There was one particularly exhilarating moment in Miami’s opening night victory over the Washington Wizards. Though Washington was without some key players, it was a tightly-contested game and the Southeast Division rivals looked to start the season by making a strong statement.
Perhaps the strongest impression was make midway through the fourth quarter, the imprint of a basketball slammed furiously by rookie James Ennis onto the head of veteran Rasual Butler.
It was what Heat fans had hoped to see of the rookie out of Long Beach State. Ennis had taken a year to mature his game in the Australian Basketball League, winning the team Most Valuable Player award as a member of the Perth Wildcats.
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After a strong showing in Summer League play, Ennis was earning considerable playing time during Miami’s preseason, displaying incredible athleticism, defensive intensity and surprising shooting range.
But since that ridiculous dunk on Butler, progress has been slow for Ennis and his minutes have suffered accordingly. In a Friday night game against the Atlanta Hawks, Ennis made his first career start in place of Dwyane Wade, sitting out the affair due to a sore hamstring.
It was an unexpected decision from Heat coach Erik Spoelstra and one can only guess at the reasoning that led to it. Perhaps it was a vote of confidence in the rookie, or an opportunity to prove that he deserves more time on the floor.
Either way it apparently backfired, as Ennis got only five minutes of time in the first quarter and did not return to action during the 114-103 loss to the Hawks.
Ennis’ playing time has waned significantly since the preseason, totaling over 10 minutes on just two occasions. In a blowout loss to the Houston Rockets, the rookie played for 14 minutes bud never provided a spark, missing all three of his shot attempts.
In a convincing Heat victory over Minnesota, Ennis played for 16 minutes against the Timberwolves’ porous defense. Miami was in control during the whole game and Ennis contributed six points and four rebounds, both career highs.
There’s clearly potential there but Ennis is struggling to realize it. He’s shooting 40 percent for the season (8-of-20 total field goal attempts), a fairly low number considering his ability to explode past a defender. He’s been most effective from long range, knocking down 3-of-7 3-point attempts.
And while it’s hard to gauge him based on such a small sample size, the concerns are intensified by Spoelstra’s quick hook during Friday’s loss to Atlanta. The Hawks burst open the game quickly, building a lead that Miami could never cut closer to four as the game progressed.
The Heat couldn’t sustain anything offensively – due to Wade’s absence and his re-emergence as an offensive facilitator — but Ennis’ lapses, on offense and defense, were particularly egregious.
His cuts on offense were atrocious, more ambling around than getting to a specific spot on the court. On more than one occasion, Ennis strayed to close to Chris Bosh (in possession of the ball) and allowed his defender to double-team Bosh, resulting in turnovers.
He made a weak entry pass to Bosh in the low post (also a TO). He reacted slowly to a cutting Al Horford and had to foul him to prevent a layup. On consecutive offensive possessions, he stayed in the corner and simply didn’t move.
His defensive rotations were shoddy and he allowed Kyle Korver and Thabo Sefolosha to get wide open looks.
On the positive side, he did make one good cut on offense, and Norris Cole hit Ennis with a nice pass for a layup attempt that resulted in free throws (he missed one). He also broke up a pass on a fast break opportunity and forced a turnover.
Again, this is a small sample size but it’s perfectly representative of Ennis’ work during this short season. Some good plays, a lot of bad ones and untapped potential. He gets a slight pass for being a rookie but his international experience should put him ahead of other first-year players. Unfortunately, that is not the case.
Ennis is a raw, unfinished product, a tantalizing work in progress. Many fans were quick — and wrong — to pin hopes on him to replace some of the athletic prowess that left Miami for Cleveland.
While that may some day be the case, he’ll have to continue working on the little things (rotations, cuts, general court awareness) in order to warrant an increase in playing time.