On a dreaded 2nd night of a back-to-back, the Miami Heat head to San Francisco to take on Golden State. It may not be nice, but what does NBA 2K have to say?
So far, this five-game road trip before the all-star break has been a disaster for the Miami Heat. Three games played, three games lost, and teams are averaging over 20+ made 3-pointers against them.
To say the Heat are missing their big guns is becoming a bigger and bigger understatement by the game. Tyler Herro and Jimmy Butler made the west coast trip but haven’t been able to suit up. As of this writing (early Monday morning), there has been no update about their possible return.
The Golden State Warriors are in a fascinating situation due to the injuries of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. They’re missing their two biggest contributors as well, but the only difference is, they’ve been gone for almost the whole season.
Many players on their roster have stepped up like Marquese Chriss, who’s seemed to have finally found his home after bouncing around the league across his first three seasons. This team is very reminiscent of the 1997-98 San Antonio Spurs.
The Warriors are coming off a five-point loss to the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers, where you guessed it, Chris led the way in scoring and rebounding and newly acquired Andrew Wiggins looked as comfortable as ever. Those not paying attention might think this will be an easy win for the fourth-seeded Heat, but they need to have the appropriate amount of fear. Welcome to… the trap game.
Ky Bowman lobs it to Marquese Chriss! https://t.co/2kiGTOmNjK
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) February 9, 2020
The Miami Heat roster remains unchanged from the last simulation against the Portland Trailblazers except for Andre Iguodala’s minutes. I initially gave him 15 minutes in favor of Kelly Olynyk getting starter’s minutes and giving Solomon Hill some burn, but things didn’t play out that way for Coach Erik Spoelstra.
Hill ended up not playing, while Olynyk played only 13 minutes due to a rapid succession of fouls. The lineup with Jae Crowder and Iguodala looked fantastic on both ends of the court, so although Derrick Jones Jr. started for Miami in real life, I continued to go with Crowder as he played 34 minutes against Portland (ten more than Jones Jr.).
If you want to see the simulation for yourself, the latest video on my YouTube channel will have the footage uninterrupted. There you’ll be able to see the adjustments I made.
Starting Lineup
Miami Heat
Point guard, Kendrick Nunn
Shooting guard, Duncan Robinson
Small forward, Jae Crowder
Power forward, Bam Adebayo
Center, Kelly Olynyk
Golden State Warriors
Point guard, Ky Bowman
Shooting guard, Damion Lee
Small forward, Andrew Wiggins
Power forward, Draymond Green
Center, Marquese Chriss
Outcome
Miami Heat 100, Golden State Warriors 101
Hey, remember that trap game I told you about? Welp, it happened.
The virtual Heat fell for it hard and would now put the human Heat in danger of not only its first four-game losing streak of the season but also its first five-game losing streak of the season. The all-star break can’t come soon enough.
The first quarter was eerily quiet but we’re used to that here at AUCH, but it was the second quarter that caused me concern. Not only did the Heat lose the first period by four points, but they also lost the second by six.
Down by ten big points at the half, it was time to see what in the H-E double hockey sticks was going on. Bam Adebayo was doing his thing with 13 points and seven rebounds, but no other Miami Heat player was in double figures.
I changed all Duncan Robinsons 3-point shot tendencies to mimic his attempts in real life, and it hasn’t quite materialized, but that’s something to keep an eye on. Robinson wasn’t the only player to struggle from beyond the arc though. As a matter of fact, no player in a Heat uniform made a shot from distance.
Finally, it was time to regroup and regroup they did. The Heat came out guns blazing in the third quarter and turned up the flames on the Warriors to the tune of 34 points.
They headed into the fourth quarter tied at 77 and all the Heat had to do was play their brand of defense, while scoring just enough buckets to win. Needless to say, they weren’t able to do that.
They never actually claimed the lead at any point in the final frame. They technically lost by three, but Kendrick Nunn dunked the ball as time expired.
Remember those threes I told you to look out for? Miami went 5-for-23 from deep and missed seven free throws en route to their humbling one-point loss.
Robison was the main culprit as he took 11 of his shots from 3-point land, but he only made two of them. Dragic went 4-for-10 from the floor.
Literally, one more made bucket from any player would have changed the result, but they weren’t able to pull it off. Not even with Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins fouling out.
Player stats
Miami Heat
Bam Adebayo – 28 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 blocks
Kendrick Nunn – 20 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal
Duncan Robinson – 15 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block
Goran Dragic – 11 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal
Derrick Jones Jr. – 11 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block
Golden State Warriors
Ky Bowman – 25 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 2 steals
Jordan Poole – 19 points, 1 steal, 1 block
Eric Paschall – 13 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Andrew Wiggins – 11 points, 6 rebounds, 1 block
Draymond Green – 8 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks
Yup, the Miami Heat fell for the trap game in San Francisco. Whether the excuse will be fatigue on the second game in as many nights or a shorthanded roster, the world will never know.
Heat fans can no longer say, “Well, maybe we’ll make a move since the trade deadline has passed, but there is a small glimmer of hope as team President Pat Riley has been on the record saying he wishes to explore the buyout market for rim protection. Here’s to hoping.