The Miami Heat are 0-2 through the first games of the season and haven't even looked worthy of sharing a court with either the Minnesota Timberwolves or the Detroit Pistons. Even though it's way too early to panic, Erik Spoelstra has to be scrambling to find answers.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has been great, but after his individual dominance, there hasn't been much else that has gone right for the Heat.
Looking back at their 0-2 start, there are five big reasons for their struggles. Let's take a deeper look at each one of these before an extremely important game on the road against the Charlotte Hornets.
Bam Adebayo hasn't looked like himself
One thing that has become alarmingly clear through the first games is that Bam Adebayo just doesn't look like himself. Whether it's the fact that he's still struggling with a groin injury that he suffered during the preseason or the fact that he's trying to fit next to Giannis in a way that's made him too passive, it hasn't been great.
Against the Pistons, Bam finished with just four points and six rebounds before fouling out in 23 minutes of action. Bam is much better than the player he's been for the Heat through the first two games, and there's no question he's one of the bigger reasons why the Heat find themselves in a 0-2 hole to start the year.
If the Heat has any hopes of turning things around, he has to be a lot better.
The Heat can't buy a 3-point shot
Through two games, the Heat can't seem to buy a 3-point basket. They're top-5 in 3-point attempts but bottom-10 in 3-point percentage. The NBA is a make-or-miss league and, right now, the Heat have been missing a whole lot more than they've been making.
I don't want to oversimplify the Heat's struggles this season, but if a team is going to shoot an average of 27 percent from the 3-point line, they're just not going to win many games. The frustrating part of it all is that a ton of these 3s that the Heat are missing are of the wide-open variety.
The hope is that some of that will eventually even out, but, especially with the way the Heat is struggling, it can't come soon enough.
The Heat's shotty defense
Despite all the offseason questions that surrounded the Heat, the overwhelming belief was that if there was one thing they were going to be able to hang their hats on, it was defense. Through two games, that hasn't exactly been the case.
It's an extremely small sample size, but the Heat have the second-worst defense in the league. They look lost on most occasions and have been dominated on the boards. If the Heat is going to turn anything around, it has to start on this end of the floor.
The half-court offense has no identity
If it's not for run-outs or Giannis taking his opponent one-on-one, the Heat's defense is a struggle more often than not. At least through the first two games, it feels as if the team's half-court offense has no identity.
Considering the criticism of not having enough playmaking, this shouldn't come as a big surprise. But even for the biggest Heat truthers, their offense has been much more of a struggle than anyone could've predicted.
In fairness, missing 70-plus percent of your 3-point shots will make any offense look bad.
The starting 5 has been bad in all their minutes
Perhaps the biggest red flag for the Heat is the fact that their starting 5 has been atrocious while on the court together. They look old, lifeless, and a step too slow on both ends of the floor. They've only played 22 minutes together through two games; that says a lot.
In those 22 minutes, the Heat's starting 5 has a -25 net rating. It's the worst five-man lineup for the Heat by a mile. The next worst five-man lineup has a net rating of -7.
Something has to give, sooner rather than later. Either this Heat starting 5 has to click, or changes are going to come. Hopefully, Erik Spoelstra doesn't wait too long before he feels the urge to make a change.
Add us as a preferred source on Google