This week’s Makes and Misses digs into the Miami Heat’s third quarter struggles, James Johnson’s mini-resurgence and more.
The Miami Heat are a team still searching for their identity, as a lackluster week raised more questions than answers.
Going 1-3, the week was bookended with a loss against the Detroit Pistons, and the team’s ugliest loss of the year, a 25-point drubbing at the hands of the Indiana Pacers. The lone win came in Washington, after dropping the front end of the home-and-home with the Wizards.
Looking at the makes and misses this week, there are few positives for the Heat. However, there are some, particularly when it comes to a few important pieces rounding into shape. The negatives begin largely with the third quarter, where the Heat were -21 over four games. Save for a rare offensive misstep from the Wizards that allowed the Heat back in the game, the number could’ve been worse.
The Heat’s offense coming back out of the locker room is one of the most confusing trends in the sport. There is no reason why a team with the high emphasis on execution should immediately surrender a big run to start the third quarter, often offering up their most perplexing offensive looks of the entire game (more on that later). From there, the defense deteriorates and the game is out of reach.
After the debacle to the Pacers, head coach Erik Spoelstra finally revealed a little of the intensity and frustration he’s surely been holding back in a short, aggressive press conference.
"“We’ll find a solution,”he snapped. “We’ll find a way to play Miami Heat basketball one way or another.”"
This sentiment was felt by all fans after watching a Pacers team content to land in the lottery, look like Eastern Conference frontrunners. The Heat put up zero fight and get rewarded by a visit from the real kings of the conference, the 15-2 Boston Celtics. Then, they’ll embark on another multi-game road trip.
Sitting at 7-9, the Heat are in deep trouble if low effort becomes a pattern as they move into a difficult part of their schedule.
Make: James Johnson
Out of all the negatives that cropped up yet again this week, James Johnson finally looked like the player who earned a long-term contract with his dynamic play and leadership.
While it was just for one game, Johnson’s 20 points, five rebounds and four assists during a big road win in Washington, was just what the doctor ordered. Following a disappointing home loss to the same team, Johnson honestly evaluated himself, calling his performances “terrible.” He responded like Spoelstra and the Heat hoped he would in the following game.
Much of Johnson’s season so far has been full of hesitant play, almost pressing to make the big impact that earned him his contract in the offseason. But Friday night against the Wizards looked far more like the old Johnson, with the forward using his activity to get moving downhill towards the rim and free up his offensive game.
Confident, active Johnson is the best way for him to play to help the Heat win. Even though he’s open for a wide open three, Johnson sees his big man with excellent position down low and makes a great pass for the score.
Johnson had his inside and outside game working against the Wizards, for a much needed return to form, if only for a night. Even though his stat-line wasn’t as impressive against the Pacers (no member of the Heat owned a good line though), there were still flashes of the shot-creator that can open up the offense, like this touch pass to Wayne Ellington.
The Heat need more playmaking, particularly from someone like Johnson, who can initiate the offense and is deeply involved in the pick and roll game. They can only hope that moving forward, he continues this pace along with his steady contributions on the defensive end.
Miss: Goran Dragic
It was a tough week at the office for the point guard.
Goran Dragic had two matchups with one of the most difficult backcourts in the league, as John Wall and Bradley Beal pinned their ears back and picked on the point guard on one end, greatly affecting his game on the other end.
Over the course of four games, Dragic was responsible for 13 turnovers and topped 20 points just once, in a home loss against Wall, Beal and the Wizards. Dragic scored just six points in Washington and then eight against the Pacers, far from the type of production the Heat need from their point guard.
This was the type of week that it was for Dragic, overmatched and without a lifeline as none of his teammates proved reliable offensively. The last two games were a sign of fatigue setting in after two brutal matchups against Wall and Beal. It doesn’t get any easier as Kyrie Irving and the Celtics come to town on Wednesday.
The reality is, if Dragic isn’t playing up to his averages, the Heat have just about no chance to win on any given night. He is the head of the snake of a team that is already limited offensively (the Heat scored over 100 points just once this week) and is relied upon to facilitate and score.
While the point totals are concerning, the shot is something that’ll come and go as averages work themselves out. That shouldn’t be the main area of focus. The real trouble area is the turnovers, which have arguably cost the Heat several games this season already.
Coming off of a season where he averaged nearly three turnovers per game (team-leading), Dragic can’t allow that trend to continue (already at 2.4 turnovers per game) especially with a team having as much trouble holding onto the ball as the Heat.
Make: Wayne Ellington
Another encouraging sign for the Heat was the play of their resident sharpshooter, as Ellington corrected a low start with a week where he shot 11-of-21 from deep.
While it’s an empty award, Ellington was the lone bright spot for the Heat against the Pacers, keeping them in the game early with his shooting and doing his best to spark a run that would never come.
The minutiae of the Pacers game aside, getting Ellington back on track is almost as important as James Johnson for the long-term success of this season. Ellington is virtually unplayable when he isn’t shooting well, considering he isn’t a plus defender. But provides immense value when he can knock down threes and space the defense.
Ellington’s shot opens up so much for the Heat, including driving lanes and space to operate for Dion Waiters, Dragic, Justise Winslow and the Johnsons. More importantly, Hassan Whiteside.
Every successful Heat offense has had a must-mark shooter (or three) that pulls the defense out with their activity. Ray Allen, Chris Bosh, Shane Battier have all occupied this role, and now Ellington gets the opportunity to step into that function. As long as he’s shooting well, the Heat’s offense can go (Ellington was a heroic -2 against the Pacers) to the heights that’ll allow its defense to win the game comfortably.
While Ellington may not have the name recognition of those past champions, his conditioning and his activity on the offensive end gives the Heat another weapon that, again, they desperately need.
Miss: Third Quarter Offense
The third quarter has plagued the Miami Heat in almost every game this season and its one of the biggest reasons they sit on the wrong side of .500 at this point in the year.
Yet again this week, the Heat logged a -21 in the third quarter as the worst team in the league coming out of the halftime break continued to tighten its grip on that title.
The “why” of the problem is for another time, but some of the “how” starts with the stagnant offense that leads to poor shot selectons and fast breaks for the defense. There are also the turnovers that allowed the Wizards to seize control of the game, they’d eventually give back to the Heat in the fourth quarter.
Here’s a touch from Tyler Johnson against Washington with the Heat up 18, a quarter they’d lose by 12. There is nothing that tells Johnson to shoot this ball, an inefficient long two-pointer. The Heat are still early in their action and Johnson is just the second guy to touch the ball. The defense didn’t react to Johnson receiving the ball and he still felt the need to shoot.
Again, here is Josh Richardson with an even worse look. First action off a weak screen from Whiteside, and Richardson takes the worst shot you could possibly generate: the long two-pointer.
There is no explanation for why the Heat snap into “quick shot” mode when the third quarter arrives. When they display patience on offense and work together, moving the ball around and moving through their sets, they can be successful.
Outside of X’s and O’s, the Heat simply lack energy coming out of the break. A good team who went into the halftime break with a lead (which they did twice this week) has to come out and continue to establish that lead. Especially when that team is at home.
The Heat cannot sustain having to overcome a fourth quarter deficit every night, or even on most nights. That’s the situation they put themselves in when they don’t play well in the third quarter.
Next: Miami Heat collapse versus Indiana Pacers, falling 120-95
Let’s hope for a better week for the team.