A Miami Heat problem that must be fixed and what’s contributing to it. And help on the way
The Miami Heat has been using a bigger power rotation than the group that orchestrated a run to the NBA Finals at the Disney bubble.
And yet, the Heat has regressed on the boards, entering the week as the league’s worst rebounding team.
Kelly Olynyk, 6-11, has replaced the 6-6 Jae Crowder, who now plays for the Phoenix Suns, giving Miami a taller frontline this season. And rookie Precious Achiuwa ranks second in the league, among rookies, in rebounds per 36 minutes.
And yet, Miami stands last in the league in rebounding at 40.9 boards per game, compared with 44.4 last season, which ranked 17th.
What’s more, the Heat is averaging a league-low 6.4 offensive rebounds, off from 8.5 last season.
The absence of Jimmy Butler for 10 games this season Tyler Herro for six has contributed significantly to that.
Butler has played in only six of the Heat’s 16 games; he was averaging 5.5 rebounds this season and averaged a career-high 6.7 boards last season.
Herro, who has missed the Heat’s past six games, is averaging 6.7 rebounds, which would be third among shooting guards if he had enough games to qualify, behind only the Pelican’s Josh Hart and Knicks’ RJ Barrett.
But there’s more to it than that. Other factors in play:
▪ Aside from Herro, the Heat doesn’t have a player in the top 12 in rebounding at any position.
Adebayo is 13th among all centers at 8.9. Olynyk is 26th among all power forwards at 5.2. Among point guards, Dragic is 30th at 2.6 rebounds per game.
▪ In rebounds per 36 minutes, the Heat has two players in the top 50: Achiuwa stands 30th at 11.1 rebounds per 36 minutes and Adebayo is 46th at 10.0 per 36. Herro is 95th at 7.2.
But Olynyk is 109th at 6.8, Andre Iguodala 157th at 5.5, Duncan Robinson 226th at 4.1 and Dragic 236th at 3.6.
KZ Okpala is averaging a mediocre 5.4 rebounds per 36 minutes but doesn’t have enough minutes to qualify for that list.
▪ Robinson has played by far the most minutes (507) of any NBA player without a single offensive rebound this season, entering Monday’s game at Brooklyn.
Five NBA players have played at least 100 minutes without any offensive rebounds. Heat guard Gabe Vincent (182 minutes) is another of those five. And Maurice Harkless had no offensive rebounds in 96 minutes.
Though Herro has been excellent on the defensive boards, he has just one offensive rebound.
▪ Meyers Leonard, the Heat’s tallest player, has logged only 29 minutes all season and has seven rebounds.
THIS AND THAT
▪ There is optimism that Butler and Avery Bradley — who have been sidelined since Jan. 10 — could return later this week. Bradley told Yahoo’s Chris Haynes he plans to play on Wednesday.
There’s the expectation that Butler would clear the league’s health and safety protocols on Monday. Herro and Leonard remain out with injuries. And Okpala is now dealing with a knee injury that had him questionable for Monday’s game against Brooklyn.
▪ Heat vice president of security David Holcombe was forced to break up an Adebayo/Kyrie Irving postgame jersey exchange because NBA’s COVID rules require he do so.
“I’ll give Kyrie the jersey on my own time,” Adebayo said.
Irving said he and Adebayo have known each other for nearly a decade. Irving’s father reportedly helped pay for Adebayo’s AAU team as a teenager.
▪ Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told Heat broadcasters on Saturday that he wants Robinson attempting at least 10 three-point shots per game.
But Robinson reached that threshold just five times in the Heat’s first 15 games.
He shot 3 for 11 on threes on Saturday and acknowledges he’s facing more double-teams than last season, when he stunned the league by making 270 threes on 44.6 percent shooting.
“Just being persistent; always hunting for daylight,” he said of dealing with double-teams. “My teammates and coaches want me to be super aggressive.”
This season, Robinson has made 56 threes (tied for sixth entering Monday) and shot 44.4 percent on those attempts, which is 26th in the league.
▪ Dragic has started four games — after starting just three during the regular season last year — but that could change when the Heat is at full strength.
Erik Spoelstra doesn’t want to wear him out before postseason. He’s averaging 26.4 minutes, compared with 28.2 last season. But Dragic logged at least 30 minutes each of the past five games.
“It’s still early on,” Spoelstra said. “This is not something I want to continue for months. But we need him to do a little bit more. I’ve still been able to manage his minutes as a starter, just being mindful of that going forward. But it’s not March or April. My thought is and hope is that we’ll be able to stabilize it enough.”
Dragic — who started 16 games in the playoffs last season — is shooting 47.1 percent overall (up from 44.1 last season) but just 32.2 on threes (compared with 36.7 last season).
▪ Players defended by Okpala have shot 8 of 26 this season (30.8 percent).
