The Miami Heat began the season impressively, helping to disprove the notion that the team would collapse with the departure of LeBron James.
An opening night victory over division rival Washington, a win over the Eastern Conference-leading Toronto Raptors and a convincing beating of the Dallas Mavericks were the highlights of a 5-2 start.
Since then, Miami has lost four of their last six games, and have looked somewhere in between mediocre and terrible.
The biggest reason for the drop in play is the absence of Dwyane Wade who is nursing a hamstring injury. Wade, while still a capable and efficient scorer, has been the focal point of the Heat’s offense.
His passing and ability to create shots for teammates set Miami as one of the top teams in assists and 3-point shooting percentage. Those numbers have predictably dropped with Wade out of the lineup.
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Additionally, Josh McRoberts has missed several games due to a lingering toe injury and foot blister. McRoberts, expected to start at power forward and help Miami’s ball movement, has had to work himself slowly back into form, averaging just 12.5 minutes per game. He has yet to start for the Heat.
But the injury bug has affected Miami’s reserves as well as their starting unity. Chris Andersen (rib), Udonis Haslem (quadriceps) and Danny Granger (hamstring) have all missed a number of games and looked shaky once they’re able to return to action.
Couple that with a schedule that, as Chris Bosh recently noted, is “insane.”
Bosh, in an interview with the Sun Sentinel, was asked about the difficulties of five back-to-back sets so early in the season. Here’s his response:
"“…it’s been tough for us, back-to-backs, playing a lot of games in a short period of time, with a group of new guys, the injuries we’ve had. I don’t mind the back-to-backs when they happen during the course of the season. The four-in-five, five-in-seven, that’s a little bit different. But if it’s just a back-to-back, sometimes you can get in a great rhythm on the second night. You just have to stay positive and just figure things out on the fly, which is insane. But that’s the nature of the beast. You just have to really kind of have concentration and just patience.”"
But, Bosh added:
"“It evens out. I mean, at some point the schedule is going to turn for everybody.”"
Bosh’s point is valid in that the Heat may enjoy a less-grueling schedule later in the season when teams might be dealing with injuries even in the midst of a postseason push. The Eastern Conference is more wide-open than it has been in years and Miami is poised to be one of many contenders this season.
Even the injuries have provided an added benefit to the team. The development of Shawne Williams, one of the league’s best 3-point shooters this season, has been unexpected.
The journeyman forward spent most of last season with the NBA D-League but has emerged as a long-range threat in Miami; Williams has started every game this season in place of McRoberts.
Wade’s injury has thrust Mario Chalmers into a starting role, one in which the 7th-year guard has thrived. But, with Chalmers added minutes, Miami’s backcourt has been a little thin.
Enter Shabazz Napier.
Norris Cole, normally the staring point guard, was out for Miami’s win on Saturday due to a dislocated finger and Napier flourished in extended minutes. He’s been playing at clutch moments, closing out games and looking like the capable floor leader that Miami traded for on draft night.
Likewise, James Ennis, Justin Hamilton — even veteran Shannon Brown — have all played more than expected this early in the season. Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra normally has a tight rotation but has had to, as Bosh alluded, “figure things out on the fly.”
But players have risen to the challenge and have improved as a result, giving Spoelstra a more keen understanding of what his team can and can’t do in certain situations. It’s a short-term sacrifice that could lead to long-term success.
In a season that has started off sluggishly, looking smoothly later in the season — when playoff seeding and home-court advantage may be on the line — is much more important.