Miami Heat: Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra aren’t on the same page

Miami Heat president of basketball operations Pat Riley has previously stated that he is always trying to win a championship. Riley told Ethan J. Skolnick in 2015 that he would be miserable if his team had to rebuild thru the draft for multiple seasons:

"“For me, it’s not through the draft, because lottery picks are living a life of misery. That season is miserable. And if you do three or four years in a row to get lottery picks, then I’m in an insane asylum. And the fans will be, too. So who wants to do that?”"

Why the Miami Heat front office and coaching staff aren’t on the same page

Although Riley has made it known that he is constantly trying to win a championship, is he taking the right steps to accomplish his goal? No, as he is not on the same page with head coach Erik Spoelstra. Riley has made defensive-focused acquisitions over the last couple of seasons.

Riley has acquired Andre Iguodala, Jae Crowder and Trevor Ariza because of how they would fit into the team’s defensive system. For example, upon acquiring Iguodala, Riley drove home the point that he was still an elite team defender.

Unfortunately, Riley didn’t consider how his acquisitions would fit into the team’s offensive system. Spoelstra is currently running an offensive system based on dribble handoffs and pick and rolls.

Miami is currently the leader in dribble handoff possessions averaging 8.9 per game in 55 outings. Spoelstra has handed 56.2 percent of the possessions to Duncan Robinson, Jimmy Butler, and Goran Dragić as they have combined to average 5 per game.

On the other hand, the Miami Heat are currently 20th in pick and roll possessions averaging 18.7 per game. Butler and Dragić are responsible for 66.3 percent of the possessions averaging 12.4 per game.

Miami’s offensive system has contributed to Pat Riley’s acquisitions having to be floor spacers. For instance, Iguodala stood on the right-wing early in the second quarter of a home game against the Raptors.

While Igoudala stood behind the arc, Dragić dribbled the ball up the court until he passed the free-throw line. Once Dragić got there, he passed the basketball to Iguodala, who made an open three-pointer.

The usage has been the catalyst behind them taking a minimum of 50 percent of their shots from three. After being acquired from Memphis last season, Igoudala and Crowder attempted at least 53 percent of their shots from behind the arc averaging 2.2 and 6.4 per game, respectively.

Catch and shoots were responsible for 78.1 percent of the attempts as they averaged 1.9 and 5 per game, respectively. A significant portion of their attempts also came from above the break as they averaged 1.1 and 4.2 per game, respectively.

Sadly, both players struggled before arriving in Miami. Iguodala made 34.5 percent of his catch and shoots on 1.9 attempts per game. Igoudala also struggled from above the break as he made 34.1 percent of his attempts on 1.4 attempts per game.

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Crowder wasn’t much better as he converted 34.4 percent of his catch and shoots on 3.5 attempts per game. Crowder didn’t fare any better from above the break as he converted 32.3 percent of his shots on 3.4 attempts per game.

Fortunately for the Miami Heat, Crowder went on a hot streak upon joining the team as he made 44 percent of the above-the-break threes and 40 percent of his catch and shoots. Crowder credited the hot streak to being more involved in offensive possessions.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Iguodala as he made 29.2 percent of his above-the-break threes and 32.5 percent of his catch and shoots. Despite Igoudala’s struggles, Erik Spoelstra has him in the same role this season as 76.1 percent of his shots have come from behind the arc averaging 3.1 per game.

Catch and shoots have accounted for 83.9 percent of his attempts averaging 2.6 per game. Some of those catch and shot attempts have come from above the break as he is averaging 1.5 per game.

Unfortunately, he is converting 32 percent of his catch and shoots and 24.7 percent of his above-the-break threes. Igoudala’s performance is hurting the team as 87.1 percent of his threes have been uncontested as he is taking 2.7 open attempts per game. He is only converting 33.3 percent of those attempts this season.

Iguodala’s struggles have led to teammates dealing with an extra defender on offense. The Heat most felt the presence of a help defender in the fourth quarter as Iguodala averaged 9.1 minutes per game, 42.9 percent of his playing time.

For example, Andrew Wiggins left Iguodala unguarded in the right corner to double team Bam Adebayo near the elbow. Fortunately, Iguodala decided to cut the basket instead of staying behind the arc. As he began the cut, Adebayo turned around and passed him the ball for a dunk.

Iguodala’s presence has contributed to the team taking a game low 19.5 field goal attempts. The team is also averaging a game-high 4 turnovers in the fourth quarter. Consequently, the team shoots 46 percent from the field, creating 25.3 points in the fourth quarter. The shooting percentage contributed to them being outscored by 0.2 points per game.

Miami has a similar issue with Trevor Ariza, who struggles with above-the-break threes converting 32.8 percent on 3.5 attempts per game before joining the team. Despite his struggles, he is attempting 2.3 above the break threes per game since arriving in Miami. He has fortunately converted 36.6 percent of those attempts.

Ariza’s presence has contributed to the team shooting 47.8 percent from the field on 43.2 attempts per game in 14 appearances. The shooting percentage led to them being outscored by 0.9 points as they averaged 56.1 points per game.

Consequently, Riley and Spoelstra should have a meeting to discuss what players can better Spoelstra’s system and the Miami Heat organization.