Miami Heat’s Blowout Defeat To Suns Serves Several Important Purposes

Miami Heat: Adaptive Development The Only Thought After A Game Like That

The lack of offense in the second half is not the end of the world. Every team, now and then, has a dropoff in shooting coming out the half.

However, there were easier looks that were generated in the first half and they were nowhere to be found in the second. That should and will be noted by the team.

With Butler, the offense will be fleshed out more, but you never want to be too predictable on offense against the best team in the NBA, no matter who is or isn’t playing. You can’t just stand around and wait for something to happen, you have to make it happen.

As far as the defense goes, it shouldn’t be critiqued without Jimmy, because the defense they run without Jimmy is just incomplete. Without him, it doesn’t hit its full potential but you can say that I’m not a fan of Adebayo switching onto Devin Booker while P.J. Tucker covers Deandre Ayton.

It’s a similar fate that occurred in the previous season against Phoenix when they switched a smaller player onto Ayton, leading to double-digit losses as well. This year, they do have the personnel, but I don’t think that game plan works in Miami’s favor.

There are just too many playmakers and shooters for Phoenix that can manipulate Miami’s defense. Again, it’s probably unfair to judge the defense without Butler but the lack of effort on rotations and defensive rebounding were things that Miami could have controlled.

The total was 55 to 38 on the glass, which won’t win you games and when a team like Phoenix can hit that next gear, the effort and energy of the Miami Heat must reach that level as well. It’s easy to excuse this game and say “it’s not your night”, but you can learn from every loss.

With the way Phoenix outplayed them, instead of hanging your head, figure out how you can grow and create new schemes. If there’s a chance the team meets Phoenix in the NBA Finals, you have a response for when they hit that switch.

Hopefully, we can see both teams match up in then, a stage where you get a high likelihood of seeing them play their best brand of basketball.