Heat comeback vs. Magic (but fail)

As per Magic beat writer Jason Beede, the Magic held a 20-6 edge in points in the paint and 32-22 after the first half. Miami switched to a zone defense which allowed them to trim the deficit. The Heat have played more zone this season than at any other time in team history.

Heat rebounding non-existent

Kel’el Ware had a tough first half with only two rebounds. In the second, he bounced back and had eight rebounds to finish with a double-double. No other Heat player except for Bam and Tyler Herro had five rebounds or more. Other than that, the Heat turned over the Magic 19 times. They scored as much as the Magic in the paint, shot as good and scored more fastbreak points.

Heat players still don’t have a defensive mindset

Jimmy Butler‘s words still ring throughout the Heat practice facility — “If we worry more about defending than making shots, we’ll be ok.” Even Coach Spoelstra said it (in another way) after the game:

“We’re not looking for the moral victories, but we can’t get it twisted,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “For us, what sets the tone for games, we have to be mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually ready to defend. I love that our guys feel great about our offense. You want to have that confidence, but you’re going to have games like this where you’re just not going to be able to put 150 on the board. And whichever team can really set the tenor and tone of a game defensively probably has the best chance of controlling the game. And for large parts of the game, they controlled the game.”

The Jimmy Butler era ended poorly but his lasting legacy for the franchise was the dogged adherence to defending. Two trips to the NBA finals are proof positive of this tact. In the offseason, the Heat need to find this balance in players who adopt this mindset.

Big games this week

The Heat play at Charlotte, home vs. the Lakers and travel to Houston. The Heat beat Charlotte at home on March 5 so Charlotte will be ready to “get a win back.” They need to “hold serve” and beat Charlotte again. The tough games will be vs. the Lakers and traveling to Houston. The Heat will have “their work cut out for them” versus the Lakers and Rockets to channel their defensive toughness.