Ten games into the season, and the Miami Heat are one of the early surprises in the NBA. Miami is 6-4, and despite being without its leading scorer (Tyler Herro), the Heat have flipped the script on offense and are second in the league in points per game.
Considering Miami just won back-to-back games over the weekend without Herro and Bam Adebayo, this roster has a chance to be outright dangerous once everyone gets healthy.
But not everyone has been carrying their weight, and there have been some disappointments. These are the three players who need to step up the most, especially as Miami is about to enter one of its hardest 10-game stretches of the season.
Andrew Wiggins
A quick glance at the box score, and it would seem we are being a bit harsh on Wiggins. He's averaging 17.3 points per game, which is third on the team and is in line with his career averages. He's also shooting 40% from three, which would be a career high if it holds all season long.
But on a team that is 6-4, Wiggins is also in the red when it comes to plus/minus. In those six wins for the Heat, Wiggins himself has only been positive for three of those.
Now plus/minus has a ton of factors that can be inflated that have nothing to do with the player himself, but Wiggins doesn't rebound, he doesn't get assists, and he sort of plays defense.
Add it all together, and he has the third-worst defensive rating on the team (of players who have played at least five games) and the second-worst offensive rating for Miami.
Kel'el Ware
Erik Spolestra's favorite punching bag, Kel'el Ware, goes through these stretches where it looks like he is going to be a monster in the NBA, only to follow it up with play that wouldn't cut it in NAIA.
Much of the struggles from a perception issue is that Ware just looks too passive at times when it comes to rebounding and protecting the rim, and the metrics bear that out.
He is second to last on the team in defensive rating, dead last on the team in plus/minus, dead last in offensive rating, and dead last in Net Rating.
Niokla Jovic
He is coming off a monster night against Portland, so it may seem unfair to have him on this list.
His defensive rating is quite good, and he has shown an ability to hold the fort down at center with Bam out.
But his offensive rating is still in the bottom half on the team, and part of the problem is that even though he is among the bottom half of three-point shooters in terms of percentage, he is among the leaders in three-point attempts.
And if Jovic was still on his rookie deal, we would look at him differently. But he signed an extension worthy of starter minutes, and instead, he's been relegated to rotational duty.