Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat hold off the burning Suns in Miami

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The Heat snapped their three-game losing streak, prosperously commencing their homestand (3) with a quality win against the Suns. It was a grueling effort, as they nearly blew a significant lead, yet their half-court offense delivered in crunch time.

 

Coach Erik Spoelstra said, “Four quarters of playing like we did in the third quarter, that’s not going to win a lot of games.”

But early, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro were raining jumpers, and the Suns called a timeout after Jaime Jaquez Jr. slashed through the lane for a second-chance layup, putting the Heat ahead by 10 points late in the first quarter. The hosts continued pouring in trifectas, but Grayson Allen scored Phoenix’s last 11 points of the period to keep them from flatlining.

 

Phoenix’s open, long-range misses piled up, yet Dillon Brooks carried them as he kamikazed into the lane and blasted from the middle in the second frame. Still, the other side countered with relentless inside pressure and overwhelmed them on the glass, going into halftime up by 17.

 

Their 20-point lead was subsequently sliced to one in the third courtesy of Brooks’ encore, punching the gas in transition and giving Miami a taste of their own medicine with strong offensive rebounding. He even drew a technical foul, his 15th for the year, pushing Norman Powell, and kept it going after that with drive-bys. One of their only mishaps was that Devin Booker limped to the locker room after a collision with Pelle Larsson.

 

“I thought we had the right intentions, coming out and trying to play the right way, play with the right energy,” Powell said. “I think it’s in that third quarter. It came down to missing shots, and [the Suns] capitalizing on that.”

 

It took fewer than three minutes into the fourth for the Heat to lose the lead because they didn’t guard the corner and got boat-raced in transition, forcing Spoelstra to call a stoppage. They fell behind by as much as five points late, then the Suns started losing their composure with excessive physicality. On top of that, Jaquez turned into playmaker #1, and Adebayo dunked twice and downed three 3-pointers to bail them out.

 

The Heat won 127-121 and had five players score between 10 and 29 points.

 

Takeaways:

 

  • The Suns came into Miami on a three-game winning streak and had won eight of their last 10 outings. They had held opponents to 102.9 in their last seven wins, but they played like they had the South Beach flu for the first half, conceding 15 baskets in the restricted area and getting nothing on the fast break. Yet they were smacking the Heat around in the third quarter, outscoring them by 17.

 

  • The Heat scored at least 70 points in the first half for the ninth time this season (71), remaining undefeated on those nights. Part of the reason for their early success was that Adebayo had an excellent half, making jumpers and a few shots in the paint. He had a quiet third frame, but was the team’s source of offense when they needed it the most late. He finished with 29 points on 73.3% shooting, with nine rebounds and four assists.

 

  • The Heat couldn’t contain them on the offensive glass, permitting 18 extra opportunities that turned into 20 second-chance points. They were also clueless on how to guard the 3-point line, getting burned by six deep baskets. Keep in mind that Phoenix only had 14 treys for the game.

 

  • The Heat started their small-ball lineup of Davion Mitchell, Tyler Herro, Powell, Andrew Wiggins and Adebayo. They played the best they ever have together, yet Mitchell didn’t return because of a left shoulder contusion, and the defense suffered late at the point of attack. Spoelstra gave no update on him at the presser. 

 

  • Jaquez was a force, finishing at close range seven times on dribble moves and cuts. He also set up others through the drive and kick, including three of Adebayo’s big-time threes in the fourth, and Powell’s late shot in the corner. Jaquez had eight assists and zero turnovers, to go along with 16 points, 43.8% shooting. 

 

  • Spoelstra said after the game that they “are going to conquer the third quarter,” and that the team has a positive teaching point from the win. 



Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat fall apart in the fourth quarter, visiting the defending champions

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The Heat valiantly challenged the Thunder on the second night back-to-back, but OKC’s horsepower and stellar shot-making broke them down.

 

Teams typically raise their intensity by 100° in the game after they humiliate themselves, and it was the Heat’s turn this time following the Indiana catastrophe. They ended the first quarter ahead 34-32 thanks to big contributions from Andrew Wiggins, nailing three treys, and Tyler Herro making four shots in the lane. 

 

Still, they were sloppy with five early turnovers, and they coughed it up five more times in the second quarter. The inside action cooled off for a while, and OKC’s advantage in second-chance scoring extended to 15-0. On top of that, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ripped up schemes from inside and out, but the Heat maintained a five-point lead at intermission in large part because the Thunder couldn’t drain makeable deep shots.

 

SGA and Williams followed up torching the lane, and the Heat countered in their interior while they could. It resembled two fighters swinging wildly for the body in a boxing ring, but the Thunder were like a heavyweight who eventually overwhelmed a cruiserweight with their power, and eventually created an eight-point lead with the help of three treys to close the quarter.

 

Turnovers remained a problem, and Jaime Jaquez Jr., on cue, lost the ball twice more at the start of the fourth because of OKC’s ball pressure, pushing the total to 17. The team even gave up consecutive baseline cuts before coach Erik Spoelstra called a timeout. It didn’t do much as the Thunder continued to present an unsolvable problem for the defense.

 

The Heat lost 124-112. They were also outscored in second-chance scoring, 25-0. They went winless on the road trip (0-3) and will not be practicing on Monday. They didn’t play the Chicago game on Thursday because of a condensation issue at the United Center. The Heat will play the Thunder again on Jan. 17 in Miami. 

 

Takeaways:

 

  • The Heat’s transition attack was derailed to 80 points per 100 transition plays, good enough for the eighth percentile, per Cleaning the Glass. They also did as much as they could to match the Thunder’s intensity for three quarters, but great teams can separate themselves when they decide they want to. 

 

 

  • Coach Erik Spoelstra said the turnovers diffused any momentum the Heat had. He also said the team needs to be mentally tougher the next time they see the Thunder. “They forced us into a lot of mistakes.” 

 

  • Bam Adebayo was most affected by the pressure, misfiring seven of his 10 shots. He got schooled a couple of times, but guarded well and was a big factor on the glass, recovering seven of his 14 rebounds in the first half.  The next player bothered by OKC’s defense the most was Jaquez, finishing with five points and five of the team’s 23 turnovers. All of those giveaways helped push the Thunder in transition and they were miles better than the Heat in the open court.

 

 

  • Without Norman Powell, the team’s top player this season, they lacked the extra scoring on and off the dribble. But defense was what the Heat needed more of, as they had shot well through three periods while still within striking distance before the fourth began. 

 

 

  • SGA is an unreal weapon, who drains jumpers on the move. Half his shots connect at 3-10 feet and an astonishing 59.1% fall at 10-16 feet from the cup. The Heat’s strategy was to double him so others would have to beat them, but that couldn’t happen every time. To give a better idea of his shooting prowess, consider how he isolated Adebayo on the right side, burying a long two in his eye.

 

 

  • The Heat made five 3-pointers in the first quarter, surpassing the four logged in Indiana on Saturday. They totaled 17, and Wiggins made the most (7) and was the team’s leading scorer with 23 points on 50% shooting.

 

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: The Heat embarrassed themselves with their effort, getting blasted by the struggling Pacers

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The Heat got waxed by the Pacers in Indiana so severely that they quit before the fourth quarter started. Perhaps they were thinking of their next outing on Sunday at OKC, but it showed the unit’s extreme variance: defeating the best team in the East, the Detroit Pistons, nine days earlier, and looking as hopeless as the bottom feeders on Saturday.

 

The Pacers were using their league-leading 23rd starting lineup, which had more chemistry than Miami’s, and they led by eight points before the first substitution. Despite a prosperous sequence in the second and third quarters, it didn’t matter what the Heat tried; there was too much dead weight, and the Pacers broke their spirit with an abundance of 3-pointers and open-court strikes.

 

Andrew Nembhard smoked them in the first half with six baskets at short, middle and long range. He then continued pouring in 3-pointers, plus four of his teammates piled on in the third quarter, each logging two baskets apiece.

 

The Heat started the fourth quarter down 27 points and it was already garbage time because Tyler Herro was their only starter who played significant minutes in the period. 

 

They lost 123-99. It was their fourth game logging below 100 points (0-4) this year.

 

Takeaways:

 

  • Another game, another disappointing night from Bam Adebayo. He isn’t imposing his presence offensively because of lost confidence, and at some points, is invisible. He finished with 13 points on 41.7% shooting, with nine rebounds and two assists. It was the fifth straight game he has shot below 50% and the 18th this season.

 

  • The closest they got within the second was half was down seven points, but the avalanche came immediately and they failed to respond. They had poor execution, turning the ball over six times in the third. T.J. McConnell was one of the players who destroyed them, pushing the pace unbothered, and exposing openings with the pass.

 

  • The Heat have been the fastest team all season, but they were steps behind the Pacers, who went small with Pascal Siakam at center. The visitors only scored 100 points per 100 transition plays, good enough for the 19th percentile per Cleaning the Glass. Sure, teams eventually come out like gangbusters when they get sick and tired of the taste of constant defeat. The Pacers were going to come out like that eventually, but the concerning part for the Heat was their inability to match intensity.

 

  • If this were a boxing fight, the Heat would have been on the ropes, eating bombs from all angles. They only made 39% of attempts, and it’s surprising their accuracy even got that high. Consider that they only had one trifecta in the first half (8.3%), which is the lowest they’ve recorded this season before intermission, and finished with four, the lowest total this year.

 

  • Herro replaced Kel’el Ware in the starting lineup and was the team’s best player. His baskets kept them on life support before the Pacers disconnected them.



 

The Mike McDaniel Firing Points to a Dolphins Head Coach Decision

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After another losing season, Mike McDaniel has been fired by the Miami Dolphins, ending a Dolphins era filled with what ifs, and what could have beens.

Stephen Ross and Mike McDaniel released the following statements:

Statement from Dolphins Chairman and Owner Stephen M. Ross:

“After careful evaluation and extensive discussions since the season ended, I have made the decision that our organization is in need of comprehensive change. I informed Mike McDaniel this morning that he has been relieved of his duties as head coach. I love Mike and want to thank him for his hard work, commitment, and the energy he brought to our organization. Mike is an incredibly creative football mind whose passion for the game and his players was evident every day. I wish him and his family the best moving forward.”

Statement from Mike McDaniel:

“Coaching this team and being a part of this great franchise has been the honor of a lifetime. When I took this job, I had a vision of a team that was bonded together and played with passion and energy on the path to winning championships. I gave everything I had for that goal. I am disappointed, especially for the fans, that we did not have better results on the field, but I am grateful for every coach, player, and staff member who poured themselves into that vision alongside me.

I’m grateful to Stephen Ross for the opportunity he gave me, a little known coach at the time when he hired me. Most of all I’m thankful to my wife Katie and daughter Ayla for their unending love and support. I love this game, the people and relationships that are a part of it, and I will forever cherish my time in Miami.”

So why fire McDaniel, well, there are some high value, proven head coaches on the market now.

I had called for McDaniel’s firing in a recent article, here Mike McDaniel Should Not Return as the Dolphins Head Coach – Five Reasons Sports Network. Discussing the late season fallouts, no more half measures, the inability to win without Tua, and many other reasons. But I understood a world where you kept McDaniel for another year, to prove himself, rather than turning to a rookie head coach.

Well now the story is different, with two high profile head coaching candidates available; John Harbaugh and Kevin Stefanski.

Stefanski is a two time coach of the year, and a culture builder, while Harbaugh is a coach of the year, and Super Bowl Champion.

McDaniel’s job appeared safe, at least a few days ago when McDaniel stated he would be back in 2026:

“My understanding is I’m the coach of the Miami Dolphins until told otherwise… the job itself is enough to worry about, so worrying about whether it’s yours, that’s not part of the formula. I think all of us in the Miami Dolphins organization, especially with ownership, are not happy with the results. They’re not up to the standard. So my sole focus each hour you can reach me in the foreseeable mini hours is correcting and improving something that’s not good enough right now.”

But now that’s not the case, and Stephen Ross must go all in on one of these two candidates, to build a new culture in Miami, to put Miami back on the map.

I expect a coaching decision to potentially be made a little later –most importantly after a General Manger is hired– as there are potentially other jobs that could open, including Miami’s Division rival Buffalo Bills.

Harbaugh is my choice in Miami, and I don’t think Ross would have fired McDaniel if the Dolphins weren’t at least going after a top coaching candidate.

Nonetheless, an era is closed in Miami, and it’s time to bring in a coach to end this playoff –and Super Bowl– win drought.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Herro returned, but the Heat got torn apart by the Timberwolves in Minnesota

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A humiliation on prime time programming starts the four-game road trip. 

 

The season series with the Timberwolves is over and they lost both outings over a three-day stretch. Tyler Herro’s return was spoiled as the Timberwolves forced their submission, and Rudy Gobert was the most dominant big man on the floor, amassing 13 digits and 17 rebounds.

 

Coach Erik Spoelstra said after the game that Gobert is one of the most underrated players in the league and that Kel’el Ware “was introduced to someone who brought a physical presence.”

 

Bam Adebayo played well below standard. He’s been through a toe injury and back spasm this year, but it was the ninth straight night scoring below 20 (7) and the 12th time this season he has shot below 40%. Andrew Wiggins and Davion Mitchell disappeared, too. The trio combined for 21 points on 25% shooting. 

 

Norman Powell carried the crew before it got ugly, and Herro played as if he hadn’t missed a beat, scoring from inside and out, plus setting up two teammates for 3-pointers. They went to halftime down seven, then started getting smacked around, getting outrebounded by 13 and getting lit up by eight trifectas in the second half. The outcome was obvious after they missed six shots in a row to start the fourth quarter.

 

The final marker highlighted a 28-point loss, and the team could only score 38 in the lane. It was also the Heat’s third time this year tallying below 100 points (94). Minnesota had six scorers in double figures, totaling between 12 and 26 points.  

 

These are the losses that can’t be flushed, especially since they lost to the same team by 10 earlier. Despite being the fourth game in six nights, they went soft when they saw Minnesota’s avalanche coming. The autopsy, being the worst since the Toronto Raptors massacred them in Miami on Dec. 23, shows how exposed the Heat are against versatile size.

 

The smart teams are getting better at denying the Heat success in transition, as was the case Tuesday with the Wolves holding them to the second percentile in points per 100 plays. The half-court offense, lacking enough juice, and barely being able to get to the line, compounded the issue.

 

Spoelstra said, “We showed less of a spirit on this one. The one on Saturday, we had a spirit to fight until the end. That’s what is most disappointing to me as the head coach. The last six minutes, it felt like we let it go.”



Special Teams, Special History: Jake Bailey and Riley Patterson Rewrite Dolphins Records

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After Jake Bailey disappointed in his first season and Jason Sanders went down, it appeared the Dolphins special team’s unit had taken a hit, but it actually ended in historical fashion for the Miami Dolphins. Although the Dolphins season didn’t go the way they wanted, their special teams’ leaders Jake Bailey and Riley Patterson made the most of their opportunities.

Riley Patterson’s Success and Next Years Question

Riley Patterson finished 2025 with a mark of 27/29, good for 93.1 percent, the most accurate field goal kicking season in Dolphin’s history. Patterson was signed early in the year when Jason Sanders went down and filled the All-Pro kickers shoes quite nicely.

Patterson missed only two kicks, and tops Dolphin’s kickers Dan Carpenter, Olindo Mare, and Pete Stoyanovich for the best kicking season in Dolphin’s history.

So, after a great year, who do the Dolphins bring back for 2026, their All-Pro kicker, or Riley Patterson who had the best year of his career and in Dolphin’s history. Patterson has his range issues — career long of 54 and struggles from distance– but his accuracy can’t be debated.

The Dolphins should bring back whoever is the cheaper contract and certainly has a good problem on their hands in the kicking department.

Jake Bailey Sets Another Record

Jake Bailey finished the Dolphins season with a net punting average of 42.6 yards, the best punting season in Dolphin’s history. Bailey was a former All-Pro and found his footing after an average first year in Miami. Bailey broke the Miami Dolphins record for net punting average, surpassing Brandon Fields. Bailey only had three touchbacks and certainly should be considered as the teams 2026 punter.

Both are unrestricted free agents this season and have forever marked themselves in Dolphins’ history. If the Dolphins move on from Sanders, Patterson should certainly be the first option, and Miami should no doubt bring Jake Bailey, the former All-Pro back.

 

Miami had a lot of problems this season; Bailey and Patterson being the furthest from them.

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat crush Pelicans on a career night from Norman Powell

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The Heat caught a break in the schedule with a successful tune-up against the Pelicans, who came into Miami on a six-game skid. They went 1-1 in the weekend back-to-back, yet not much can be taken away from these outings, aside from giving reps to the youngsters, and allowing others to bolster their numbers. 

 

Yet it took a while to soften NOLA up. 

 

The Heat drained 12 first-half trifectas, falling one short of tying their average makes for a game, but were only eight points ahead going into intermission. That’s also with the Pelicans coughing up 17 turnovers, the most by an opponent in that span, yet the defense declined to guard the 3-point line, including getting torched by Trey Murphy III five times and allowing 32 points in the lane, six baskets belonging to Zion Williamson.

 

They subsequently rendered Williamson invisible and held the Pelicans to 15 points on 24% shooting in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Norman Powell ripped three more 3-pointers, and the rest of the crew poured in five more shots in the lane.

 

The Heat started the fourth quarter with a 16-point edge and never permitted the Pelicans to get within reaching distance as Kel’el Ware kept his foot on the gas, assaulting the lane on five immaculate attempts.

 

The Heat won 125-106, bumping their record up to 20-16. They’ll now begin a four-game road trip on Tuesday in Minnesota, followed by at Chicago on Thursday, at Indiana on Saturday and at Oklahoma City on Jan. 11.

 

 

Takeaways:

 

  • The Heat didn’t see much open-court resistance, scoring 154.5 points per 100 transition plays, which is good enough for the 80th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass.  

 

  • The Heat scored 70 in the first half. The last time they had at least that much by intermission was on Dec. 1 versus the Clippers. They are undefeated (8-0) on nights it happens. 

 

  • Bam Adebayo guarded well because that’s just who he is, but it’s clear he’s nowhere near 100% healthy. He’s not moving as fluidly on offense and has been out of sync for a significant part of the season. It was the third straight night, and the 11th time this year he has logged below 40% of his shots.

 

  • Myron Gardner, who is on a two-way contract, played 12 impactful minutes of defense, following only four in the Heat’s loss at home to the Timberwolves on Saturday. Additionally, Pelle Larsson keeps blossoming and did a little bit of everything: 16 points on 46.7% shooting, with three rebounds and six assists.

 

 

  • Powell scored 34 points, including a career high of nine 3-pointers on 75% shooting. He’s leading the team in average makes per game and in total long-range baskets (96). Coach Erik Spoelstra said he should have had 18 attempts. Additionally, Powell was asked if he thinks he’s made a good case for his first All-Star campaign. He believes he has and wants to make it. “I learned last year not to get caught up in whether I make it or not.”

 

  • Nikola Jović has been playing confidently lately, and he had one of his best games of the season. He had four baskets in transition, where he is best, and broke into the half-court for some nice baskets. Him playing at this level adds another dimension that would give the Heat big-time help.

 

The Dolphins are 35-35 in four seasons under Mike McDaniel, including 0-2 in playoffs.

Pressure Point: Dolphins should hire GM before deciding on McDaniel

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Now that another Miami Dolphins season has been flushed and soon to be forgotten, attention turns to a momentous offseason.

First, the postmortem: A season prefaced by owner Steve Ross as no excuse for failure, ended Sunday as it began with a one-sided defeat on the road, 38-10 to the playoff-bound Patriots.

The final tally was 7-10 — a second consecutive season without a trip to the playoffs and 25 years since their last playoff win.

Where does this woebegone franchise go from here, regarding coach Mike McDaniel and hiring of the next general manager?

An indication could come quickly, depending on what Ross says — or doesn’t say — in the next few days.

Insider reports mostly point to McDaniel returning, an opinion not supported by many long-suffering Dolphins fans. Others suggest it’s a coin flip, which seems about right with this team’s record of decision making.

In my view, the season was an embarrassment and starting fresh with a new general manager and coaching staff is warranted.

Ross has failed Dolphins in leadership hiring

Ross, 85, has repeatedly screwed the pooch in steering the Dolphins since taking over controlling interest from H. Wayne Huizenga in 2009.

His expertise is in real estate and development, and he has excelled in expanding facilities in and around Hard Rock Stadium and bringing marquee events to South Florida. As steward of an NFL team, his instincts have been misplaced and he has steered the Dolphins franchise farther into the weeds that it was when he took over.

On the surface, Ross’ hiring of Hall of Fame quarterback and ESPN broadcaster Troy Aikman as a consultant in the process of hiring a general manager seems encouraging.

Yes, bring in perspective from outside the organization. Aikman is well connected in the NFL.

Seems like a good idea, but Ross has used consultants before, Bill Parcells and Mike Tannenbaum among them. Yet he has never gotten the leadership of the football operation right, in the front office or on the field.

But, sure, utilizing Aikman’s knowledge and relationships inside the league makes sense, might help.

What doesn’t make sense is the backdoor approach of seeking a general manager with a coach already in place. Logically, an experienced executive coming from outside the organization would want to, and likely insist on, choosing the coach. Unless that individual has previously worked with McDaniel and favors keeping him, which is possible.

Dolphins’ next GM should be involved in decision on coach

Ross has followed this dubious course before. In 2014, he hired Dennis Hickey to his first and only GM post to work with coach Joe Philbin and then-executive vice president Dawn Aponte. Two other candidates the Dolphins sought turned down the job, reportedly questioning the team’s power structure, and a third declined a final interview.

How did that work out? Philbin was fired early in 2015 and Hickey was out at the end of that season.

Fast forward a decade, and Ross is again looking for a GM who may have to work with another coach of dubious achievement.

That is to the dismay of Dolphins fans, who look at McDaniel’s record and question where he has taken the team that his failed predecessors this century haven’t.

In four seasons under McDaniel, the Dolphins are 35-35, including first-round playoff losses in the first two and no postseason appearances in the past two.

As for year 4, a run of five wins in six games doesn’t make up for losing six of the first seven, which doomed the season from the start.

Ross fired GM Chris Grier at midseason. Certainly, it was time to part ways with Grier, who succeeded Hickey in 2016 and will be remembered notoriously for selecting Tua Tagovailoa over Justin Herbert with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 draft.

Not to overlook the ridiculous contract Grier awarded (with Ross’ blessing) Tagovailoa, which will severely limit the next general manager’s maneuverability under the salary cap.

Nonetheless, a case could be made that Grier’s work over the past 12 months was more positive than McDaniel’s.

All eight of Grier’s 2025 draft picks are on the roster and contributed to varying degrees as rookies: quarterback Quinn Ewers (a seventh-round pick), defensive tackles Kenneth Grant, Jordan Phillips and Zeek Biggers, guard Jonah Savaiinaea, cornerback Jason Marshall Jr., safety Dante Trader Jr. and running back Ollie Gordon II. The overall quality and future of the group is debatable, though; Savaiinaea has been one of the worst starters at any position in the NFL this season.

Dolphins treading water under McDaniel

Ross extended McDaniel’s contract through 2028 and is reportedly still enamored with the quirky coach.

McDaniel has been hailed as an offensive visionary, particularly during his first two seasons with the Dolphins. The past two, not so much, though the reputation has generally stuck with him.

I think his main strength is with the run game, though he never solved the Dolphins’ woes in short-yardage situations.

He coaxed two strong seasons out of Tagovailoa, whose perplexing decline this season led to his benching with three games to go and has likely ended his tenure with Miami.

However, Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner’s video breakdown of the pass plays in Tagovailoa’s final start in a 28-15 loss to the Steelers are insightful.

Most interesting were Warner’s comments about the design of the pass patterns that receivers ran. On many of the plays the routes weren’t, in his opinion, structured in a way to put stress on the defense and provide Tua with an open receiver to throw to.

Warner explained how those plays could have been designed to achieve that objective.

Warner’s conclusions were more of an indictment of McDaniel’s play design than Tua’s play as quarterback.

Veteran coaches may become available

One argument for retaining McDaniel is to see what he can do with a different quarterback. The three-week experiment with Ewers yielded some positive but was not decisive. A top priority for the new GM will be upgrading that position.

Whoever gets the job should also be involved in the decision on the head coach.

There’s no reason to make a quick jump to that conclusion. Especially before seeing who may become available. The list of available coaches could be lengthy and includes some intriguing names.

On Sunday, NFL insider Adam Schefter identified three prominent coaches who might get the ax: Raiders’ Pete Carroll, longtime Ravens coach John Harbaugh and the Browns’ Kevin Stefanski.

The next Dolphins general manager should have a voice in determining whether McDaniel should also be on that list.

Craig Davis has covered South Florida sports and teams, including the Dolphins, for more than four decades. Follow him on the site formerly known as Twitter @CraigDavisRuns.

 

 

 

Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat win ugly in Detroit, extending their win streak to four in a row

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The Heat started the new year strong, claiming their fourth in a row in one of their top wins against the soaring Pistons in Detroit.  It was their second meeting of the season, and of course, it was decided in crunch time.  

 

It was only Detroit’s third home loss.  Coach Erik Spoelstra said, “I think this was an important one for us to get…Detroit’s a good defensive team. You’re not just going to always be able to get what you want to, particularly in the half-court. 

 

The 3-pointers and drive-by layups were falling like raindrops early for the Heat, and they went on a 14-0 run late in the first quarter. 

 

Then the Pistons raised their intensity, walling off the lane to suppress the inside action. It didn’t help that the Heat were missing open treys, but Norman Powell rescued them with a quick burst of three deep jumpers and a floater through the lane, giving them a 63-54 lead going into halftime.

 

Cade Cunningham maneuvered his way to the line a few times, and the Pistons closed the quarter on an 11-5 run, but their offense was too limited, countering the Heat’s stream of triples. Jalen Duren also sprained his right ankle on a move into the lane and didn’t return. His absence left their defense unfastened, and the Heat maintained separation, making seven shots in the lane and pouring in four extra 3-pointers, including two from Powell. 

 

Subsequently, Paul Reed emerged as a threat for Detroit, and Marcus Sasser got loose. Cunningham caught the Heat’s schemes, but they were slow to rotate on multiple occasions, and their lead was sliced to two with 46.4 seconds left.  

 

Yet the Heat were bailed out by Jaquez, hitting a turnaround baseline jumper, and Mitchell stealing the inbound. 

 

They won 118-112.

 

Takeaways:

 

  • Powell didn’t make any fourth-quarter field goals, but he was their only starter to shoot at least 50%. (52.2). It was also his second-highest scoring game in a Heat uniform (36), and a good chunk of his points were on off-script plays. He made half the team’s 3-pointers (7), too.

 

  • The Heat’s strategy to double Cunningham in the fourth quarter was dangerous and they should have played tighter without helping. Nonetheless, serious teams find ways to get it done when their actions are neutralized. The Heat were ordinary in the half-court, but scored 26 fastbreak points, and benefited from Detroit’s 20 giveaways.  

 

  • Jaime Jaquez Jr.’s ability to get his shot off when he wants, going at the rim, and his playmaking for others are a pivotal part of the Heat’s success. He comes in off the bench, keeping the offensive RPMs elevated. He finished with 19 points on 69.2% shooting, with three rebounds and five assists. 

 

  • Miami’s double-big lineup gives the back line some teeth and allows fewer mismatches. They weren’t a big factor in the scoring department, but they combined for 27 rebounds and were a big part of why the Pistons only had six offensive boards. 

 



Nico Cantor: How a Miami Native became a top voice in American Soccer

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The apple doesn’t always fall far from the tree, and that’s proven to be the case with Nico Cantor.

 

Born and raised in Miami, Nico is the son of a Honduran mother – Liliana Williams – and an Argentine father – Andrés Cantor. Andrés has emerged as one of the most iconic announcers in soccer history with his famed lines like ‘”El árbitro dice que no hay tiempo para más” and ‘”¡Goooooooooool!”, winning six Emmy Awards, covering multiple World Cups, Olympics and other tournaments, and featuring in TV shows like The Simpsons and Phineas & Ferb as well as movies like Muppets Most Wanted and Speed Racer. Similarly to the likes of Kevin Egan and Rod Underwood, Nico was obsessed with the beautiful game from the very start. Nico played soccer and volleyball in high school, leading Ransom Everglades to a district championship as a freshman, earning the captain’s armband in his junior year, and gaining All-County honors as a senior. He then headed north and enrolled in New York University, where he graduated with degrees in Broadcast Journalism and Romance Languages.

 

“If people ask me ‘What would you be doing if you weren’t working in broadcasting, I think it would be something linguistics-related, like teaching or studying linguistics…that’s the other thing that, beyond the sports world, I feel really passionate for,” stated Cantor in an exclusive Five Reasons Sports interview. 

 

Cantor started working for his father’s Fútbol de Primera radio station before deciding to join his father’s rival network – Univision Deportes (now TUDN) – where he worked as a studio analyst and U.S. Men’s National Team reporter, in addition to providing English and Spanish commentary for Univision’s coverage of Major League Soccer and Liga MX, polishing his skills on the assignment desk and the station’s flagship program ‘República Deportiva,’ and its live whip-around soccer program ‘Zona Fútbol.’ Eventually, these impressive skills caught the attention of CBS Sports, who had recently taken over the English-language UEFA Champions League broadcasting rights, replacing Turner Sports ahead of schedule. Rather than continuing his career progression at a Spanish-language network, Cantor elected to make the permanent move to English and join CBS in October 2020.

 

“It was a little bit strange, because CBS picked up Champions League rights when Turner relinquished them with everyone going into lockdown and all sports stopping. That was in August 2020, and the Champions League didn’t pick up again until October. In between that time, the CBS executive Peter Radovich, Jr. had gotten in contact with my agent and offered me a job.”

 

By accepting this new position and starting his professional journey with CBS, Cantor took on a new role, and a new travel itinerary. Just as Danny Higginbotham was going from England to the United States, Cantor started to make the inverse move, traveling back and forth between London and Miami in order to cover the biggest tournament in club soccer. He spent three years jetting back and forth between Miami and London before eventually moving to Connecticut in 2023 after the launch of the CBS Sports Golazo Network, the first U.S.-based digital network with 24-hour, direct-to-consumer soccer coverage, which is available on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app, and on Paramount+. After a year in Connecticut, Cantor decided to move to Queens with his wife, where he has remained ever since.

 

Whilst he works as a reporter for CBS Sports’ Concacaf and UEFA Champions League coverage and as an analyst for CBS Sports Golazo Network’s flagship morning show Morning Footy, Cantor’s main gig has come as the host of CBS Sports’ live whip-around program, “The Golazo Show.” This is the soccer version of NFL RedZone, but as opposed to Scott Hanson, Cantor is constantly keeping viewers plugged in with important details from Galatasaray’s impressive recent away form to how Thomas Grønnemark revolutionized Liverpool’s set-piece strategy. More than anything, though, he’s serving as a role model for millions of Latino-American kids who, for the first time, are finding someone who looks like them and talks like them on the TV screen.

 

“I don’t know if I’m doing a good job or not, but I definitely want to help that demographic group feel represented because I’m part of them. I would watch American soccer broadcasts growing up, and I wouldn’t see a lot of people that sounded like me. I thought that to be on English language TV in the United States, you had to have no accent and the most American broadcaster voice possible, and I’m the furthest thing from that.People think I’m not from the United States with the accent that I have, and I try to explain that it’s a Miami thing, it’s a very Latinized English that throws people off at first. There are some Miamians that speak  pristine English, and then there’s a lot of Miamians that have this sort of tonality to their vowels that make them sound like they’re not from the United States, but I will argue it is one of the most American accents. When people ask me, ‘Where are you from?’ before the United States, before Argentina, and before Honduras, I’ll say Miami, because that’s where I’m from. Ironically, I think it’s kind of advantageous that I do have an accent. Regardless, I didn’t hear people with accent that sometimes struggle to find the right word either in English or in Spanish. I was schooled in English, so although it sounds like Spanish is my first language, there are times that I’m speaking Spanish, and I forget what the word is, and I know it in English, and I can’t think of it, and I’m like ‘God help me try to figure out this word in Spanish, and it doesn’t happen’ and vice versa.”

 

“I know a lot of people in the United States feel represented by that, that maybe speak in Spanish to their parents and English to their siblings, which was the case in my household. Especially in the United States, where I bet everybody that is Latino has had this multicultural Latino, Pan-American experience where they have friends from so many Latin American countries, and there are rivalries whenever their national teams play in World Cup qualifiers or in major tournaments like Copa América. That was so much fun growing up, and as a Latino in the United States, having had those experiences, I feel like you have to speak for everyone. I’m not just representing Argentinians or Hondurans, because my dad’s Argentine, and my mom’s Honduran, I want to represent Colombia, I want to represent Costa Rica, I want to represent Mexico, I want to represent every single country, because I know somebody in this country that has had that experience, and I want to be faithful to that representation on air.”