A long, long time ago (not really), the Miami Heat had started off the season with an impressive 5-2 record. Their most recent victory had been a Nov. 9 matchup against the Dallas Mavericks on the second night of a back-to-back set.
The Heat moved the ball around with ease, was the top team in the league in assists, and hot shooting from the perimeter helped free up an offensive that looked potent.
What the hell happened?
Since then, Miami has fluctuated between appearing mediocre to downright lost at times. Much of that was an injury to Dwyane Wade, the team’s offensive catalyst.
While Chris Bosh, Mario Chalmers and Luol Deng (among others) have done an admirable job of trying to carry the team, it’s obvious that Wade’s ability to pass, score and (occasionally) play solid defense is crucial to Miami’s chances at success.
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Wade missed seven games but has appeared in the last two: one was a win over a bad Knicks team and the second was a blowout loss to the Wizards, one of the best teams in the East. While Miami barely pulled out a win, their weaknesses continue to be exploited, even by a sad-sack team like New York.
Amar’e Stoudemire looked strong against the Heat’s short front line. On Monday, journeyman veteran Rasual Butler dropped 23 points on Wade and Co., hardly the kind of performance you can afford to give up to a divisional rival.
And Miami prepares for a five-game road trip that begins on Friday, and includes stops in Phoenix, Memphis, Milwaukee, Utah and Denver. The Heat, now at 9-8, could find themselves several games under .500 by the time they return to the friendly confines of AmericanAirlines Arena.
At which point, two current starters — Norris Cole and Shawne Williams — will likely be coming off the bench.
It’s increasingly difficult to justify starting Cole, who provides adequate defense and represents a negative to Miami’s offense. Cole’s scoring is limited and, even after four years, has yet to show much progress.
To put it simply, Cole simply does not distinguish himself in any one face of offense; his passing, scoring and play-making are decent but not enough to warrant starting. His defense had been enough to give him a chance as a starter but, with each step-back jumper by Steph Curry or each blow-by from John Wall, Cole becomes much more of a liability.
Conversely, Williams had been unexpectedly named a starter due to the injury of Josh McRoberts. Williams provided excellent long-range shooting, solid rebounding and guarded opposing frontcourt stars to keep Bosh out of foul trouble.
Unfortunately, he’s struggled in recent games and has topped double figures in scoring on only two of the last six occasions. Like Cole, Williams doesn’t create his own shot and is more of a catch-and-shoot player; on an offense that has been struggling with its passing, these two players are an obvious part of the problem.
Ironically, it is the players that will soon be in the starting lineup — McRoberts and rookie Shabazz Napier — who, along with Wade, are the team’s best passers.
Even though McRoberts has looked rusty in his return from injury, he’s still an upgrade over Williams at this point in time. He fits seamlessly with the rest of the starting unit and facilitates the offense as easily as a guard.
His long-range shooting is still not what it was last season (when he shot 36 percent) but there have been recent signs of improvement.
Conversely, Napier’s growth has been spectacular. His shooting early in the season was a nightmare but, despite that weakness, he was often on the floor in clutch moments because of his ball-handling and earnest defense.
However, he’s raised his 3-point percentage to a respectable 40.5 percent and can be considered a legitimate threat from the perimeter. Pairing him with Wade, Deng, Bosh and McRoberts would make Miami as explosive as it was earlier this season and likely better.
This road trip is a crucial test for the Heat and changes like this represent the first major step in continuing to improve as the season continues.
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