Photo By: Heat.com
It was the final road game of the Miami Heat‘s five game road trip. The Heat took on a shorthanded Phoenix Suns team missing a couple of key players. When Wednesday’s loss in mind, Miami knew what had to be done. Despite being shorthanded, the Suns competed with the Heat. However, Miami was able to pull away and seal the victory. With the win, Miami moves to 21-19 for the season and finishes the road trip 3-2. Here are my takeaways from the game.
Victor Oladipo Leads the Way
With Tyler Herro out, all eyes were on both Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo to provide more scoring. But, it was Victor Oladipo who led the team in scoring. Oladipo continued to show his burst on the offensive end. He was able to provide plenty of rim pressure on Friday night for Miami. He got a couple of finishes in the paint and got to the free throw line. If he can provide consistent rim pressure and draw fouls, it’ll be a huge boost for the Heat’s offense. Defensively, he continued to be strong on that end. He’s been able to stay in front of his defenders and force turnovers. His defense has been very elite for a team that lacks many point of attack defenders. Overall, it was a great night for the Heat guard. Oladipo finished the night with 26 points.
Bam’s Double Double
To start the game, the Heat made sure to get Adebayo going early. Miami kept feeding the ball to Adebayo in the paint and on the short roll. Adebayo shot 6-of-9 from the field in the first half. Adebayo’s jumper continues to fall at a high clip. It’s at a point now where you expect him to hit the free throw line jumper every time. And the Heat are very aware of that. Seeing them continue to run isolation plays for Adebayo shows where he’s at as a scorer. It’s usually easier for Adebayo to score off the pocket when Herro is in. However, Adebayo was still able to do it without him. Adebayo finished the night with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
Dedmon Minutes
Before the game, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra hinted that the team would go with Orlando Robinson going forward. At least until Dewayne Dedmon gets healthy. Instead, the Heat stuck with Dedmon as the backup big. As been the case for the majority of the season, those minutes haven’t been as good. Dedmon’s drop coverage defense was immediately put to the test. The Suns kept taking advantage of that and went on big runs. You could also tell how reliant the Heat are on Adebayo by the minutes Dedmon played. He only played six minutes in the first half. Clearly, Miami needs to find more frontcourt depth to help Adebayo. With the trade deadline five weeks away, the clock is ticking.
Haywood Decision
Speaking of clocks, the clock is ticking on the Heat’s decision on Haywood Highsmith. On Saturday, the Heat must decide to either guarantee Highsmith’s contract or waive him. With so many players getting hurt, it’s likely Miami is still going to keep him around. He started Friday night’s game with Caleb Martin out. This season, Highsmith has emerged as one of the Heat’s better defenders. He’s able to hold his own on the perimeter and fight for loose balls. The three-point shooting has been iffy at times. But, Highsmith has been productive at times this season. We’ll see what happens.
Next Up: The Brooklyn Nets. Game tips off at 6pm eastern time.
