Offensive inadequacies stifle the Miami Heat, in a blowout loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
The basketball gods shone kindly upon the Miami Heat of late.
After finishing the month of January with a 10-5 record, the Heat went on to secure its first All-Star appearance in two years through Goran Dragic, as well as earning coach Erik Spoelstra Coach of the Month honors.
Striding into February, the Heat’s first game came against the Rookie of the Month Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers. The first of three meetings this month, here are some takeaways from Miami’s loss to Philadelphia.
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Defense is a Five-Man Game
Coming into the contest with a trifecta of Sixers scorers to contain Simmons, Joel Embiid and J.J. Reddick, it was Philly’s dark horse that handed the early victory. Dario Saric posted 14 first half points against the Heat, butressing an early lead as Miami prioritized limited interior scoring from Embiid.
While Saric ended the game with 17 points, Philadelphia’s collective hothand had the Heat reeling until the fourth quarter. On the whole, the Heat’s defense wasn’t particularly misplaced; the game boiled down to the Sixers’ early lead being too much to overcome.
Where Was Whiteside?
Billed as a battle of titans in the Embiid, Hassan Whiteside matchup, Whiteside went missing on the offensive end to start the game. The first half, marked by two first quarter fouls (and a preemptive benching), matched Whiteside’s total points through 24 minutes of play. Whiteside would only contribute two more after the half.
Despite his offensive drought, Whiteside did combine with Bam Adebayo to corral 24 total rebounds. Philadelphia’s persistence to collapse on Whiteside however, stagnated Miami’s offense, leading to another unsuccessful game of playing catchup.
Brick Brigade
Following the public debut of the Heat’s Platinum Group, it was the collective woes of Miami’s offense early that prevented the bench from totally eliminating a 28-point deficit. Philadelphia dumped in 49 percent of their field goals, including a 19-0 run midway through the third quarter, while Miami only managed 39 percent from the field.
The Platinum Group did sponsor a 24-4 run in the fourth, giving credence to their namesake. Miami’s bench kept the Sixers engaged until the final buzzer, coming within four, with under a minute to play.
In that second unit, the tandem of Kelly Olynyk and Adebayo’s efforts were felt the strongest; the rookie notched a double-double in 29 minutes and Olynyk notched 19 points, shooting 60 percent from the field.
Next: Miami Heat’s Erik Spoelstra slowly making a Coach of the Year case?
Miami will return to action on the second game of this back-to-back tomorrow, February 3, against Blake Griffin and the new look Detroit Pistons.