The HEAT fell at home on Wednesday night to the Charlotte Hornets, which made it the third game in a row that they lost to their first round opponents. This was surprising considering they started the series clicking on all cylinders on both sides of the ball. For the first time this season they had back-to-back games with at least 115 points. Many of these points were coming in the paint. The HEAT hadn’t been known for their prowess behind the 3-point line, so this was exactly what the team needed.
Fast forward 3 games after, and it seems as though the Hornets have them figured out. There were no answers in Charlotte, but you can say that Charlotte was supposed to protect their home court and did just that. However, they came back to Miami, so it was now the HEAT’s turn to stand their ground at home.
Well, that didn’t happen. In fact, it was puzzling what Miami was running offensively at the end of game 5. How much of the blame for the team’s dysfunction rests on Erik Spoelstra’s shoulders? Spoelstra has overcome quite a lot in the two seasons since LeBron James has departed. The organization took a season L in 2014-15 because they were banking on James coming back. When he didn’t, they were so deep into free agency that there wasn’t much left for them to do but secure Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.
Bosh ended up missing most of the season with serious injury, so it was easy to give Spoelstra an asterisk for last season. However, during the offseason, Pat Riley made some decent moves and stacked the HEAT bench. Bosh and Wade were both back and healthy. It was a whole new team, but the young players showed promise. It was time to see what Spoelstra could really do.
The first half of the season had ups and downs. Maybe it was the team learning to play together. Maybe it was the veterans having to learn to trust the young guys. Either way by the All Star Break, the HEAT were 29-24. Then the news came that Bosh’s last season injury was back and he would most likely miss the rest of the season. The team was already struggling to find a shooter. They were relying heavily on their efficiency in the paint, so things were a little tense at the AAA.
However, the second half emergence of young players like Josh Richardson and Justise Winslow became the story of the team. The youth movement was coming alive. Spoelstra’s adjustments for the team were looking brilliant, and they finished the regular season 48-34 sitting at the 3 spot in the Eastern Conference.
No one could argue that Spoelstra was doing an excellent job with a team plagued by injuries and uncertainty, but is overcoming enough for this HEAT franchise? Now we are in the first round of the playoffs and game 6 could potentially be the elimination game for the HEAT. How do they go from #3 seed and record setting games 1 and 2 to a 3-game slump, where they find themselves having to fight for their lives on their opponent’s court?
No one can explain where the problem is coming from and how to fix it, but the Hornets have clogged the paint for 3 games. Blaming refs for bad calls isn’t the answer either. There are bad calls every game. The main concern is how does the team fall from grace so easily. There is a chance that HEAT will make an early 1st round exit Friday night in Charlotte. Spoelstra will most likely get a pass again because of injuries and obstacles the team has overcome. Is it time for a hard conversation with Coach Spo about the future, or should we just praise him for what he’s done with what he’s been given? After all, it was almost an all new roster.
The blame will always fall on the coach’s shoulders. While there are some things that definitely need to be addressed with Spoelstra (like an explanation for the offense at the end of game 5), it’s probably better to wait until next season to see which direction to go in. It’ll be the second full season the team will be back together. Bosh will hopefully be able to stay healthy, and that should give a better barometer of Spoelstra’s impact. In the meanwhile, the reality of a 4-game skid is looming in the minds of all HEAT nation.