The Miami Heat came into Monday’s game with getting right on their minds, at least, that’s what you hope. After dropping a game to the Milwaukee Bucks this past Saturday in an embarrassing fashion, the hope was that they’d be able to bounce right back on Monday.
That’s especially with Jimmy Butler headed back to the starting lineup after missing several games with a tailbone injury. Well, why wait to tear off the bandage?
Jimmy Butler’s health wouldn’t hold up. On a hard drive and fall early in the game, Jimmy Butler would reaggravate his injury, ultimately forcing him out of the game early into the Second half.
That wasn’t even the demise of the Miami Heat though, as Jimmy’s presence would have only allowed them to climb back into a game that they did all they could to give away at that point. They got out to a terrible start by coughing the ball up, en route to 23 total turnovers, helping Memphis get out to a 20-6 start.
The Miami Heat got outworked by a hot Memphis team on Monday. Without Jimmy and Bam, especially, that always gets you beat.
The Miami Heat didn’t score their eighth point of the game until after the six-minute mark. That wasn’t the only disturbing number on the night though.
The Heat were outmuscled on the glass too—again. Losing this game,47-36, on the glass, they were outboarded on the offensive side massively, to a tune of 16-7.
How are you to stay in a game if you are being mauled on the glass, period, but definitely if you are allowing nearly 1.5 shots opportunities for every one shot you take? You can’t.
It’s not possible. The numbers don’t exactly line up there, as they had 89 field goals to the Heat’s 76, but it sure felt that way.
The Miami Heat won’t ever be the same team without Bam Adebayo or Jimmy Butler on the floor, double when talking both, but they can give more effort. That’s what got them beat, more than anything, on Monday.
Listen, they may still lose. But it’s not by 15 if they don’t simply get— outworked.
That’s what happened Monday and by a hot Memphis team, nonetheless. Hopefully, they’re better on Wednesday—or it’ll be a repeat of last Saturday.