The Miami Heat Build Momentum With Much-Needed Victory

The Miami Heat (28-30) continued their end-of-the-season push for the playoffs with their second consecutive victory against the Indiana Pacers (33-25) 125-120.

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

1. Tyler Herro led the Heat’s offense to one of their best performances of the season.

Herro finished with 29 points, three rebounds, and seven assists on 44 percent shooting and 30 percent from three-point range. His continued improvement as a playmaker for others has been a significant reason for the Heat’s success. As the main focal point of their offense, Herro has caused the defense to collapse and swung the ball out to shooters.

2. Duncan Robinson steps up for his second consecutive 20-point game.

Robinson finished with 20 points, two rebounds, and five assists on 80 percent shooting and 66.7 percent from three-point range. His best showing was during the game’s final five minutes, where he had eight crucial points and an impressive lob to Bam Adebayo for a thunderous slam. The Heat are 5-3 this season when Robinson scores at least 20 points. 

3. Adebayo continues to thrive as a power forward.

Adebayo finished with 18 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists on 57.1 percent shooting and 50 percent from three-point range. His return to his All-Star form has been one of the best things to happen to the Heat this season. His touch around the rim and in the mid-range has been the best of his career, contributing to his success.

4. Haywood Highsmith proved his impact is essential to the Heat’s upside in back-to-back games.

Highsmith finished with nine points, three rebounds, and two blocks on 66.7 percent shooting and 33.3 percent from three-point range. While his numbers may not be as impressive, his return to the Heat’s rotation has been much needed. His value to the team as a defender and overall depth at the forward position has been essential as the team has been short-handed, losing Nikola Jovic to a broken hand.

DWYANE WADE FELT “BETRAYED” WHEN HEAT GAVE $98-MILLION CONTRACT TO EX-TEAMMATE

With the Miami Heat under scrutiny for not taking care of Jimmy Butler financially, Dwyane Wade explains why he left the team in 2016.

Fans have blamed Pat Riley for the Heat’s current predicament but Wade was more critical of team owner Micky Arison.

On the Underground Lounge podcast with Lou Williams and Spank Horton, Wade explained his eventual exit came when Arison refused to pay him what he wanted.

“At the end of the day, Chris got his max, but Chris ain’t selling no (expletive) tickets,” Wade said. “You see those jerseys in here? They’re coming to see the kid. So pay me my due, and we’ll be good. I ain’t asking for a lot. The next year, I said hey, I’m opting out and I did. My agent was sick at the time, and I brought the Arisons into my home because we could negotiate this ourselves. So I wanted a three-year deal to take me out, and I wanted a certain amount of money. And they wouldn’t do it.”

Wade explained that he felt betrayed mainly because the Heat paid others over him despite coming off an All-Star season and for everything else he did for the franchise.

“They wanted to be big players in free agency, and they wanted to go after Kevin Durant,” Wade explained. “We had Hassan Whiteside, who was the player that came out of the G-League and had a great year, but he was up for $100 million. And I’m sitting here like, `I want young fella to get his money, but y’all about to give him money over me?’ Like, take care of me first, then take care of young fella. They didn’t do that, and they didn’t get Kevin Durant. Now I’m getting pissed because my phone once again is not ringing and I just came off a good year. These moments right here are the moments of teaching, and I have to teach my kids how to stand up for their (expletive) selves. I just can’t keep taking it.”’

MIAMI HEAT’S DAVION MITCHELL NOW IN CLASS WITH LEBRON JAMES, JIMMY BUTLER

Despite lacking a flashy playstyle, Davion Mitchell is still highly effective in what the Miami Heat want.

After losing Gabe Vincent to free agency in 2023, the Heat lacked an elite defensive point guard with a high offensive upside. Mitchell has solved this problem completely. Since being traded to the Heat from the Toronto Raptors, he has been their best perimeter defender.

Through seven games with the Heat, Mitchell averaged 10 points, 3.6 assists, and 1.1 steals on 55.1 percent shooting and 46.2 percent from three-point range. 

His three-point shooting is a significant reason for his tremendous impact on the Heat beyond his defensive capabilities. Against the Atlanta Hawks, Mitchell joined an elite company in the history of the Heat franchise. After LeBron James and Jimmy Butler, he became the most recent Heat player to record at least 20 points, five assists, and two steals on 85 percent shooting in a game.

Bryan Townes is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at btownesjr@gmail.com or on X @bryantownesjr11. Follow our coverage on Facebook