ATLANTA
Here are five takeaways from the Miami Heat’s 123-118 loss to the Atlanta Hawks (3-6) on Saturday at State Farm Arena.
1. Defense was an issue again, for three quarters. The Heat (3-5) allowed the Hawks to score 102 points on 58.2 percent shooting through three quarters. Atlanta also made 12 of 25 threes during that stretch.
The Heat’s defense tightened up in the fourth, though. Miami limited Atlanta to 21 points on 35 percent shooting in the period, but the damage was already done. Quality defense in the fourth wasn’t enough to undo three quarters of sloppy play, with Hawks rookie point guard Trae Young leading the charge against Miami with 24 points and 15 assists.
“The fourth quarter defense and the effort from the guys is what’s going to be required for 48 minutes,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We were able to hold them to 21 points, and you could feel the intensity of the guys on the court laying it all out there for better or worse. That’s the type of desperation and urgency we’re going to need for a complete game.”
And if you’re thinking the defensive struggles were because the Heat played at the Hawks’ pace, you’re wrong. Atlanta entered as the league’s fastest team, averaging 109.1 offensive possessions per 48 minutes. But the Hawks and Heat each used about 101 offensive possessions Saturday, closer to Miami’s season average of 102.7 entering the game. So, pace was not an issue this time.
Miami has lost three straight and is allowing an average of 123.7 points on 51.9 percent shooting during this streak. The Heat dropped to the bottom half of the league in defensive rating (17th, allowing 109.2 points per 100 possessions) for the season. All of these numbers are unusual for an organization that prides itself on defense. But bad stretches happen, this one is just happening very early in the season. Miami now has to put an end to it as soon as possible. The Heat’s next opportunity to regroup is Monday in Detroit against the Pistons.
2. If you weren’t convinced yet, you can be convinced now. Josh Richardson is the Heat’s offensive leader. Richardson finished Saturday’s loss with a career-high 32 points on 10 of 18 shooting. It’s the second time in less than a week that the 25-year-old wing player has set a new career-high in points, as he also did it with 31 points in Monday’s loss to the Kings.
Richardson is averaging a team-high 20.8 points on 42.5 percent shooting from the field and 39.7 percent shooting from three-point range this season. And even more importantly, the Heat is just a better team with Richardson on the court. Miami has outscored opponents by 37 points with Richardson playing this season, and has been outscored by 35 points when he’s not playing. Those numbers are telling.
3. Point Justise was in full effect Saturday. With starting point guard Goran Dragic missing his first game of the season with lingering pain in his right foot, Spoelstra inserted Justise Winslow into the Heat’s starting lineup alongside Richardson, Rodney McGruder, Kelly Olynyk and Hassan Whiteside.
Was Winslow really the point guard in this lineup? It’s hard to give a definitive answer on that because Richardson also took on a lot of ball-handling responsibilities. But Winslow definitely did play as a point guard during various stretches against the Hawks. The results were impressive, as Winslow finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists, two steals and two blocks in 37 minutes.
Winslow recorded a season-high in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and minutes. In other words, it was the 22-year-old’s best game of the season.
“That’s emptying your tank out there,” Spoelstra said of Winslow. “And that’s what we need from a full roster. Whatever your minutes are, you’re playing as hard as you can. You felt his presence out there. Even through some of the mistakes, he just made so many plays and did everything to try not to be denied.”
4. Whiteside wasn’t a factor in the second half. The Heat center exited the game with 8:19 remaining in the third quarter and never returned, as Spoelstra played a smaller lineup down the stretch. In fact, Olynyk was also held to just two minutes of action in the second half.
Instead, Spoelstra went with the athletic Bam Adebayo at center for most of the final two quarters. Adebayo recorded two points and six rebounds in 20 second-half minutes.
Meanwhile, Whiteside finished with eight points and eight rebounds in a season-low 16 minutes in the loss.
“It’s always a tough call, especially when you go that many minutes with that kind of group,” Spoelstea said when asked about his decision to keep Whiteside on the bench for most of the second half. “Anybody that’s been on the bench, it’s tough to get going. Plus, Hassan banged his knee. He didn’t have his full mobility. But I wasn’t opposed to it, I just didn’t go that way.”
Whiteside said he landed awkwardly on his right knee during Saturday’s game and “we’re going to check with the doctor and figure out what happened.” But Whiteside added he believes the knee issue is minor and nothing like the bone bruise on his left knee that kept him out for extended time last season.
As far as playing limited minutes in the second half, Whiteside said: “I believe I’m the best shot blocker in the NBA and rebounder in the NBA. So, of course I feel like I can help. But it’s coach’s decision.”
5. Wayne Ellington is back in the Heat’s rotation … for now. With Dragic out, Ellington made his season debut with 2:36 remaining in the first quarter as the fourth player off the Heat’s bench. The Heat’s sharpshooter finished with five points and shot 1 of 3 from three-point range in eight minutes.
It’s the first minutes of Ellington’s season, as he missed the entire preseason and the first four games of the regular season with left ankle soreness. Then Ellington was a DNP-coach’s decision in each of the past three games until finally getting on the court Saturday.
While Ellington did play in Atlanta, he did not play in the second half. When Dragic returns, will Ellington see more DNPs? That’s the question we still don’t have an answer to.
This story was originally published November 04, 2018 12:16 AM.