For much of the season, Giannis Antetokounmpo had successfully evaded much of the criticism of the Miami Heat's uninspiring start. However, now that they've dropped to 3-6 after losing on the second night of a back-to-back against the Golden State Warriors, it does seem as if that tide is beginning to turn.
Giannis is no longer immune from criticism, and, even further, he's fallen under direct fire as the Heat continue to struggle to successfully integrate him into the team's system.
First, it was former Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers who said that Giannis is "not easy" to coach. How he doens't have a "super IQ" and only has "one way" of playing, speaking to the downhill pace that he excels in.
Then, NBA insider Chris Haynes added to it, saying that "it's not easy to play with Giannis." Both quietly, but not 100 percent directly, alluded to the idea that the Heat's slow start is due to the difficulties of learning to play alongside Giannis.
The Heat continues to struggle with Giannis
And while that may be true, that's not exactly a trait that any superstar, or any NBA player, for that matter, would want to hear. When you talk about some of the best NBA superstars of all time, they generally had one thing in common: they made the game easier for their teammates and made them better.
At least so far in Miami, it doesn't appear as if that's the case yet. In the eyes of Rivers and Haynes, that is likely one of the biggest reasons why the Heat have struggled so much to begin the year.
That's perfectly OK. It's fine if there's going to be a learning curve for both Giannis and his teammates. The unfortunate part is that the rest of the league gets an up-close look at their struggles in real time. And that's never great, and one of the bigger reasons why there's a chance that the criticisms of the Heat are only going to get louder until they figure something out.
Right now, the outlook appears bleak for the Heat. All the great morale that the Heat entered this season with is pretty much all gone. They need to find a way to change that. That falls on every single person inside that locker room.
This is what the front office wanted. This is what the coaching staff begged for. Now, it's on them to make it work.
It's difficult to see how things are going to change for Miami, but they need to find a way to get their spark back before it's too late. And maybe it does start with Giannis. Maybe this is on him.
There's a lot of looking in the mirror that needs to take place inside that Heat locker room. If they're going to turn this around, it won't be easy. But if they can, it will surely be worth it.
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