The Miami Heat were one of the worst offensive teams in the league last season. Without Tyler Herro in the lineup for at least the first month of the regular season, the painful reality is that they may be rough on the eyes to watch on the offensive end of the floor. And that can't lead to good things for the Heat's hope to remain afloat without their All-Star guard during the first month of the season.
They were slightly better after the departure of Jimmy Butler (who was not even playing much anyway) and the addition of Andrew Wiggins, but were still just ranked 19th in the league on that end of the floor.
Predictably, the Heat's offense was even worse when Herro was off the floor. In the five games Herro missed last season, the Heat went 0-5 and had a 110 offensive rating, which is on par with being one of the five-worst offensive ratings for a team.
In other words, the Heat's offense, with or without Herro in the lineup, has a ton to prove this season. And it will be put to the test right off the bat thanks to Herro's injury.
Norman Powell is the big x-factor for the Heat
If there's one variable on the team that could change everything for Miami, it's certainly Norman Powell. Acquired in an attempt to give this team a much-needed offensive punch, Powell will be thrown into the fire pretty quickly.
You'd imagine that the Heat acquired Powell with the idea that he'd probably come off the bench to lead the second unit, and to maybe make some spot starts here and there. But, in many ways, if the Heat are going to survive the first month of the season without their All-Star guard, they're going to need Powell to have a great start to his Heat tenure.
And if his production (and efficiency) last season was any indication, there's a chance Powell will be up to the challenge. Considering that he's changing teams and learning not only a new system, but also how to play with a brand new cast of players, though, it's far from a forgone conclusion that Powell will be able to hit the ground running.
If he doesn't, which would be totally understandable, it would leave the Heat's offense in a very bad spot. And the unfortunate truth is that it will almost certainly lead to a very slow start to the year for Miami.