The Miami Heat have taken a slight fall from grace so far this season after previously ranking amongst the best teams in the Eastern Conference since the arrival of Jimmy Butler. While the roster notably remains mostly the same despite an underwhelming finish last year, it seems the issues in Miami may go deeper than team construction.
Advertisement
According to a clip that surfaced during the Heat’s victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday, Miami could have some internal problems to work out. With just over a minute left in the contest and Miami already having sealed the win with a 14-point cushion, a rebound opportunity that ended up out of bounds sparked frustrated banter between teammates Bam Adebayo and Terry Rozier.
“You keep f**king up my boards,” Adebayo said as he turned to Rozier after the ball bounced off his fingertips in a frantic loose ball situation. “I got 9 rebounds, you already got your double-double, let me get my s**t,” the point guard responded while pointing at his center.
Bam : “you keep fucking up my boards”
Terry: “I got 9 rebounds, you already got your double double let me get my shit”
Terry and Bam argue over stats, team chemistry doesn’t seem great, at least with these 2……….. pic.twitter.com/STO9h94NRG
— valrico cleare (@tootalls) December 9, 2024
This interaction summarizes what has been an overall discouraging campaign for the Heat so far. After Sunday’s victory, the team’s modest 12-10 record doesn’t sit too poorly relative to Miami’s past few seasons. However, if it weren’t for their current three-game winning, featuring impressive wins over the Lakers and Suns, the Heat’s disjointed start to the campaign would be looked at in a much dimmer light.
Apart from the obvious mistake of running back the same roster, more of the responsibility has begun to fall on Tyler Herro and Adebayo as Butler begins to decline in his 13th year. Head coach Erik Spoelstra acknowledged the heavy burden that the seventh-year big man has to carry, but heaped praise on him for continuing to play the right way. The veteran coach emphasized that he doesn’t want Adebayo to focus on outside attention. None of the noise matters as long as Miami continues to win.
“If you have the record, where we are right now… we leave ourselves open for any kind of narrative. But Bam has been playing winning basketball… it’s a shame that everybody will only notice if he’s scoring… It’ll all come together as long as we’re winning, but he can impact in so many different ways.” Spoelstra said.
Erik Spoelstra on Bam Adebayo’s big night in the win over the Suns. #HeatNation
“Bam has been playing winning basketball…it’s a shame that everybody will only notice if he’s scoring, we don’t want him thinking like that…” pic.twitter.com/KLUbEtGDu0
— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) December 8, 2024
Adebayo has continued to be a bright spot during a discombobulated season. The veteran center has notched four double doubles in his last five games while also adding five or more assists in each. Bam has played a Nikola Jokic-like role for the Heat this year while also remaining one of the league’s most versatile defenders.
If Miami hopes to get back to their victorious ways, the team will need to shift their focus away from bickering over meaningless stats. The Heat have been regarded as a tireless defensive unit in recent years. This has to do with the roster’s personnel but also the players’ seamless chemistry and hard-working “Heat Culture”. Without their suffocating defense leading the way, Miami is nothing more than an average unit. Taking a look in the mirror could help the Heat return to what they’re known for.
