Is the Miami Heat zone defense ready for the playoffs?

After a too-close-for-comfort game against the New York Knicks, the best defensive tool for the Miami Heat might have been fully exposed ahead of the NBA playoffs.

The biggest stage in basketball, Madison Square Garden, played host to one of the biggest shows in basketball on Saturday night: Dwyane Wade’s Last Dance. Thus, visitors at the game between the Miami Heat and New York Knicks had a lot to say, before, during and after game time.

Locals and tourists came out in full force to see Wade’s final game at The Garden, though the celebration of 16 years of Wade overflowed beyond the confines of his career. The arena regularly broke out in “Let’s Go Heat” chants, giving Miami preferential treatment over the native Knicks.

Those donning duct-taped Knicks jerseys and Sunset Vice gear alike supported Wade and his teams endeavors. Even Knicks’ coach David Fizdale honored Wade mid-game with a prerecorded congratulatory message.  Everyone in attendance seemed to have good will towards the Heat.

Everyone except the Knicks.

In a game pivotal to Miami’s playoff race, the Knicks initially made light work of the Heat. Miami, without Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson and Rodney McGruder, were short on scoring, and Mitchell Robinson’s two blocks on Wade did little to assuage those concerns.

More concerning than Miami’s offensive shortage, however, was the Knicks’ exposé of the Heat’s patented zone defense.

Though the Heat dabbled in man to man coverage, their zone found mixed results early on. Setting up the 2-3 limited Mitchell Robinson, who couldn’t take advantage of easy low post finishes.

But in exchange for just four Robinson field goal attempts, Miami had to contend with increased 3-point shooting from Luke Kornet.

Kornet led New York in 3-point attempts last night. The seven-footer connected on five of a career-high 13 attempts, stretching Miami’s defense in the process.

His stroke of good shooting was enabled by the Knicks’ starless approach. Without a unitary offensive motor, the Knicks resorted to ball movement to beat Miami’s zone. The Knicks passed the rock 353 times on Saturday, compared to their usual 295 passes per night.

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Fizzing the ball from side to side gave Kornet the distinct pleasure of finding gaps in Miami’s coverage and launching. He played as a stretch-five and helped New York to 14 assists on 19 first half buckets.

While Miami came out on top, the Kornet effect is eerily similar to the play style of a potential Miami first round foe: the Milwaukee Bucks. Fielding one of the tallest lineups in the league, the Bucks are a top-10 team in assists and 3-pointers made per game.

The zone helps soften isolation and pick and roll heavy teams like the Rockets to Miami’s liking. Having defensive schema switches ready to catch pop-out 3s and shut down rolls to the rim leads offensive superstars like James Harden to force unnecessary turnovers.

Against a team like the Bucks, which often stations its five players around the horn, Miami’s zone would quickly be exploited as defenders scramble to close out. Man-to-man remains an option, though Bucks’ lineups with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez and Ersan Ilyasova would be problematic.

Miami’s zone defense has its place. Spoelstra has shuffled lineups all year, yet Miami remains firm as a top-six squad in defensive rating.

Still a defensive powerhouse, the Heat aren’t completely out of sorts entering this playoff race. With a healthy team they have the versatility to matchup against a variety of teams and have proven as much with wins over the Rockets, Bucks and Golden State Warriors this year.