Takeaways from the Miami Heat’s Victory Over the Sacramento Kings

Photo Credit: Heat.com

The revenge tour continued for the Miami Heat on Wednesday against the Sacramento Kings, who defeated them on Saturday. Both teams were without their top players with De’Aaron Fox and Jimmy Butler being sidelined. Other guys had to step up in their stars’ absence. It was a very competitive game with both teams trading baskets. The game went down to the wire. But in the end, Tyler Herro answered the call. Herro pump-faked and converted the game winning three-pointer to seal Miami’s victory. With the win, Miami moves to 4-5 for the season. Here are my takeaways from the game.

Kyle Lowry Sets the Tone

Without Butler, the Heat needed someone to pick up the scoring slack. Surprisingly, it was Kyle Lowry who took the scoring charge and led the team with 17 first half points. The 17 points matched a season-high for the Heat starting point guard. Lowry was aggressive from the start scoring the team’s first points from behind the three-point line. He also got in the paint a couple of times for the layup. This made his pick-and-roll game with Bam Adebayo easier. Lowry’s aggressive also made it easier for his teammates as well. He made a clutch basket down the stretch to give Miami the lead. In the end, he finished with 22 points, five rebounds, and seven assists.

Herro to the Rescue!

After leaving Tuesday’s game with an eye injury, Herro was back in action on Wednesday. Herro’s scoring was essential without Butler. He had a quiet start to the game and was playing more off the ball than usual. However, he came through when the Heat needed him most in the fourth period. Miami was trailing by seven points midway through the fourth quarter. The Heat’s offense was stalling, and they needed Herro’s shot creation. Herro got into his midrange pull game two possessions in a row off the pick-and-roll action. On the final possession, the ball was in Herro’s hands. After a pump fake, he leaned in and sunk the game-winning three-pointer. Herro finished the night with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocks.

Quality Minutes from The Mechanic

The backup center minutes have been problematic for the Heat this season. When accessing the issue, the first name that comes up is Dewayne Dedmon. Dedmon hasn’t had a great start to the season up to this point. He’s been bad on both ends of the floor. But on Wednesday, he provided some quality minutes off the bench. He hit a couple of triples from the top of the key. Dedmon also crashed the boards and dished the ball to the cutting teammate. He did have one possession where he attempted a fadeaway jumper over a shorter player. Overall, it was still a solid performance from the Heat backup center. Dedmon finished the night with 10 points and eight rebounds.

Miami’s 2-3 Zone Struggles

With Butler and Victor Oladipo sidelined, the Heat were missing two of their best perimeter defenders. Both guys are good on-ball defenders and can guard at the point of the attack. To combat this, Miami utilized the 2-3 zone early on since they were playing multiple negative defenders at one time. The zone usually allows Miami to hide its negative defenders and keep them away from isolation. Unfortunately, the Kings’ quick guards were able to get into the paint and messed up the zone. There were times when a Kings’ guard was able to get into the paint without much resistance. This will be something the Heat coaches will discuss in the film sessions.

Next Up: The Indiana Pacers on Friday. Game tips off at 7pm eastern time.