Miami Heat: Is the 2018-19 season going exactly as planned?

Despite not even a playoff showout being certain for the Miami Heat, their 2018-19 run should still be considered a success.

Some Miami Heat fans may be disappointed with how the team’s 2018-19 campaign has unfolded.

At 33-36, they sit eighth in the Eastern Conference, without a postseason ticket guarantee.

They come in two games behind the Brooklyn Nets, a ball club that has been in a so-called rebuilding stage for years now, and just one game ahead of the Orlando Magic, a group that they should have no business being neck-and-neck with.

Dion Waiters has only seen time in 30 games this year, his transition back from injury shaky at best. James Johnson is averaging a mere 7.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists a game in 20.8 minutes per game, despite signing a four-year, $60 million deal in July of 2017. And Wayne Ellington, the resident sharpshooter, is now a member of the Detroit Pistons.

And yet, one could argue a lot of things are going exactly as planned for the Heat.

For starters, Dwyane Wade‘s Last Dance has been one for the books.

Averaging 14.1 points, 4.2 assists and 3.6 rebounds in 25.4 minutes per game, his 58 appearances so far this season have been nothing short of remarkable.

Between performances like scoring 35 points in 34 minutes on 13-of-22 shooting (including going 4-for-7 from downtown) against the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 25, career-benchmarks like recording his 1,000th game on Dec. 9, and ultimate achievements like dethroning Michael Jordan for most blocks by a guard on March 4, the Farewell Tour has been nothing short of extraordinary.

Similarly, there’s no denying that Wade has made the most out of passing the torch down to the youth of South Beach.

Although he’s currently out with a thigh contusion, Justise Winslow put on a show last Friday against the Milwaukee Bucks, as he ended the evening with 20 points on 8-for-16 shooting from the field (going 3-of-7 from 3-point land), alongside five assists, two rebounds, two steals and one block.

In other words, he was doing it all for Miami, including connecting with Wade on an epic lob:

Winslow isn’t the only success story who’s proof that The Culture is going strong either.

Perhaps the most important thing to note about this year is Hassan Whiteside‘s recent willingness to come off the bench.

Whiteside, once labeled hot-head who had no problem voicing his frustration of not having a big enough role on the Heat, has now accepted a sixth man role, backing up fellow big man Bam Adebayo.

While it wasn’t necessarily an easy transition, he’s been flourishing as a part of the second unit, with the likes of 14 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in 19 minutes against the Bucks.

"“I’m going to keep coming in and try to play the best I can out there,” the center told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. “It’s going to be a different unit out there. I get to play with D-Wade more. I get to look at the bright side. You’re going to play against the backup guys. It’s a little different. You can read the game a little more, kind of see what’s going on, who’s hot, what kind of schemes they’re going with. It gives you some advantages."

Newfound fatherhood may have played a part in the seven-footer’s recent “glass half-full” mentality switch, but it’s safe to say president Pat Riley also had a hand in it.

Miami Heat fans have every right to expect more from this group, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t also count parts of 2018-19 as victories.