The Miami Heat started the year searching for a fifth and final member to their starting lineup. As the season progressed and the options began to run out, they finally settled on Kelly Olynyk as the starting four man in the opening lineup.
Well, with KO now gone to the Houston Rockets and with a ton of other Miami Heat roster shakeups, the rotations aren’t as definitive as they once were. Fortunately for the Miami Heat, with their latest additions to their roster, this is a good problem to have.
With all that said, here is an updated view at how the rotations will more than likely go.
Starting Lineup
Again, with Kelly Olynyk being gone, that immediately left a gap at the four man position in that starters unit. With Trevor Ariza being an excellent defender that’s able to guard up or down, positionally rebound and especially at his size, and with his ability to knock down the long ball, he makes an excellent addition to that starting lineup.
That’s the way that Coach Spoelstra deployed it in their last game against the Hornets. Though in defeat, Ariza pitched in 14 points, nine rebounds, and five assists on 5-12 from the floor and 2-7 from three.
It’s worth noting that he isn’t even all the way back yet, according to guys like Bam Adebayo and based on the fact that he hasn’t even played 10 games yet for the entire season, so while the 2-7 from three isn’t great, it should improve with more time. While that’s the only hole to fill, you have new guys coming into the fold as well.
Where do they fit into the mix?
Updated Miami Heat Rotation: A New And Booming Bench Unit
The Miami Heat brought Victor Oladipo into the mix for a reason and that reason has absolutely nothing to do with coming off of the bench. He will be one of the starting guards for the Miami Heat once he’s ready to go.
That isn’t a knock on Kendrick Nunn, as Oladipo is the better player at the moment. However, that does do something for a new and improved bench unit.
The Bench Rotation
With Kendrick Nunn’s dropping down and Nemanja Bjelica joining the team as well, they immediately have an upgraded bench and arguably one of the best or most potent in the league. Your bench now features a second five that would probably look like: Goran Dragic, Kendrick Nunn, Tyler Herro, Andre Iguodala, and Nemanja Bjelica.
While they are still probably in the running for one more big guy to help them in the rotation, you have a unit there capable of putting up a ton of points in a hurry. They’ll still need to play defense, of course.
Though not the defender he once was, Iggy is still better than most, still has as quick a pair of hands for steals and strips as there is in the league, and is still as intelligent as anyone and enough so to make that defense better than they would be without him, on his own.
That’s probably your first five off the pine for the Miami Heat at this juncture.
Updated Miami Heat Rotation: The Rest Of The Crew Will Contribute
The Miami Heat still have several more guys on the bench that will play for them though. When thinking about the second unit and their defense again, Precious Achiuwa, KZ Okpala, and Gabe Vincent, after digesting tons of Avery Bradley tape, can be of help on that end of the floor.
Not only that though, when thinking about Gabe and Max Strus, The Juice, they can also be alternate shot makers to sprinkle in whenever throughout the game, with the starters or along with the bench unit.
So, here’s a look at the starting five and second five all together.
Starters
- Victor Oladipo
- Duncan Robinson
- Jimmy Butler
- Trevor Ariza
- Bam Adebayo
Second Five
- Goran Dragic
- Kendrick Nunn
- Tyler Herro
- Andre Iguodala
- Nemanja Bjelica
The Miami Heat are absolutely better after the trade deadline, although they aren’t as deep a team. However, considering that most of that “depth” wasn’t really functional depth, meaning that it couldn’t really help the Heat accomplish the goal of winning as it was constructed, depth or not, this is still a better and much-improved scenario for them.
Again, as they still likely add one more guy down the stretch, it might shake up a bit, but this is more than likely the blueprint for how the rotations will go from here out.