Our Heat Season Companion Part 6 discusses the Heat’s 98-95 win over the Boston Celtics and the divide between the Heat’s offense and defense. The Heat improved to 27-22 for the season with the win over the Celtics. However, the Heat’s offensive issues continued in this win. Let’s dive into the latest season companion.
Heat Season Companion Part 6: The Heat Came Back and Defeated the Celtics
The Celtics have the best record in the Eastern Conference along with the best point differential in the Eastern Conference. Given those facts, it was impressive to see the Heat overcome early adversity and come back to beat them. The Heat are now 16-9 at home and 7-3 in their last 10 games.
All this indicates that the Heat are heading in the right direction, at least generally speaking. Bam Adebayo is one of the biggest reasons for this. Adebayo had 30 points and 15 rebounds in the win against Boston. Adebayo is making a very strong case to be an All-Star this season and he definitely should make the All-Star team.
The Heat only committed seven turnovers in this game, compared to 22 turnovers in the game against the Pelicans. Additionally, the Heat limited the Celtics to 31.3% on their three-point shooting. This is unsurprising overall, given that the Heat have been one of the best defensive teams in the league once again this season. However, there were some negatives for the Heat in this game, despite the win.
The Heat’s Defense Was Good But The Offense Was Poor
As previously mentioned, the Heat put in a very strong performance in this game in terms of their defense. In addition to holding the Celtics to 31.3% on their three-point shooting, the Heat also pressured the Celtics into 17 turnovers. All that led to easier points for the Heat in transition and contributed to the Celtics only scoring 95 points in the game.
The Heat’s offense wasn’t very good, though. The Heat only shot 36.2% from the field in this game. Oladipo, Vincent, Lowry, and Herro all shot below 50% from the field. It’s worth mentioning that the Celtics are the eighth-best defensive team in the league. Still, the Heat have had poor offensive performances against teams that are much worse on defense, so the Celtics’ defense doesn’t account for the Heat’s poor shooting all on its own.
Heat Season Companion Part 6: The Heat Should Make a Trade to Improve the Offense
The Heat’s offensive struggles have been a theme all season long. The Heat should make a trade to get a player who can help them on offense. Bogdan Bogdanovic is one such player, but there are other options, too. The Heat should look to get both a new backup center as well as a scoring power forward. Given that the Heat’s defense is elite, trading for one or two players that can improve the team’s offense but might not be great on defense shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
The Heat Play the Magic Next
The Heat next play the Magic in Miami. Given the Heat’s good home record and the Magic’s poor overall record, I would bet on a Heat victory. The Magic are 6-17 on the road, so the Heat should take advantage of this and pick up another win. Hopefully, the Heat also make a trade to improve their offense soon.
Check back next week for more Miami Heat content.