Coming off a bizarre home win against the Portland Trail Blazers, the Miami Heat have played 45 of their 82 regular-season games. The Heat’s record is firmly above the .500 mark and sits at 29-16 on the season.
As they push forward to the final stretch of games before the All-Star break, let’s take a look at January’s midseason awards for the Heat.
MVP – Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler is still the clear-cut choice for Miami Heat’s MVP at the 45-game mark. Despite playing in 27 of the team’s 45 games, Butler has been their best player on both ends of the court all season.
Leading Miami in points and steals per game, Butler has been dominant on both sides of the court. With nearly every team’s star players missing time, Butler should be in line for yet another All-Star nod come February.
There are other awards to get to though.
Miami Heat: Handing Out 2021-22 Mid-Season Awards in January
The Miami Heat wanted to shake things up in the offseason and boy, did they ever. The next guy has really helped improve their team.
Key Free Agent – Kyle Lowry
Kyle Lowry has been the floor general the Heat have been missing for their past few playoff runs. While technically coming to Miami via a sign-and-trade, Lowry has been the most important new acquisition for the Heat this season, and it is really not that close.
Lowry is, not only, leading the Heat in assists per game, but he is also leading the team in minutes per game as well.
Because he has played in over 85 percent of the Heat’s games, he is likely to notch his seventh All-Star selection in the coming weeks.
Biggest Disappointment – Duncan Robinson
So far, we are three-for-three in repeating the awards from December. While Duncan Robinson is one of the best long-distance shooters in the league, his shot has been continually off this season.
What was originally an early-season slump has carried well into the midway point of the season. It will take a huge shooting percentage improvement for him to not receive this award in future awards pieces as well.
Miami Heat: They’ve Gotten A Ton Of Production From Unexpected Sources
The Miami Heat have gotten some surprising production from certain guys. It’s really helped them get to where they are, especially with their stars missing time.
Surprising Star – Omer Yurtseven
For the first different name on the list, the Surprising Star has to be Omer Yurtseven. Yurt’s stretch of games from mid-December to mid-January were nothing short of legendary.
Achieving all sorts of rookie records for rebounding along the way, Yurtseven established himself as not only a key piece to the rotation, but as a valuable starter when injuries occurred.
While it appears his string of success will be limited now that Dewayne Dedmon and Bam Adebayo have returned, Yurt’s meteoric rise to the spotlight cannot go unrewarded.
Under-the-Radar MVP – Caleb Martin
In another change from December, Caleb Martin has been sensational all season for the Heat. While he may not stand out every night on the stat sheet, he fills a niche for Miami.
If a starter is inactive, he can slide into the starting five, which he has done a fair amount this season. If the starters are healthy, he can come off the bench and play two-way basketball.
Martin is averaging a steal per game and is leading the team in blocks per game. On top of this, he takes the correct shots on the offensive end, which has led to his field goal percentage remaining over 50 percent all season.
Bam Adebayo- Honorable Mention
While Bam Adebayo has had a frustrating start to the season due to injury, he has looked excellent in his two games back. If he continues this level of play, he could slide into the discussion for potential awards in the next round.
What’s Next?
Miami is down to 37 games remaining in the regular season. 14 of those games come before the All-Star break.
As we near the All-Star break in mid-February, we’ll take a look at these awards again to see how things have shaken out for the Miami Heat.