The Heat’s starting backcourt has fallen into a shooting slump at the worst possible time, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Gabe Vincent and Max Strus played vital roles in Miami’s climb from the play-in tournament to the NBA Finals, but they were held to a combined 12 points in the Game 3 and 4 losses while shooting 4-of-27 from the field.
Strus was despondent in the locker room after Friday’s contest, according to Jackson. He missed all four of his shots on a scoreless night and was removed from the game for good with 4:25 left in the third quarter.
“I’m pretty disappointed,” he said. “But sitting here and sulking about it is not going to do anything. Got to toughen up and bounce back. Look forward to the next opportunity and try to stay positive.”
Vincent scored a combined 42 points in the two games at Denver, but has managed just nine since the series shifted back to Miami. He shot 3-of-16 over the last two games and got into early foul trouble both times.
“Gabe’s been unbelievable this whole playoff run,” Kyle Lowry said. “Gabe is a tremendous basketball player. Our league is a make-or-miss league, and you have a guy in Jimmy Butler who is going to continue to pump confidence into him. I’m going to pump confidence into him. He’s going to come out and have a great game in Game 5.”
There’s more on the Heat:
- Miami could have up to four first-round picks to trade this summer, which would be the most in several years, Jackson adds. He notes that the Heat could give themselves extra flexibility by working out an agreement with the Thunder to waive the lottery protections on the selection that Miami owes to OKC in 2025 or 2026.
- The Heat have shown that they can succeed without Tyler Herro, who has been injured for nearly the entirety of their playoff run, and Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel states that it should be much easier to trade Herro than it was last offseason. The poison pill restriction in Herro’s contract will expire at the end of the month, meaning his salary will be counted as $27MM for trade purposes, rather than the $5.7MM he’s currently earning on his rookie contract. Winderman points out that Herro’s $130MM extension kicks in next season, and any team that trades for him will have him under contract for the next four years.
- Team president Pat Riley should be aggressive about trying to acquire Damian Lillard from the Trail Blazers this summer, argues Manny Navarro of The Athletic. Earlier this week, Lillard listed the Heat as one of his preferred destinations if he does get traded.
Jimmy really has to guarantee a win. Not let his boys lose. Heat Culture.
you know…
He’s not gonna let his boys lose!
Not Jimmy.
It’s not just them though…they’re missing a lot of shots in the paint, and they’re mostly getting to their spots, but they’re missing. I dont really agree with the Heat’s rotation decisions in this series, but every time they’ve had a lineup advantage on the floor the last couple of games, Michael Malone called instant timeouts and made the changes.
The Heat’s main issue that hasnt been addressed in years was exploited in this matchup with Aaron Gordon. They need a smallball 5. That was already needed before they lost PJ Tucker, and was even more of an issue all season
Losing Oladipo hurt in this matchup too. They contested a lot of Murray’s shots, and he just made them, but it still would have been interesting to see what he may have done defensively
I would only trade for people like Jaylen Brown or Kawhi Leonard or Paul George, or Draymond Green, or if those types of players are available…wings and 4s that can defend, and preferably shoot. If Lowry gets moved, someone to replace him that can defend at guard, like Chris Paul. I also think we’re losing Strus, so a spacer that can play the 3/4/2 and defend adequately
No this last game Lowry, Butler and Bam who kept us in it. Lowry is good at passing the ball around he’s a veteran. All of them will do good on Monday. They no what they need to do. Some that’s hating ain’t even in the playoffs. We will put our foot on the gas and not let up. Jimmy may score 50. We will hit our 3s. The Heat Is On
Every year Butler carries a team for one game…
Game 5 might just be that game…
General soreness will return for game 6 tho…
They lost most of their momentum after the home game losses. I expected them to be 2-2 right now.
Lack of size and height and no Herro or Dipo is killing them in this series.
Hats off to the Nuggets for whipping Miami at their own game. Jokic and his team have taken the Heat to the woodshed. The 3 losses haven’t been close and their 1 win looks like just pure luck at this point.
I hope my team finds a way but it looks very bleak.
Trading away Herro would be stupid. They need him badly right now.
They’ve needed a power forward for years so S&T Strus and picks to get a good veteran imo.
Seeing a lot of Heat doubters have jumped on the bandwagon