The Miami Heat have been a top 10 defense, statistically, over the first two games of the 2021-22 season. They are currently third in opponents’ field goal percentage, holding opposing teams to 38.7 percent shooting on 90.5 shots per game. The low field goal percentage has contributed to opponents averaging 98.5 points per game, the eighth-best in the league.
Although the Heat appear to be a good defensive team statistically, when you look beneath the surface, there is some cause for concern. The team has been giving up a significant amount of uncontested threes.
Let’s take a look at why the Miami Heat defensive performance over the first two games has leaned more on luck rather than skill.
For instance, Milwaukee Bucks guard, George Hill, had the ball on the left wing, midway through the first quarter of the Heat’s home opener. Hill decided to pass the ball to Giannis Antetokounmpo, who had established post position above the free-throw line.
Once Antetokounmpo got the ball, Heat wing Jimmy Butler went for the steal. Unfortunately, he could not get the steal, leading to his defensive assignment, Khris Middleton, being wide open on the right wing.
Consequently, Antetokounmpo passed Middleton the ball to allow him to shoot a 3-pointer. Middleton couldn’t capitalize on the uncontested shot as he missed the wide-open three to end the possession.
The Heat’s desire to watch the ball resulted in Milwaukee taking 35 uncontested threes during the home opener, 83.3 percent of their total 3-point attempts. Unfortunately, Milwaukee only made 31.4 percent of those attempts, which contributed to them losing by 42 points.
The Heat continued to be focused on the ball during their second game against the Indiana Pacers. For instance, Torrey Craig had the ball on the right-wing early in the second quarter against the Heat. Craig decided to back down Markieff Morris; while this was occurring, Dewayne Dedmon, Morris, and Max Strus watched the ball.
Consequently, Strus’ defensive assignment, Jeremy Lamb, was open on the left wing. Lamb being left unguarded led to Craig passing him the ball. Unfortunately, Strus couldn’t get back to his original assignment in time to properly contest the 3-pointer. Lamb would end up making that 3-pointer to end the possession.
The Heat’s defensive approach led to Indiana taking 35 uncontested attempts, 89.7 percent of their total 3-point shots. Similar to Milwaukee, Indiana struggled to convert these uncontested attempts as they only made 25.7 percent of their uncontested 3-point shots.
Milwaukee and Indiana’s inability to make open threes has helped Miami hold them to 27.2 percent shooting from behind the arc on 40.5 attempts. Miami’s defensive 3-point percentage has been the catalyst for them holding opponents to 38.7 percent shooting from the field, as opponents have made 48 percent of their 2-point field goals on 50 attempts.
If the Heat organization continues with this defensive approach, it is unlikely that they will keep having the same success. Therefore, the team needs to find a happy medium between staying with their defender and watching the ball.
If the Miami Heat wants to watch the ball or go for a steal, it should be the help defender closest to the ball. For instance, while Antetokounmpo had the ball above the free-throw line, Kyle Lowry should have gone for the seal instead of Butler, as he was responsible for guarding Hill and was about three feet away from Antetokounmpo.
The shorter distance would have given Lowry a better shot to go for the steal, and if he missed, to run back and contest the shot in case Antetokounmpo passed the ball back to him. In conclusion, Miami’s defensive performance is currently based on luck rather than skill.