Winderman’s view: Undaunted but undrafted leaves Heat with an unsatisfying result
Observations and other notes of interest from Monday night’s 112-108 loss to the Denver Nuggets:
– For a summer evening, this set up quite well.
– For a winter evening, not so much.
– Jamaree Bouyea running the point in key second-half minutes, including starting the fourth quarter.
– Orlando Robinson taking significant minutes in the middle.
– Haywood Highsmith anchoring the second unit.
– It’s the stuff of Vegas in July.
– This was Miami in February.
– Shorthanded by design amid luxury-tax concerns and further depleted by injury, this was not exactly what you want to roll out against the best team in the Western Conference.
– Erik Spoelstra had no choice.
– The Heat had 10 players available Monday night.
– Only two were drafted.
– Jimmy Butler.
– And Bam Adebayo.
– Which puts a heck of a premium on heart and hustle.
– Put it this way, the Heat closed the third quarter with a lineup of Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Bouyea, Robinson and Highsmith.
– Health can’t come soon enough.
– Neither can the buyout market.
– Or the All-Star break.
– Because this is not sustainable.
– With Tyler Herro out, Strus again moved into the Heat starting lineup.
– It was Strus’ 26th start in his 56 appearances.
– That came with Vincent again starting in place of sidelined Kyle Lowry.
– Vincent’s fifth consecutive start.
– The other Heat starters were Adebayo, Butler and Caleb Martin.
– It was the Heat’s 20th starting lineup.
– Orlando Robinson played as the Heat’s first reserve.
– Followed by Highsmith and Bouyea.
– Adebayo’s third free throw moved him past Glen Rice for eighth place on the Heat all-time list.
– Butler’s sixth free throw moved him past Andre Miller 76th on the NBA all-time list.
– Even with Denver shorthanded, Spoelstra went in with ample respect for the Nuggets and MVP center Nikola Jovic.
– “We respect their game,” Spoelstra said. “There’s instant respect for their offensive attack, and particularly with Jokic and his passing ability. It’s just really unique.”
– The Heat now are not home again until a March 1 game against the 76ers.
