Jordan Mickey slotted in nicely for the Miami Heat, in a victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
When Jordan Mickey played 23 minutes against the Cleveland Cavaliers last Tuesday, it was the first time he hit that mark since December 2017.
Playing in both Hassan Whiteside and Bam Adebayo’s stead, Mickey’s seven points and five rebounds don’t immediately jump off the stat sheet. The Miami Heat were rolling all night, and to an extent, Mickey’s points were a drop in the ocean that drowned the Cavaliers.
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But in those 23 minutes, Mickey proved he was the best man to fill in as Miami’s center. His six-foot-eight frame is eerily similar to Whiteside’s, despite the height difference and he regularly plays larger than his size lets on.
Mickey hasn’t notched a stat-stuffing game during his Heat tenure, but he’s proving a perfect fit for Miami before the playoffs.
"“He was great,” Goran Dragic said following the Heat win. “Not to play a lot of games and suddenly they put you into the fire, he was playing tremendously for us. He stays ready. I think that’s the most important thing for the players. He was waiting for an opportunity."
Capitalizing on these opportunities is the story of Mickey and Miami as a whole. Most recently, Kelly Olynyk made the best of the tough stretch without Whiteside. Olynyk averaged 16.0 points, 6.8 boards and five assists, as Miami looked for a recipe without their starting center.
At this juncture of the season, Mickey is Miami’s man of the hour. The Heat have nursed nagging injuries all season long, but having Mickey keeps rotations feeling familiar.
Blending into Miami’s starting group of Dragic, James Johnson, Josh Richardson and Tyler Johnson, is a nostalgia trip down Whiteside lane. Mickey’s pick and roll game meshes with any of Miami’s core ball handlers and playing with the starting crew leaves the Platinum Group freedom to do what it does best.
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With six games remaining before the playoffs, Miami will hopefully have all hands-on deck. Mickey, and the rest of the lineup however, is as good an insurance policy as any.