Miami Heat 1-on-1: Is the Eastern Conference really wide open?

What areas do you think the team will have improved on, coming into this upcoming year?

Mora: The major areas that the team has improved on moving forward is the roster’s overall athleticism and players knowing their roles within their unit. Derrick Jones Jr. has become a fan favorite and has emerged as an athletic wing with immense talent, that can integrate into his role within the Heat. Winslow has improved as well, especially as a point guard who can lead the floor well, which is something he didn’t have before. Richardson as become a great defensive threat. He has continued to improve in that aspect and that will come up huge, especially as a boost off the bench.

Johnson: Cohesiveness, for starters. The most told story out of South Beach this offseason was that the Heat were unable to acquire any big name (or small name) free agents. Miami will runback the essentially the same team that fizzled out in first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs. With an extra year of experience and a summer’s worth of group meetups, the synergy of this group should be at an all time high. Winslow’s secondary point guard duties aren’t a surprise anymore. Ellington’s knack for drilling 3’s is second nature. Effectively, every Heat player has an established role which will help when head coach Erik Spoelstra starts tinkering with rotations. Miami, even when their lineups were bolstered by All-Star level talent, succeeded most when they were well acquainted with talents of their cast. 2018-19 won’t be any different. An extra year of gelling is certainly a net positive.