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Miami Heat: Time To Start Michael Beasley?

By David Ramil

Mar 7, 2015; Miami, FL, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) is defended by Miami Heat forward Michael Beasley (30) during the second half at American Airlines Arena. The Heat won in overtime 114-109. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 7, 2015; Miami, FL, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) is defended by Miami Heat forward Michael Beasley (30) during the second half at American Airlines Arena. The Heat won in overtime 114-109. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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In Miami’s most recent loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Udonis Haslem started the game for the Heat. With Chris Bosh out for the year as he recovers from blood clots in his lungs, Haslem’s insertion into the starting lineup has been the norm — he’s begun the last four games and 13 of the last 17.

Conversely, with Serge Ibaka recovering from recent knee surgery, the Thunder started Enes Kanter at forward.

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Kanter went on to score 27 points, his highest total since joining Oklahoma City at this year’s trade deadline.

The matchup was doomed from the start. With OKC having Steven Adams next to Kanter, the “Bruise Brothers” dominated on the inside and Miami’s only other hope, Hassan Whiteside, was limited by foul trouble and was mediocre at best. More alarmingly, Kanter had missed the previous Thunder game with a sprained ankle and wasn’t even expected to play on Sunday.

Haslem, for all his grit and tenacity, still couldn’t keep up with the physically-impaired Kanter.

Part of that was Miami’s defensive scheme to limit Russell Westbrook from exploding for one of his typical games of late (he’s the NBA’s leading scorer and has averaged 31.6 points per game since the All-Star break).

It worked, too, but just to an extent — in having Haslem and other defenders sag off their man to double-team Westbrook, they often gave up easy looks at the basket and Westbrook, an underrated passer, finished with 17 assists (six of those to Kanter alone).

Haslem can’t keep up with more agile forwards, nor can he hold his own against more imposing centers. He’s a man out of place and out of time, and he can’t help Miami anymore — at least not on the court, anyway.

Enter Michael Beasley, the Heat’s best option this season barring a miraculous comeback from either Bosh or Josh McRoberts.

When Beasley signed with Miami just weeks ago, it was a necessary move, a no-brainer given Bosh’s status and the need for a team that lacked offensive punch. His familiarity with the team (it’s his third stint with the team that drafted him) didn’t hurt, either.

The question with Beasley was whether he’d learned anything from his sojourn to China and was willing to commit defensively the way he never had in his seven seasons in the NBA.

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    • So far, the answer is yes.

    Beasley 3.0 has been better than expected for Miami, especially on the defensive end. His 105 defensive rating per 100 possessions is tied for the second-best mark of his career.

    Per 36 minutes, he’s averaging 1.3 steals per game (a new career-high) and 0.7 blocks per game – not astronomical numbers but better than Haslem’s 106 rating and his per 36 averages of 0.8 steals and 0.4 blocks per game.

    Moreover, Beasley’s a far more diverse scorer than Haslem, who’s scoring is limited to long jumpers that don’t hit the mark as often as they once did. Beasley has struggled with his scoring but you can probably chalk that up to his limited playing time and commitment to defense (a phrase I’d never though would be used to describe B-Easy).

    In one of his best games of the season, Beasley was able to score 18 points and grab seven rebounds, while guarding Sacramento’s DeMarcus Cousins for most of the night. While it wasn’t a total success, Beasley held his own and even had a sensational block on Cousins (which can be seen at the 40-second mark in the video below):

    This season might be a lost one for Miami, even as they’re in the midst of a playoff push that could have them climb to the sixth-seed in the Eastern Conference standings. But escaping the first round is unlikely and their not the legitimate title contenders they were over the last four years — merely making it to the postseason would be considered an incredible accomplishment.

    This team has a bright future, however, with the acquisition of Goran Dragic, the development of Whiteside and the expected return of Bosh/McRoberts to full health. Still, if there are lowered expectations for this season, then there’s really nothing to lose.

    And even if you’re still trying to win games while developing a potentially incredible scorer who has a new-found devotion to defense, then the best option for Miami is to start Michael Beasley for the rest of the season, however long it lasts.

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