Kel’el Ware lone Heat bright spot amidst losing stretch, Butler drama

Thursday night’s matchup between the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks proved to be another tough watch for Heat Nation. The offense never got into a rhythm, and defensively had no answers for the superstar duo of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.

It was a horrid shooting performance from Miami, who went on to drop their second straight and five out of their last six games. They shot an abysmal 37% from the field and 24% from 3-point range (12 of 51 attempts). 

For a team that looked forward to improving their 3-point volume, they have certainly increased that clip. But at the cost of some occasional horrid efficiency— Thursday's 125-86 loss was no different. The Heat will drop to below the .500 mark at 21-22 overall. 

However, rookie big man Kel’el Ware helped to shed some sort of light after another stellar outing.

The 7-footer recorded his third straight 20-plus point outing in his second consecutive starting role alongside Bam Adebayo in the frontcourt. Ware had a team-high 22 points and 10 rebounds double-double on 9 of 15 shooting, to go along with a pair of blocks. 

His two-way versatility has indeed provided a much needed new element to the Heat. 

There was a stretch early on in the loss where Ware secured a block on one end that led to a 3-pointer from him on the other during the next possession. Miami’s scouting department tends to think highly of versatile players that can play hard on both ends, and it seems like this young man fits that description very well. 

Although Ware is still quite raw at 20 years old, the flashes of dominance are there. The latest opportunity with his starting lineup promotion has only helped accelerate his progression at a quicker speed. In fact, his Rookie of the Year odds have grown heavily ever since— from +5000 before Tuesday’s game to +550 according to Hard Rock betting.

Unfortunately, Adebayo has yet to reap the benefits of a true big man playing next to him, at least offensively. He limped to a 11 points and 14 rebounds double-double on five of 12 shooting against the Bucks. Although, his up and down struggles can be discussed another day.

Outside of Tyler Herro’s clear leap, Ware has stolen all the (positive) non-Jimmy Butler headlines. It appears to stay that way for a little bit longer.