The Miami HEAT used their first preseason home game to honor South Florida sports hero Jose Fernandez followed by a rout of the Brooklyn Nets. However, added to the busy night was the time to show a moment of solidarity between players and coaches during the singing of the national anthem when they all locked arms.
It has been weeks of several sports figures joining in the protest that begun with 49ers quarterback, Colin Kaepernick. With the NBA season now beginning, there was already word that several NBA players would be demonstrating their own protests. NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, invited players to discuss with him how they and the league could work together throughout the season. HEAT coach, Erik Spoelstra, discussed what the team was trying to convey with their demonstration and what their next steps would be. After all, actions do speak louder than anything else.
Justise Winslow is now entering his second season with the team, and with so many new faces on the roster, he also finds himself as an emerging leader on the team. Winslow also addressed the team’s actions during the national anthem.
It was definitely a busy night for the Miami HEAT culminating with the team soundly defeating the Brooklyn Nets. Hassan Whiteside lead the team finishing with 21 points and 14 rebounds. During this preseason, Whiteside seems to be picking up right where he left off in the 2015-16 season. However, in the first half the team seemed to be struggling to find rhythm with their perimeter shooting.
The second half saw a team effort to correct the problem with the help of newcomers, Wayne Ellington, Rodney McGruder and Luke Babbitt. Team defense was a huge factor in the 3rd quarter, where the Nets were held to just 17 points.
It was clear that Spoelstra was testing different things to see where the team was most comfortable. However, make no mistake that this is a HEAT team that will experience several growing pains before they figure it out. They open their regular season against the Magic on October 26th, soon followed by a tough home tests against the Hornets and then the even tougher Spurs. Fans will have a good gauge early in the season of where the team is and how long it will take them to get to where they want to be.