The AllUCanHeat staff take a moment to discuss the Miami Heat’s rough start to their season and more.
First and foremost, let’s get this out of the way. Are you worried about the Miami Heat’s season, moving forward? Why, or why not?
Allana Tachauer (@AllanaTachauer): Worried? No. I’m still keeping the faith that the 30-11 Heat will make an appearance very soon, and rock everyone’s world. But I am disappointed. And more than that, surprised. While I figured the 2017-18 roster would still have to work out a few kinks with the addition of Kelly Olynyk, Justise Winslow returning, etc., I never expected such inconsistent play. However, like I said, I’m still confident that they can turn things around.
Ivan Mora (@moraivan): I am more disappointed than worried. Just based on the fact that our expectations for this team were extremely high. Now a month into the regular season and the reality is sinking in. We are barely a playoff team and are clinging for a .500 record. I guess it’s our fault for expecting way too much. Our chemistry is off and our defense is atrocious. I still think we can fix it, but probably not in time for a playoff spot.
Kris Keaton (@kmkeaton2): I don’t know if worried is the right word to describe my feelings for the Heat season. However, whatever is a step below optimistic, is where I stand. The team will be good enough to make noise in the Eastern Conference, because there are a few “middle of the pack” teams. But I don’t see them being anything more than that. With no real star player to go to and weird rotations, it just seems like the upside of the team is limited going forward.
Chase Eyrich (@Ceyrich): Absolutely I’m worried. The season hasn’t started off the way most of us imagined it would. The biggest reason why I’m concerned is because we can’t exactly identify what the problem is. Even in the first few games we recognized that turnovers were a huge issue. But, there was no clear answer on how to fix it. The turnovers weren’t coming from any specific trend or plays that the Heat were running, they would just come up at will. Another issue has been the third quarter. This dates back to last year. Coming out of the locker room at half should be some of the best basketball you play, for the Heat it’s the worst.
Brandon Johnson (@bjtripleot): Worried for this season? Not quite. Worried about next season? Absolutely. The Heat’s goals this year should include proving that they are elite competitors and capable of consistency with their current core. That doesn’t mean they have to win every game, but at least look like they could (kind of like the No. 4 seeded Utah Jazz from last year). Miami lacks a true star for the second straight season since since 2002-2003 (no disrespect, Eddie Jones), and if they can’t turn one of their current guys into an always-on, go-to player, attracting free agents next year will be a pipe dream.