As the Miami Heat are down 0-2 in the series against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, there was a bevy of lineup changes before and throughout the Game 2 loss. While the Heat look to overcome the 0-2 series deficit, the team will have some decisions to make, especially regarding Andrew Wiggins.
The former Golden State Warriors star is considered to be the third option for Miami after Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, but was not used in the fourth quarter when the team trailed by just two points with around four minutes left. Head coach Erik Spoelstra would explain that Wiggins was at the scoring table, but ultimately went with the closing group of Herro, Adebayo, Davion Mitchell, Nikola Jovic, and Haywood Highsmith.
“We had taken it all the way to [a two-point deficit], I thought about it,” Spoelstra said via the team’s YouTube page. “I actually put him at the scorer’s table at six to go, and the group wanted to keep on pushing through,” Spoelstra said when asked why Wiggins didn’t play in the fourth quarter. “We stayed with it. But, obviously, he’ll be very important the rest of the series.”
As Spoelstra said, it could imply that the decision to keep Wiggins out of the fourth quarter was a one-time occasion, and riding the momentum during the fourth quarter, where the team made a huge run to make the game competitive. In the loss, Wiggins would score 10 points on three of 10 shooting from the field.
Heat’s starting lineup looked different with Davion Mitchell
With the Heat looking for bright sides heading into Game 3, the one that could be looked at was another lineup change in Davion Mitchell who started the contest, the first time since March 12. The reason being per Spoelstra was for the team “to organize” as Mitchell gets players like Herro and Wiggins off the ball.
“It was a couple different factors with that,” Spoelstra said. “We wanted to be able to organize ourselves offensively at the start, a little bit better. Get Tyler off the ball, [Andrew Wiggins] off the ball. Then, obviously, some defensive presence. His competitive spirit on the ball was very good all night, and you’re dealing with two guards who can put a lot of pressure on you.”
Mitchell has been an underrated asset for Miami ever since being dealt from the Toronto Raptors as part of the multi-team trade including Jimmy Butler. Despite being a newcomer, the team has shown its trust in Mitchell as he echoed the same sentiments.
“He trusted me all season,” Mitchell said via the team’s YouTube page as he scored 18 points while recording six assists. “I played starting minutes, so I mean, he’s kind of been trusting me anyway, but it’s just giving Cleveland a different look, especially with the starting lineup. They put a lot of pressure on Tyler [Herro]. They kind of deny him the whole game. So I just try to open things up for him.”
Heat’s Nikola Jovic plays a meaningful 25 minutes
Another lineup change was the return of Heat young star Nikola Jovic as he played his first meaningful minutes since first suffering from a broken hand in late February. While showing the talent that he can bring, it was a rough and rusty outing for Jovic as he scored 11 points on four of 12 shooting from the field and one of eight from deep to go along with six rebounds.
While Jovic would blame himself for Miami’s loss with the late-game misses and mistakes, Spoelstra would commend his return, saying he makes the team look “different.” This was also repeated by Mitchell who has not got too many reps due to the injury.
“It’s just a different threat, different look,” Mitchell said. “A taller guy who can put the ball on the ground, who can make really good decisions, who can shoot the ball. He can do everything for us. He’s going to be a key part of this series. They got to guard him, you know what I’m saying. And they got to put a good defender on him. He just makes the right play every time, he puts people in rotations, and he’s going to be good for us during the series.”
It remains to be seen if the roles of Wiggins, Mitchell, and Jovic stay the same or change as Miami looks to avoid a 0-3 series deficit with Game 3 on Saturday afternoon.
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