst rebounding team in the league. However, with Chris Andersen starting at center with Bosh out, the Heat have averaged nearly two more rebounds per game, per NBA.com/Stats. Also with Andersen on the court, the Heat grab 49.5 percent of available rebounds, a clip that would rank 18th in the NBA.
The recent inclusion of the rebounding teddy bear Hassan Whiteside has also helped Miami on the boards. Whiteside grabbed seven rebounds in just 16 minutes against the Grizzlies Saturday. In the two games in which Whiteside played more than 10 minutes (vs the Wizards and Grizzlies) the Heat were out-rebounded just 67 to 68.
The rotation of Andersen, Whiteside and Udonis Haslem at center hasn’t been the weakness of this team. Rather, the Heat have struggled to get open shots.
The Heat have their highest offensive rating and net rating with Chris Andersen playing, per NBA.com/Stats, accounting for players who have played significant minutes. Birdman’s ability to protect the rim, set the tone on the boards and dive on the pick-and-roll give the Heat an edge on both sides of the court.
They need him in the starting lineup. That would move Chris Bosh to power forward.
Last season, the two-man lineup of Andersen and Bosh was Miami’s third-best of lineups that played at least 300 minutes together, per NBA.com/Stats–averaging 106.4 points and allowing just 93 points per 100 possessions. Because of injuries, they have played in just nine games together this season.
Andersen can be the Tyson Chandler, allowing Bosh to be more like Dirk. Moving Bosh to the 4 will make it easier for him to get shots without having to bang bodies with opposing centers. Kevin Garnett, who was moved from power forward to center late in his career, always preferred playing power forward because he felt more free to move around the court.
"“I have a lot of confidence in myself when it comes to playing basketball, and positions are just numbers to me. But if it comes to preference, I enjoy the 4. There’s a lot more versatility in the 4. The 5 you’re kind of stuck in mud and cement and you know things are written — there’s not a lot of variation in the 5 position. But this is what it is, and I’m enjoying it and I’m adapting and doing whatever I can to give my team an edge.”"
(Via “KG on playing center: I don’t like it” by Chris Forsberg, ESPNBoston.com)
Andersen, meanwhile, thrives playing in the pick-and-roll. Having a center who can dive and catch on the roll with fluidity is a tremendous advantage. Bird sets great picks and seamlessly dives to the rim.
He is limited to putbacks and backdoor cuts (all near the rim) offensively, but he’s crazy efficient, hitting 72.2 percent of his shots within five feet of the basket.
Starting Bosh and Andersen would give Miami a more traditional lineup that jives with their current pace and improve the ball movement.
It would also deepen the Heat’s shallow bench. Shawne Williams–one of the Heat’s most impressive players this season–and a recently-resurgent Danny Granger join Whiteside to provide more depth. Spoelstra can always play Bosh at the 5 with Williams at the 4 for situational purposes, too.
What it comes down to is Spoelstra playing his five best players. That’s Chalmers, Wade, Deng, Bosh and Andersen. That starting lineup matches the identity that Spo has been forced–though didn’t necessarily want–to play this season.