Miami Heat: Reviewing Stats With Huge Promise From Preseason Opener

On Monday night, the Miami Heat created some early noise after a, 125-99, preseason win over the Atlanta Hawks. Even in the absence of star forward, Jimmy Butler, it couldn’t keep the Heat  from having an explosive preseason opener.

The Heat absolutely neutralized Atlanta’s perimeter players, including maestro, Trae Young. Everything clicked in a commanding performance over a conference rival — and the numbers tell it all.

ON A HUGE NIGHT, TYLER HERRO SHOWED A PHYSICAL APTITUDE 

A year of redemption has arrived for Tyler Herro and during night one of Miami Heat preseason action, he didn’t disappoint, playing with a certain purpose. Through a tremendous display of confidence, Herro found terrific looks against the Hawks — exploding in pick-and-roll opportunities, executing on the usual teardrops, and his pull-up jumpers.

• Tyler Herro: 26 points,  9-12 shooting, 3-4 three-point, Plus-Minus of 8.

Herro also contributed to the raising of the intensity on the defensive end, as a new wrinkle emerged for the third-year guard. Now with increased strength and determination to attack the interior, Herro drew four fouls and made five of his six free throw attempts.

It’s simple, if Herro continues to play physically against opposing guards, his ceiling as a complete player will only rise going forward.

After a dominant preseason win, the Miami Heat have answered early questions about their play-style and the numbers prove it further.

FOR JUST ONE HALF, BAM ADEBAYO HAD EVERYTHING HIS WAY.

It didn’t take too long for Bam Adebayo to make his presence known, especially in light of Butler’s absence. The Heat’s promising center showed zero hesitation and even in only fourteen minutes played.

Needless to say and though still early, a few offseason questions regarding his aggressiveness might’ve been answered.

• Adebayo: 14 points, 6-8 shooting, five rebounds, Plus-Minus of 10.

Adebayo’s first field-goal attempt came from a made left-elbow jumper — just twenty seconds after the opening tip. Minutes later, he would be the recipient of an alley-oop pass from the newest Miami star guard, Kyle Lowry, which led to a reverse dunk for two of his six fastbreak points on the night.

Adebayo led Miami with a 31.6 Usage Rate, which he only recorded four times during last season. Given that this performance was without Butler, who has led the Heat in Usage over the last two seasons, the incentive to dictate the offense through Bam is inevitable.

OTHER NOTABLES

• Miami held a 63-46 advantage in Shot Contests.
• Caleb Martin tallied ten points with three rejections.
• KZ Okpala led both teams with a Plus-Minus of 15.
• Markieff Morris led all Heat players in Pace (99.8).
• Dewayne Dedmon had five Screen Assists in just 16 minutes

With a new identity to push the tempo, Monday’s win over Atlanta was a small, yet critical sample of just how good the Heat can truly be this season. With Butler returning to the lineup, there’ll be more opportunities for coach Erik Spoelstra to continue experimenting with different lineups as Heat preseason action continues to roll on.