The Miami HEAT face the San Antonio Spurs Friday night at AT&T Center. The HEAT fell to the Spurs 112-88 in their last meeting on March 23. Tip-off is set for 8:30 PM, and television coverage is on FOX Sports Sun. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: What was the most encouraging aspect to Miami's double-digit preseason victory over Brooklyn on Tuesday?
Couper Moorhead: Miami's 24 assists certainly didn't hurt, but in the bigger picture, even though it was just a preseason game, it was good to see the team respond to a little pushback from the opponent in a composed, positive manner. Last Saturday against Minnesota the team gave up a huge third quarter after having led for most of the first half, and things mostly snowballed from there. Against the Nets, an early Miami lead dissolved thanks to a burst of Brooklyn spread-floor shooting – but this time the HEAT came back and took a commanding lead thanks to sharp ball movement and steady defense. The details always matter, especially who you are playing, but sometimes you just need to see how a team responds to in-game adversity.
Joe Beguiristain: The most encouraging aspect of Miami's win on Tuesday was the fluidity of the offense. The HEAT's two cornerstones, Hassan Whiteside and Goran Dragic, did pretty much anything they wanted against the Nets. Whiteside took advantage inside with Brook Lopez out, while Dragic pushed the pace and finished at the rim with ease.
Perhaps more importantly, Derrick Williams and Wayne Ellington made their presence felt in a 38-point third quarter for Miami. Thanks to the hot shooting of both newcomers in addition to Dion Waiters and Luke Babbitt, the HEAT went 8-of-16 from deep after halftime. Tyler Johnson also played quite well in the third, as he scored eight points and dished out two assists in the period.
Still, it was great to see the new guys fit well in Coach Spo's “Pace and Space” offense.
2: Given that San Antonio has undergone a few roster changes this offseason, what new preseason challenges could they offer Miami Friday night?
Couper: Tim Duncan's retirement – alongside those of Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant – represent a true shift in the landscape of the league. On the court for San Antonio, it marks not just the loss of a franchise mainstay and leader, but a player who was, even at an advanced age, one of the smartest and most consistent defensive players in the league. In his place is Pau Gasol, who may get a few more offensive touches than Duncan had been getting the past couple of years, and in order to acquire Gasol the Spurs had to trade Boris Diaw. It's a different look, but Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green are as exceptional a perimeter defensive duo in the league and LaMarcus Aldridge (not playing Friday night) can still score on anyone in the post. This is still a deadly team.
But even though the Spurs shifted to a bit more of a post-up offense last season, they still move the ball as well as any team in the league. Miami's preseason defense has been up and down so far, so being forced to rotate and cover the Spurs' system is a top-shelf test to see where things really are.
Joe: The Spurs do look quite different from a year ago. Tim Duncan retired, Boris Diaw was traded to the Jazz and David West signed with the Warriors.
Duncan was the face of the franchise for over a decade, but San Antonio still has a fantastic team. Pau Gasol will take over for Duncan, while LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard round out the frontcourt. Of course, you also have Tony Parker and Danny Green at the two guard spots.
That said, Aldridge won't play on Friday, and trying to project who Gregg Popovich starts against Miami is anyone's guess. Regardless of who plays, you can bank on two things from the Spurs: ball movement and stout defense.
Thus far in four games this preseason, San Antonio has tallied a 62.7 assist percentage and an 88.2 defensive efficiency rating. Needless to say, the HEAT will need to be sharp on both ends of the court Friday night.
3: Which of Erik Spoelstra's lineup combinations have been most intriguing to you so far?
Couper: Everyone pointed to the starting of Wayne Ellington and Derrick Williams on Tuesday night, and for good reason. With both of those players hitting from the outside, Miami's pick-and-roll game with Hassan Whiteside was remarkably efficient. A bit quieter was Spoelstra's usage of James Johnson as a center in that game, a move likely brought on by Brooklyn using five shooters at any given time. We don't expect to see Johnson at the five a ton, but it's just another example of this team's positional versatility that Spoelstra can adjust to any size, shape and speed of opponent lineup.
Joe: Going back to my first answer, I'll have to say the starting unit from Tuesday night of Dragic, Ellington, Justise Winslow, Williams and Whiteside. While I've already mentioned Williams and Ellington's solid shooting from deep in that contest, I didn't discuss how Dragic and Winslow help set them up. The Slovenian and the former Duke Blue Devil combined for seven assists after halftime and made the defense collapse when penetrating the lane.
With so many games left this preseason, we're bound to see some more lineup combinations that work well.
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