The Miami HEAT host the Orlando Magic Tuesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. The HEAT defeated the Magic 118-96 in their last meeting on April 10. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM, and television coverage is on FOX Sports Sun. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: Who has surprised you most this preseason?
Couper Moorhead: I don't know that anyone qualifies here as an 'I didn't know he could ever do that' sort of surprise, but it's been nice to see Justise Winslow's jumper consistently fall – with good mechanics – even though we already knew he was working on his shot all offseason. For that matter, it's been a nice surprise that the entire team is shooting well at 39.9 percent from three right now. While that likely won't sustain due to the simple law of averages and previous career numbers for various players on the roster, even factoring in internal improvement from players like Winslow, just seeing the team shoot like this over a small sample size is encouraging. It's much easier to run off multi-game winning streaks when you can shoot this well over a couple of weeks.
Joe Beguiristain: I'll have to go with Dion Waiters. I knew coming in that Waiters was a dynamic scorer, but I didn't quite expect him to create for his teammates as well as he's had thus far. In fact, he's second on the team with 4.4 assists per game (Goran Dragic leads all players with 6.8 per).
Waiters' ability to get into the lane and draw the defense has been invaluable since the defense has to react when the ball is in his hands. In turn, that's freed up shooters on the perimeter and Hassan Whiteside in the pick-and-roll. All you have to do is take a look at the three-guard lineup of Dragic, Waiters and Tyler Johnson against the Spurs for evidence of what it can do.
2: What challenges does this remade Orlando roster present for Miami?
Couper: Adding Serge Ibaka and Bismack Biyombo to a team that was already around league average defensively should give Orlando the opportunity to enjoy a Top-10 defense. It won't be just the rim protection that could give Miami and every other team an issue against this deep front-court, it's that both Ibaka and Biyombo are athletic enough to switch pick-and-rolls and defend a bit on the perimeter.
So far, from Miami, we've seen a free-flowing pick-and-roll offense that has consistently generated open threes and driving lanes. But most teams haven't gone too deep into their defensive scouting yet and the HEAT haven't seen too much outside of base, training camp systems. If Orlando attempts a ton of perimeter switching, the HEAT could get a real test of their capabilities in the half-court when things slow down.
Joe: The biggest challenge for the HEAT will be neutralizing Orlando's frontcourt. While Nikola Vucevic will likely be the Magic's starting center once the regular season rolls around, free-agent acquisition Bismack Biyombo had a great outing as the starter on Sunday against the Hawks. The former Raptor struggled a bit from the field, but he grabbed 19 rebounds and blocked five shots in 36 minutes of action. Serge Ibaka, meanwhile, led Orlando with 25 points to go along with six boards and two blocks. In short, the duo was a force to be reckoned with.
Overall, Ibaka is more polished offensively, but both guys can impact the game defensively due to their versatility and athleticism. Luckily, Miami has moved the ball very well in its last few outings.
In all this preseason, the HEAT are averaging a shade under 24 assists per game to go along with a 104.6 offensive efficiency rating.
3: Now that we're into the late stages of preseason, what would you like to see from Miami as they tune up for the regular season?
Couper: You would like to see the rotation eventually iron itself out, though because that will happen with time regardless of the next three preseason games it's hardly an area of concern. While it's a simple ask, what we really want to see if Miami compete against a fully developed rotation – without players like LaMarcus Aldridge sitting out – with a more specialized defensive focus so that we can actually get what feels like a regular season preview.
Joe: As the preseason comes to a close this week, I'd like to see chemistry continue to build. Of course, that can only be obtained on the court with more reps, but Miami has three games left before the regular season to continue to gain continuity. When asked about his rotation in these last few contests, Coach Spo stated that he doesn't feel the need to play a full rotation and wants to make sure that his guys are feeling fresh for the opener.
All in all, it seems as though the newcomers are grasping the HEAT culture, so that's definitely a step in the right direction.
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