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Some Miami Heat player notes from the season

Had the global coronavirus pandemic not put a stop to things, today was to be the final day of the 2019-20 NBA regular season.

The Miami Heat were having an excellent season, and while Jimmy Butler is their most well-known player, plenty of other guys share the credit, including do-it-all first-time All-Star forward Bam Adebayo, and talented young guards Duncan Robinson, Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro. Here’s the Miami Herald with some notes:

Adebayo: If this is the end of the regular season, Adebayo will join Oscar Robertson as the only players to average at least 15 points, 10 rebounds and five assists before turning 23.

Robinson: No player other than Steph Curry has ever hit as many three-pointers in a season at such a high rate of accuracy. Let that marinate for a minute.

Nunn: With 972 points, Nunn scored more in his first 62 games than any other undrafted player during the common draft era (post-1966) except Connie Hawkins (1,494).

Herro: Among players with at least eight clutch three-pointers this season, only Joe Harris shot better than Herro on threes in clutch time, among all NBA guards this season.

With games on hold, if the regular season was declared over but the playoffs to begin, the Eastern conference No. 4 Heat would be playing the No. 5 Pacers in the first round.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra speaks on being home during shutdown

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel on how Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra is managing these days:

Had the NBA not been shut down after the Heat’s March 11 loss to the Charlotte Hornets at AmericanAirlines Arena, the Heat would be in the midst of a four-game, eight-day trip. Instead, Spoelstra is home with [wife] Nikki, [two-year-old child Santiago Ray] and four-month-old Dante.

“It’s been an incredible blessing to be around our family much more often,” Spoelstra, 49, said. “We’re able to spend our meals together. I wake up every single morning and not be in a rush to do anything. I can be at breakfast. I’m barbecuing every single night. I’ve never been a barbecue guy. I’ve always been a takeout, order-out guy, but now I’m cooking meals for this family. I’ve had a lot of peace of mind doing that every afternoon…

“Look, my kids are young kids under the age of two. They have no idea what’s going on. They just think this is a big party in the backyard every single day. So, it is unique, and we do want our team to be thinking of others and to feel the real empathy and giving nature during this time. That also can help deal with some potential anxiety or stress that somebody may be going through with this, to focus on helping other people.”

We’re all just trying to make the best of this global coronavirus situation. Which for most of us will involve just staying home for the time being.

Kelly Olynyk faces opt-out decision next NBA offseason

Here’s the Miami Herald reporting on Heat big-man reserve Kelly Olynyk:

When life was normal, less than a month ago, it seemed no Heat player faced a tougher offseason decision than Kelly Olynyk, who has the option of bypassing $13.6 million in the final year of his contract and instead entering free agency this summer.

Now, with pro sports facing unprecedented uncertainty in the coming months amid the coronavirus pandemic, coupled with the possibility of a lower NBA salary cap because of lost revenue, the choice could essentially be made for Olynyk and many others with 2020-21 player options: The security of opting in suddenly seems pretty appealing.

Even before coronavirus affected everything, Olynyk faced a landscape in which only six other teams, besides Miami, would have cap space above $10 million this offseason, per capologist Jeff Siegel: Atlanta at $49.1 million, New York at $44.3 million, Detroit at $31.9 million, Charlotte at $25.2 million, Memphis at $16 million and Phoenix at $13.9 million.

The big takeaway here goes way beyond Olynyk. League-wide, it makes sense, as of a few weeks ago, to assume that lots of players with contract options who may have tested free agent waters during the next offseason to play it safer and opt for short-term security.

Will the Heat and Jae Crowder stick together?

Here’s the Miami Herald reporting on the Heat (41-24) and forward Jae Crowder, who has been playing for the Grizzlies before being traded to Miami:

Considering the uncertainty surrounding the NBA’s coronavirus shutdown, it’s possible that forward Jae Crowder has played his final game in a Miami Heat uniform.

The league is still hopeful it will be able to resume the season at some point, but there’s the fear that this season could be completely lost. With Crowder set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, that leaves his future with the organization in question.

However, this is certain: Crowder hopes the Heat keeps him past this season.

“I’m just very happy to be a part of this organization because I’ve always envisioned that, but I never knew if it could come true,” said Crowder, who has averaged 11.9 points while shooting 39.3 percent on threes, 5.8 rebounds, two assists and 1.5 steals in 13 games since he was traded to the Heat in February. “But I always wanted to play for this city.”

Crowder brings defense and energy, and there’s every reason the team would want to bring him back.

Hopefully we get more basketball, whether regular season or playoffs, in the 2019-20 season. But for now, everything is on hold.

LeBron James shares insight on pivotal time with the Miami Heat

LeBron James chatted on social media yesterday and revealed some interesting insight on his days with the Miami Heat. Here’s ESPN.com‘s summary:

However, James did speak about his 2012 Game 6 performance for the Miami Heat against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals, which stands as one of his greatest games. Facing elimination on the road and a second consecutive season with no title for the heralded “Big 3” in Miami, James scored 45 points with 15 rebounds to turn the tide and begin a streak that led him to his first title.

James said if he’d lost the game, he believed the Heat could have traded him or teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

“My mentality was if we lose, [Heat president] Pat Riley may break us all up. And I [didn’t] want that,” James said. “It might be the quickest breakup in basketball history.”

Fortunately for LeBron and the Heat, things worked out.

Gabe Vincent rejoins the Heat after time in G League

As part of his two-way contract, Gabe Vincent has re-joined the Miami Heat.

Vincent, who was signed by Miami to a two-way contract on January 8, has appeared in 10 games with the HEAT’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, this season helping them to an 8-2 record over that span while averaging 16.7 points, 1.9 assists, 1.8 rebounds and 1.00 steals in 24.3 minutes of action. He has shot 40 percent from the field and a perfect 11-of-11 from the foul line. Earlier this season he appeared in 20 games (three starts) with the Stockton Kings and averaged 23.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.30 steals and 31.8 minutes while shooting 46.9 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from three-point range and 89.7 percent from the foul line. Additionally, Vincent has appeared in five games with the HEAT this season, totaling 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and a steal in 41:04 minutes of action.

Heat took some unexpected losses recently

The Heat are having an outstanding season. But some of their recent losses are on the unexpected side of things. Here’s the Miami Herald reporting:

When asked to explain Monday’s ugly overtime loss to the Cavaliers, Heat guard Goran Dragic attempted to simplify a confusing result.

“They shut us down on offense, and we just didn’t play defense,” Dragic said.

Both things are true, with the Cavaliers rallying from a 22-point third-quarter deficit. But there’s only one side of the court that Heat coaches and players were pointing to as the reason for another road loss — defense.

“It looks and it sounds like a broken record,” coach Erik Spoelstra said, with the Heat returning to Miami to face the Timberwolves on Wednesday to begin a five-game homestand. “Either myself or Bam [Adebayo] or [Udonis Haslem] or whoever, Jimmy [Butler], you want to bring anybody in here and talk after one of these road games, we all sound the same. We have an idea every game on the road what it tends to be: When the shots go dry, do we have the ability to sustain defensively and get enough stops to change the momentum.” …

With Monday’s loss, the Heat fell to 13-18 on the road for the season. In its past 15 road games, Miami is 4-11 with losses to these sub-.500 teams: Wizards, Knicks, Kings, Hawks, and Cavaliers.

The Heat were without Jimmy Butler and some other key players, so it’s not a total surprise that they took a loss. Chalk it up to some minor bumps in the road over the course of a very successful season that should only get better once the team is fully healthy again and also learns to make the most of some impressive recent additions to the their bench.

Kendrick Nunn has a unique memory of the 2018 NBA draft

Here’s the Miami Herald reporting on Heat guard Kendrick Nunn’s unique memory of the 2018 draft:

Kendrick Nunn doesn’t have a physical, written-out list of all the guards taken in the 2018 NBA draft. He does feel confident, however, he can name everyone who was picked in the draft last year.

He remembers seeing names called while he waited at home to see if someone would take a flier on him. No one did, so Nunn spent almost all of his first season as a professional playing in the NBA G League before the Miami Heat signed him on the final day of the regular season last year. It’s easy for him to remember Collin Sexton was in the draft, taken No. 8 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers. All he could do was laugh — then cackle — when asked whether he likes to go up against the guard.

“Yeah, I do — most definitely,” Nunn admitted. “I don’t have to say much about that. When I get a chance to go up against those guys, I’m going to show up and give it all I got.

“I don’t have a written list, but I remember because I was watching that and I just remembered from the top of my head.”

The Heat are 36-20 this season, and Nunn has started in all 53 games he’s played in this season, averaging an impressive 15.5 points and 3.5 assists per game.

Nunn is a cool success story. And a player we enjoy watching.

Heat center Bam Adebayo centerstage this season

The most high-profile member of this season’s Heat is Jimmy Butler, but do-it-all forward/center Bam Adebayo, who enjoyed this past weekend playing in the All-Star game Sunday and winning the Skills Challenge competition Friday, is on the national stage this season. Both he and the Heat are doing bigger things than expected. They’re a serious contender in the East.

Here’s the South Florida Sun Sentinel reporting:

It’s not as if Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo lacked confidence before All-Star Weekend after having a stellar first half of the season.

He’s averaging 15.8 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.9 assists — statistical benchmarks only three other players in the league have achieved this season.

The 22-year-old big man has received praise from legends and other top players for his impact on the Heat’s strong play before the All-Star break, with the team’s 35-19 record only four wins away from last year’s win total.

But being on center stage against the NBA’s best players has pushed Adebayo’s belief in himself to greater heights.

“My confidence is definitely through the roof right now,” Adebayo said after making his first All-Star appearance on Sunday.

The Bucks have been the East’s best squad this season, but the Heat are a serious contender in the conference, and they should only be better for the remainder of the season after bulking up their bench shortly before the trade deadline.

Heat sign Gabe Vincent, waive Daryl Macon

The Miami Heat today signed guard Gabe Vincent to a two-way contract, and waived guard Daryl Macon.

Vincent, who was originally signed by the Sacramento Kings on October 3, 2018, has spent the last two seasons with their G League affiliate, the Stockton Kings. He has appeared in 20 games (three starts) this season with Stockton averaging 23.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.30 steals and 31.8 minutes while shooting 46.9 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from three-point range and 89.7 percent from the foul line. He helped lead Stockton to a 13-8 record, which was third-best in the Western Conference, while leading the team in scoring average, points, field goals made, three-point field goals made and plus/minus. He played all four years at UC Santa Barbara, appearing in 113 collegiate games (105 starts), finishing as the school’s all-time leader in three-point field goals made (243) and among the Top 10 in points (1,441) and assists (116).

Macon appeared in 17 games (15 starts) this season with the HEAT’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, averaging 19.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 31.4 minutes. Additionally, Macon appeared in four games with Miami this season totaling three points and an assist in 14:06 minutes of action.