Miami Heat’s Offense Looked Lost Without Tyler Herro

The Miami Heat (21-21) were dominated by the Portland Trailblazers (15-28) 116-107.

Here’s a look at four major takeaways from the matchup:

1. Kel’el Ware shines in his first start of his career.

One of the only positives of this game was the growth and potential future of the young core of the Heat. Ware seems the most exciting from the bunch because the Heat haven’t had a young, talented 7-footer in some time. He finished with 20 points, 15 rebounds, and zero assists on 47.1 percent shooting and 33.3 percent from the field. The 2024 first-round pick looks like the most exciting among the Heat’s recent draft picks because starting next to Bam Adebayo allows for many new options on both ends of the court. This was Ware’s first 20-point double-double of his career.

2. Duncan Robinson was one of the Heat’s only forms of reliable offense.

Outside of his six threes, there wasn’t much the Heat did well offensively. Robinson finished with 22 points, five rebounds, and four assists on 53.3 percent shooting and 50 percent from three-point range. Usually, the Heat are victorious when they get a hot shooting night from him because his shooting frees up several other players on the team. Unfortunately, after their hot start in the first quarter, they went on a stretch of 18 consecutive missed three-pointers.

3. Jimmy Butler finished another game with a role-player-like performance.

Butler finished with 13 points, four rebounds, and eight assists on 44.4 percent shooting and made his only three-point attempt. While he didn’t play badly and had a relatively fair performance overall, it’s clear imposing his will to take over games will be unlikely for the remaining time he’s a part of the Heat organization. Because of this, it is essential Tyler Herro is available as much as possible to lead the team’s offense as he’s done all year.

4. Adebayo has another underwhelming performance. 

When Butler is clearly affected by wanting to be traded, and Herro is out due to an injury, there is no excuse for Adebayo not to try and dominate offensively. He finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds, and zero assists on 50 percent shooting and missed both of his three-point attempts. He has only finished with at least 20 points six times this season when he averaged nearly 20 the past three seasons. His defense also was a significant drop off this game, as well, highlighted by Deandre Ayton outrunning Adebayo’s lack of effort for a dunk. 

4-TIME NBA CHAMPION EXPLAINS DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STEVE KERR AND ERIK SPOELSTRA

The Miami Heat’s Erik Spoelstra and Golden State Warriors’ Steve Kerr are easily among the most successful active coaches.

Kerr has won four championships and made five Finals appearances in his decade leading the Warriors. Spoelstra’s won two titles and led the Heat to six Finals appearances since taking over in 2008.

Andre Iguodala played for both teams and was a key player in successful playoff runs under both coaches. OnThe OGs podcast, he shared his perspective on the differences between the two philosophies.

“A lot of the things I do post-career is rooted in Heat Culture,” Iguodala said. “Where it’s like, if you work harder than your opponent, the more likely you’re going to win.

“Now, there are some residuals you gotta watch out for and make sure you cover for because Steve was more carefree and spirit-free; we’re going to come in listening to music and great vibes,” Iguodala continued. “Steve is like, I want you to come here happy every single day. Like this should be your escape.”  

In contrast, Iguodala thought Heat Culture was more of the opposite. It was hard work, the practices were rarely joyful, and it wasn’t a carefree mentality like in Golden State.

“And the Heat Culture is like, nah, we’re going to make this the hardest possible situation,” Iguodala said. “The game is gonna be easy. We couldn’t wait for the games.

“The game is so much easier than practice,” he added. “But one thing about Spo is, he’s probably the most prepared coach I’ve ever seen.”

FORMER NBA PLAYER BELIEVES MIAMI HEAT’S JIMMY BUTLER NO LONGER PLAYING BOTH ENDS

As the Feb. 6 trade deadline approaches, the Heat still seem unwilling to settle for a weaker return for Jimmy Butler. 

The Heat have no interest in offering a maximum contract extension due to his consistently missed time in the regular season. Butler turns 36 next season, which means his potential extension of over $100 million would last until he’s almost 40. Because of this, many teams haven’t been willing to risk their best packages so far.

Butler will likely play out his final year for the Heat and has at least decided not to cause any more harm to the team to risk another suspension without pay. However, playing beyond coasting through the regular season as he has done yearly for the Heat is unlikely. 

On his Club 520 podcast, former NBA player Jeff Teague questioned whether Butler would take an even further step back from playing his complete game for his remaining time with the Heat.

“I think he’s taking a route where he’s just going to play defense so they can’t fine him,” Teague said. “If I’m open, I’ll shoot it. I know Jimmy. I know what he’s doing. He’s like, y’all want to pay me like a third option? I’m going to be your third option.”

In Sunday’s against the San Antonio Spurs, Butler finished with eight points, three rebounds, and seven assists on 42.9 percent shooting and missed his only attempt from three-point range.

Bryan Townes is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at [email protected] or on X @bryantownesjr11. Follow our coverage on Facebook.