Miami Heat: When Did They Start Winning?

The Miami Heat have been one of the most shocking teams in the NBA this year. Last season the Heat finished the year 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 39-43 record, this year the tables have turned. They are currently tied for the third most wins in the conference and the fifth best winning percentage in the NBA. How did this happen and what should you expect?

The Culture

There is one word you must know before you begin to try to understand the Miami Heat. Culture. The Culture has been a slogan tied to the Heat for years thanks to Team President Pat Riley. Since his days of coaching the team, hard work and dedication have been the focal point for every Heat team every year. The Culture of the Heat is unlike any other across the league, work harder than everyone else, regardless of who you are. Some of you may remember a time in South Beach when the best player in the league came to town, LeBron James. James’ 4 years in Miami were some of the most important years of his career and has nothing to do with wins or losses. In Miami, LeBron significantly improved his defense, three point shooting, and conditioning. This is due to The Culture. For the first time in his life he was required to work as hard as every team member and be held accountable at the same level as the last player on the bench. The Culture is not for everyone as we have seen this year, Dion Waiters and James Johnson were both penalized for being over the body fat percentage the Heat require going into training camp. Waiters was also handed a team-enforced suspension for refusing to participate in team weigh-ins. But The Culture is why they are winning. The players have bought in more than ever before. The team has rid itself of selfish players such as Center Hassan Whiteside who never fully fit with the Culture. The team is playing as one from the top of the roster to the bottom and it is showing.

The Youngsters

The Miami Heat currently have ten players 25 years old or younger on the roster. Of those players, five of them are heavily played in the rotation. Kendrick Nunn (24) was an undrafted rookie out of Oakland University, he is now the starting point guard for the Miami Heat. Nunn has been a sensation since he scored 24 points on 10-18 shooting in his career debut. Nunn is averaging 15.8 Points per Game on 46% shooting and has won Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month every month this season. Nunn will be participating in the NBA All-Star Rising Stars challenge. Duncan Robinson (25) was another undrafted rookie from 2018 out of the University of Michigan. Robinson spent most of his rookie year in Sioux Falls with the Heat G-League team. This year Robinson has broken out as one of the best three point shooters in the league. He is currently 5th in three pointers made (165) and has the best three point percentage (44%) among players who have made a minimum of 150 three pointers. Robinson is competing in the NBA All Star 3-Point Challenge. Tyler Herro (20) was drafted with the 13th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. Herro has been a deadly scorer the entire year with Miami dating back to the summer league where Twitter deemed him a “Bucket”. He is averaging 13.1 Points Per Game on 41% shooting and 39% from the three point line. Herro has hit multiple go ahead shots in the final minute of the game this season and has shown the ability to score from anywhere on the court. Tyler Herro will be joining his teammate Kendrick Nunn in the All-Star Rising Stars Challenge. Bam Adebayo (22) was drafted with the 14th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. Adebayo is in his third year and will be participating in his first NBA All-Star game this year. Which leads us into our next segment…

Bam Adebayo

And here we are again, still talking about the man that is Bam. Bam Adebayo has taken a tremendous leap as an all around player this season. Adebayo played along side Hassan Whiteside last year, and eventually surpassed the former Max-Contract Center in the starting lineup as a second year player. With Whiteside being sent off to Portland, the doors opened wide for Bam to gain a bigger role, and he’s made the most of it. Bam has increased his Points Per Game from 8.9 to 15.8 this season as well as more than doubling his Assists Per game from 2.2 to 4.9. He is also averaging career highs in Steals and Blocks. Bam has shown to be a scrappy rebounder, problem scorer inside the paint, and lock down defender despite being undersized at his position. Bam Adebayo is a near lock for most improved player and might just be the biggest reason for the Heat’s quick turnaround. Bam Adebayo has been voted an All-Star at age 22, it is safe to say we are just seeing the beginning of the Bam saga.

Jimmy Butler

I am sure you all were wondering when the name Jimmy Butler would be mentioned. The Miami Heat signed the Superstar to a 4-year maximum deal worth $142 Million this summer, the biggest free agent signing for Miami since LeBron James and Chris Bosh. Butler had a history of being a locker room problem for all 3 of his previous teams (Chicago, Minnesota, Philadelphia) but this time is different. Jimmy Butler has always been a hard nosed player, who not only works hard, but holds everyone around him to the same standard. Much like what I stated before about a mentality similar to Butler’s, the Heat Culture. Jimmy Butler is the epitome of a Culture player. Since the day Jimmy signed in Miami, you could tell this was the right fit. He almost instantly took rookie Tyler Herro under his wing, posting many social media posts and private workouts with the young player before the team even began training camp. Butler has not been a volume scorer, nor a great shooter for that matter but the team keeps winning. He puts winning above his stats and he will choose to defer when needed while at the same time he will get to the foul line as needed. Jimmy Butler is the glue to this years Miami Heat team. He understands what needs to be done in order to win, will make any sacrifice needed to win, and is the best leader this team could have (Dwyane Wade IS retired, if he wasn’t I would delete that statement). Jimmy Butler will be competing in his 5th All-Star game this season, giving the Heat two All-Star players in the same year for the first time since 2014.

Whats Next?

The Heat are far from a perfect team. Pat Riley has been connected to a number of trade rumors with players like Jrue Holiday, Danilo Gallinari, and Andre Iguadala. But the Heat are reluctant to give up the cap space they are set to acquire in the 2021 off-season and have made Tyler Herro untouchable in trade talks. I do not believe the Heat make a major move before tomorrows Trade Deadline so this is most likely the team we will see finish the 2019-20 campaign.

UPDATE: Apparently I was wrong about Andre Iguadala. Signed a 2 year deal with a team option meaning the Heat have options to not have him against the cap when the 2021 off-season comes around.

The Heat are currently tied in second place in the NBA for wins at home (22), but hold just a 12-12 record away from South Beach. As stated earlier, The Heat are very rookie dependent and rookies are statistically worse on the road due to a much heavier schedule than in college. As the season moves forward we can expect some sluggish play on the road as we hit the middle of the season, but as the season comes to a close you can bet the rookies will begin to find comfort on the road and will begin to win the key games in any arena and set themselves up well for the playoffs.

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