Miami Heat: Defining roles for the projected starting five

Roles for the Miami Heat starters

Bam Adebayo – Elite paint threat and defensive anchor

Dumbing down Bam Adebayo’s role to“elite paint threat” seems disrespectful, but that’s exactly what he is. Adebayo’s role on offense will be to dominate the paint.

He will thrive in the pick n’ roll this season, as he has two of the best passers in the league on his team in Butler and Lowry. They should be able to open up a ton of new opportunities for him.

Adebayo’s defensive role will be infinitely more important than his role on offense. He will act as the defensive anchor for the Heat as he tries to be a mix of Rusy Gobert and Ben Simmons.

Miami has a ton of defensive-minded players around Adebayo, but when it comes down to it, he’s going to be the guy in the middle controlling it all. Hopefully, there is a Defensive Player of the Year award in the near future for him.

Jimmy Butler – Do-it-all superstar

This is exactly what Jimmy Butler needs to be if the Miami Heat want to win a championship. He needs to be elite in a ton of different areas and simply do what the team needs him to do.

During Miami’s 2020 Finals run, Butler took a step back and let Tyler Herro and Goran Dragic handle most of the scoring. That being said, he was also able to step up in that regard when he needed to.

Lowry will be the primary ball-handler, but Butler can help. Adebayo will be the defensive anchor, but Butler can help. The Team will score by committee, but Butler can help. He just has to be ready to do anything and everything.

On top of all of that, Butler is this team’s closer. He is the face of the franchise and the Miami Heat want him to lead them to glory.