The Miami Heat started their playoff run on Sunday against the Atlanta Hawks with a dominant, 115-91, win. The game wasn’t close and the Heat controlled the tempo throughout the entire game by applying heavy pressure on Trae Young, forcing him to have his worst game of the season.
While they had an excellent game, it’s important to remember that this is a seven-game series, not a single-game elimination type situation. Adjustments are going to be made, so the Heat need to be ready to counter.
Just off the initial viewing, there are three keys that can help them secure Game 2 though. The first key is this.
Tyler Herro needs to be aggressive but in the correct way. He came into the first ball game trying to do too many things with the ball at once and that hasn’t been his game all season.
He had five turnovers, sloppy ones and everyone knows every possession in the playoffs matter. What has made Herro so deadly this season is how he gets to his spots to score and once he starts getting there, the floor opens up for the bigs and shooters.
Playing out of rhythm can impact players and we saw it on Sunday, as he made a few indecisive passes, missed short jumpers, and even blew layups.
However, It’s only the first game, so it’s not a major complaint but he does need to let the game come to him. The Hawks aren’t a very good defensive team so he should be able to adjust and be the true creator that we know he can be.