MIAMI – If this were the NFL, the defensive sets would be radioed into a headset. Of course, in the NBA, it’s not as if there is a helmet for such wiring.
So when it comes to the Miami Heat’s approach on defense, coach Erik Spoelstra said that more than ever those decisions are being left to his leading defensive men, such as Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler and Haywood Highsmith.
That was worth noting ahead of Thursday night’s game against the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center, considering how the Raptors had bullied the Heat defense to the tune of 68 points in the paint the last time the teams met, a 119-116 Raptors victory on Dec. 1 at Scotiabank Arena.
“Now, it’s coming from everybody, where it used to just be coming from me,” Spoelstra said of such in-the-moment defensive audibles. “The core guys have been around long enough that they can make some adjustments on the fly, particularly Jimmy, Bam, H.
“They have autonomy to make some different reads, and kind of have to now.”
But Spoelstra said such actions cannot be the sole solution for solving attack-minded opponents.
“You still have to take the challenge,” Spoelstra continued. “You can’t overscheme stuff to try to overprotect. At some point, there’s no hiding. You’ve got to guard. You’ve got to take the challenge.
“That’s why I don’t like to get too much into the weeds about schemes. At some point, out of the scheme, it’s going to be one-on-one, at some point – whether we’re in our zone, whether we’re in a trapping defense, whether we’re switching – it doesn’t matter. The ball’s going to go somewhere and you’ve got to guard and then you’ve got to finish it off, also, with some kind of rebounding effort.”
Ceding credit
Amid the swirl about potential trade options and his own potential enduring value to the Heat, Butler paused to credit the play of Tyler Herro, who on Monday was named NBA Player of the Week for the first time in his six seasons.
“He knows he’s that guy,” Butler said, when asked what is different about this season’s Heat compared to the rosters forced to play through the play-in round the past two seasons in the playoffs. “He knows he can get his shot off on anybody at any time. He’s going to make the shot, as well, while guarding now, while getting everybody involved now. So there’s really no weakness to his game.”
Like many, Butler credited Herro’s revised shot diet that now is loaded with 3-pointers.
“He can make shots from everywhere on the court,” Butler said. “It’s just what shots he wants to take, because he’s going to be open: ‘Do I want to shoot three? Do I want to shoot the middie? Or do I want to get all the way to the cup or get to the free-throw line?’
“That’s on him. But I think he’s got the confidence, I got the confidence and we got the confidence that he can make all of them.”
For his part, Herro attempted to downplay the weekly Eastern Conference honor, becoming the first Heat player so cited since Adebayo last January, which was the only time the Heat was so honored in 2023-24.
“It always feels good to get some recognition,” Herro said. “But it’s still early in the season and I still have a lot to do.”
Roster adjusted
With rookie center Kel’el Ware back from a two-game stint in the G League, the Heat have returned undrafted forward Keshad Johnson to the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Johnson, who is on a two-way contract, did not appear in the two games before Thursday’s move, limited this season to two Heat appearances over two games.
Idle since Ware’s appearance in a Sunday loss to the Denver Nuggets’ affiliate, the Skyforce return to action Friday night against the Chicago Bulls’ affiliate in Chicago.
Johnson is averaging 24.3 points and 8.8 rebounds in his nine appearances this season for the Skyforce.
Guard Josh Christopher, who also is on a two-way Heat contract, has been with the Skyforce since the start of Sioux Falls’ season.
Heat giveaway
The Heat on Monday hosted their 17th Annual Toy Giveaway, featuring appearances by Heat mainstays and current team employees Alonzo Mourning and Glen Rice.
For the event, the Heat joined Amy Share Brennan and Marni Share Bloomster, daughters of the late Larry Share, a founding Heat season-ticket holder, with Share’s daughters continuing their father’s annual tradition.
The giveaway included time at three Miami schools, Riverside Elementary School, Paul Laurence Dunbar K-8 Center and Jesse J. McCrary, Jr. Elementary, with Mourning and Rice assisting at the latter of those three schools.