
Kel’el Ware is in tough times with the Heat. According to Coach Erik Spoelstra after the game, he speculated that Ware (as a young player) would play worse with less minutes, to justify being played more minutes. Spoelstra was visibly frustrated as he said it and he had a look like “he was done (with Ware’s immaturity.)”
Many fans on twitter have clapped back at Coach Spoelstra on his treatment of Ware. It is an oversimplification because a basketball player can’t specialize anymore, i.e. only score, only rebound, only screen, etc. Dwayne Wade appeared on the show with Udonis and said that “it may e a misunderstanding” between Coach Spoelstra and Ware (because he didn’t understand why a player would play worse to get more minutes.)
Udonis and Malik Allen are mentoring Ware and Haslem helped Ware against the Knicks this season. Spoelstra and Ware should have a closed door meeting soon to “clarify things.” Ware obviously has hit a “maturity ceiling” this season and needs help. Spoelstra grimaced a couple of games ago after Ware took a three-point shot, so I empathize with Wade’s take.
The Heat played fantastic for three quarters against the Celtics. Then in the fourth quarter, they turned up their level of play a notch that Coach Spoelstra has said the Heat don’t have. A key sequence was late in the fourth with under four minutes. Norman Powell missed a layup and then:
Derrick White then made his free throw shots and put the Celtics up by four. The Heat still had a chance down two and they had a sequence of intense play, but Kasparas Jakucionis committed an offensive foul when trying to shoot a three-pointer. In hindsight, there was some open space inside the three-point line where the two men could’ve shot a jumper.
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