Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Raptors

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The Miami Heat fall to the Toronto Raptors this time around, after some back and forth late.

Heat now 1-3.

Some takeaways from this one…

#1: A look into an interchangeable defensive system for Miami.

As the Miami Heat trailed 48-43 at half, it always gives you a moment of reflection as to what the primary issue is. Both ends of the floor had problems in prior games, but the defensive end seemed to be cleaned up generally early in this one. From a positive perspective, I thought we finally got the defensive mix that you would be looking for with this Heat group. The first few possessions included some Bam Adebayo in drop, which I’ve been asking for. It then altered back to the soft switching, while shading help over for double teams more often than not. Following those sequences, Miami leaned into the 2-2-1 press and 2-3 zone when Gabe Vincent and Haywood Highsmith were at the top of it. The point is that Miami’s defense was problematic when it was one dimensional. Being creative and unpredictable is all you can ask for.

#2: The Dewayne Dedmon element.

While we imagined Bam Adebayo would be gunning for the DPOY award this year, I didn’t think Dewayne Dedmon would be given any credit for that. But when you open up the on/off numbers, or simply the plus/minus, the Dedmon stuff jumps off the page. But even more-so, it jumps off the game-tape when watching. He can’t truly move at this stage, which creates problems for this team on both ends. He doesn’t have the back-pedaling quickness to fully contain in drop, while his offensive role is just to simply “float” after a screen. Not much intention, not many positive outcomes. Simply, the minutes have looked bad to begin this season, and the status of Omer Yurtseven on the injury report becomes more and more intriguing.

#3: The Heat aren’t being quiet about the offensive combo that works best.

Something I’ve been discussing all off-season for Miami, when projecting the starting lineup on the season, was the Tyler Herro-Bam Adebayo pick and roll connection. And well, it’s lived up to the hype early in the season. Herro has recorded 1.47 points per possession on 61% shooting as the PnR ball handler, which only ranks behind Luka Doncic and Jaylen Brown. Adebayo has recorded 1.25 PPP on 68% shooting as the PnR roll man, only ranking behind John Collins. But the bigger headliner is that they aren’t afraid to lean into it. Heavily. The entire offense seems to be operating around that two-man action, and we’re seeing minor layers added to it and it’s only game 4. One of the more fun X’s and O’s story-lines to follow for this team.

#4: A very great Jimmy Butler approach.

As the Heat made a solid third quarter push, it required us to zoom out a bit. Bam Adebayo with some highlight-type strong attacks. Tyler Herro continues to be the shining piece. Yet Jimmy Butler was just quietly coasting to having a pretty great game. Trips to the line, a couple triples, mismatch hunting, solid facilitating, and great efficiency. We know what the role of Butler in the regular season looks like compared to the playoffs, but this is a great example of him not having to do *too* much while still putting up numbers. Combining my last takeaway with this one, a specific Herro-Bam PnR stood out late in the first half. Butler set-up at dunker spot for interior gravity, while he roams from box to box. Herro hit Butler who knocked down the floater. The shot profile mix is a healthy one.

#5: Late-game execution.

Jimmy Butler walks to the scorer’s table of a close game with 5 minutes left in the 4th. A bit of a back and forth pursued with some forced offense from Miami. A perfectly executed Spain PnR turned South late as Bam took off too early and it clanked off the rim. Raptors started to get some easy buckets down low, seemingly putting Miami in an awkward position with Butler entering with 3 mins left in the quarter. Fast forwarding a minute of a 6 point game, the Heat force a miss and run into transition. Tyler Herro, in Herro fashion, pulls up for three on the break to cut the lead to 3. All of a sudden the ball ends up back in their hands with a little over a minute to go, and we get another Spain PnR siting. Perfect result with VanVleet switching onto Bam, yet Herro shoots a tough shot that just misses. On the other end, Vincent did his best to contain, but Siakam got to his sweet spot for the mid-range bucket. 5 point game. Good play-call out of the timeout for Butler to drive on a curl screen for the easy lay-in. Yet as good of defense they played on Toronto following that play, Gary Trent just hits an insanely tough shot in the deep corner. Ends in a loss for Miami.

Why BTC Casinos Are Latest Trend In Canadian Gambling Industry

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Now that cryptos are taking over online transactions, most regulated online casinos consider cryptocurrency gambling options necessary. However, when it comes to crypto gambling sites, Canadians have a plethora of unique possibilities.

 

The rise of crypto gambling sites is one of the primary causes for the current increase of customers in the gambling business. Nevertheless, there has never been a more practical and secure way to engage in intriguing gaming activities than there is now. This innovation is a direct result of significant technological advancements and the willingness of the most reliable online casinos to adapt.

 

Furthermore, using a BTC casino offers quick transactions and great bonus promotions. In this article, we’ll discuss the variables making these cryptocurrency gambling sites popular with online bookmakers and how gamers like you may become involved.

Why Should You Gamble With Bitcoin?

 

In the world of online BTC gambling, there are several deposit possibilities. Depending on the mobile bookmaker, punters can finance an account using a bank transfer, credit card, e-wallet, prepaid card, or wire.

 

Cryptocurrency is becoming a more common deposit method (BTC). It has increased in popularity in the online gambling industry in recent years. First and foremost, with so many financial options available, you may be questioning why you even need Bitcoin. You may learn about the benefits of using cryptocurrency for Canadian online gambling and why BTC casinos are the newest trend in the Canadian gaming industry.

Low Payout Fees

 

Some banking options have exorbitant expenses that can wipe away your funds. For example, if you use Neteller to withdraw money, the platform will charge around 3% of the cashout amount. They are far worse because wire firms charge $35 for every withdrawal.

 

However, even cryptocurrency has certain costs. First, you must pay a little charge to the miner who processes your transaction. The key term here, though, is little. You usually pay 1% or less of the total value of the money exchanged. So if you withdraw $300 in Bitcoin, the costs will most likely be $3 or less.

Rapid Withdrawals

 

The banking option selected will decide the cashout time. For example, E-wallet withdrawals typically take 24 hours or less before completing your transactions. Furthermore, some bank transfers could take more than seven days before completion.

 

Nevertheless, BTC cashouts are often accessible sooner than most conventional banking operations. You will then receive your money within one to three working days. However, there isn’t a long waiting period before obtaining BTC incentives. 

Extra Benefits

 

The platform ensures coverage of minor changes such as deposit transaction fees. For example, they may reimburse the 3.5% Visa fee if you use a credit card. As a result, decreased crypto fees may help BTC gambling sites. In addition, they offer a variety of incentives to urge you to use this coin as much as possible.

 

Deposit bonuses are available at mobile casinos that only accept Bitcoin. For example, they may provide a 100% match bonus of up to 0.01 BTC. If you want to put in crypto gambles, check out the promotions section of your favorite BTC sportsbook. Additionally, several BTC bonuses may be available. 

Anonymity at a High Level

 

Depending on your personal preferences, you may not want online gambling transactions to appear on your credit card or e-wallet statements. Punters may find it difficult to obtain credit if anyone shares their information with outsiders.

 

In contrast to traditional banking, BTC provides far greater privacy. The platform will identify users through the use of wallet addresses. As a result, no one knows about your deposits or withdrawals from the online casino. BTC payments to and from anonymous addresses can only be seen by those who check them.

Easy Processing of Deposits

 

Some online gamblers shun cryptocurrency because they do not want to put up the effort of learning a new platform. However, they have no reservations about accepting widely accepted payment methods such as credit cards or e-wallets.

 

However, if you get the hang of it, using BTC isn’t much more complicated than using an e-wallet. This opportunity is especially true when punters consider how simple processes like Coinbase and Gemini make trading.

 

Create an account and use an exchange to begin learning how to use cryptocurrency. You then enter your banking information and send money to the business. After that, you can purchase BTC. Then you follow the simple instructions to send cryptocurrency to the required online gambling sites. You should consider building a wallet if you use the exchange primarily to send and receive cryptocurrency from a gambling website.

Wide Variety of Platform Options

 

Unregulated online gambling companies are increasingly using Bitcoin. Moreover, Peer-to-peer networks appeal to them because they allow them to communicate directly with clients. As a result, there are various cryptocurrency gambling sites. If you’re comfortable utilizing Bitcoin, you’ll have many more alternatives when finding a gambling site.

 

Some countries have substantial banking restrictions that make depositing money for gambling difficult. For example, living in certain Canadian provinces, you may find it challenging to place real money gambles. Once again, there is no connection between cryptocurrency and banks or third parties. As a result, you shouldn’t be concerned that laws will regulate BTC. 

Conclusion

 

The fundamental goals of cryptocurrency gambling platforms are entertainment and financial gain. But it would help if you did not second-guess how you make deposits and withdrawals. Gambling sites that accept BTC solve this problem, as BTC makes it straightforward to transfer money to and from gambling sites.

 

Moreover, it provides a peer-to-peer network in which miners support transactions rather than outside intermediaries. It also offers reasonable transaction speeds and low fees. If you’ve ever had difficulties making deposits with credit cards, e-wallets, and the costs that come with them, look into BTC gambling sites.

 

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Win Over Raptors

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So the Heat bounced back on the second night of a back to back against the Toronto Raptors, getting a much needed win to begin the season.

This game wasn’t a very normal or consistent one, since while they were clicking on all cylinders in the first half, it tailed off and ended up being a close game.

Either way, here are some takeaways of both the good and the bad…

#1: The return of the offensive movement.

A question I posed exactly 24 hours ago was a rather simple one: where is the movement? Two-man actions were being run for this Heat offense against Boston, but not many more layers added on. Tonight, though, they showcased a total flip in that nature through the first 24 minutes of basketball. The first element of movement simply involves the ball. When things got stale, it was because isolations were most of the time the end result. This time around we saw a good amount of extra passes and necessary swings to keep the defense honest. The second element of Miami’s movement regards just bodies roaming. Off-ball screening, simple back-cuts, and perimeter hand-off searching is the engine to positive half-court offense. It was obviously the primary intention heading in, and they responded with a 71 point first half.

#2: Max Strus: doing the *other* things more consistently.

We know what Max Strus is at this stage. He’s a guy who fits next to anybody, and can shoot the heck out of the ball no matter the contest. But while watching this game tonight, I’m sure some other stuff caught your eye. Step 1 included his weak-side defense and timing. I’m not going to sit here and act like the Heat’s defensive rotations were where they want them to be, but Strus showcased incredible help timing to muck up straight line drives and account for some charges. The other main part of his performance ties back to my previous takeaway of movement and cutting. He’s just hard to continually account for. Guys find him around the rim a ton since he’s not a standstill threat. Keys to staying on the floor late in games.

#3: Kyle Lowry the off-ball threat/Tyler Herro the rim threat.

When zooming out career wise, we know Tyler Herro as a high level outside shooter or developed into an elite off the dribble scoring threat. We also know Kyle Lowry as a consistent creator both for himself and others, while always mixing in elite efficiency numbers as a spot-up threat. But sometimes the simple and original read of a player finds it’s way more consistently again. That was one of my primary takeaways tonight, as Herro pretty much continues to soar as a true rim pressure threat. He’s slashing on the ball in ways that make it so much tougher to guard within that two-man action. Lowry, on the other hand, was definitely going to be getting extra off-ball reps with the amount of creators on this roster. But 3 for 3 in the first half on spot-up triples proves this theory to be correct. Catch and shoot Lowry combined with relentless attacking Herro is a formula for very good offense.

#4: Caleb Martin with an ejection…and a lifetime Heat contract?

So things picked up a bit in the third quarter as Miami possessed a pretty comfortable lead. Some emotions were rising as Tyler Herro and Paschal Siakam got tied up a bit after the play. A few minutes later, *the* play happened. What seemed like a usual foul down low turned into a linebacker shooting the gap of the o-line. Caleb Martin stood over the top of Christian Koloko, leading into a body slam takedown into the courtside seats on the baseline. Both players ended up being ejected, but it was an interesting twist to this game. Martin may have gotten thrown out of this one, but he simultaneously may have been thrown a lifetime Heat contract after that display of emotion and toughness. Well, for the moment. It ended up being pivotal in terms of the Raptors storming back in the second half, but Miami pulled it out.

#5: I’m still watching the turnovers.

A consistent theme across all 3 games of Heat basketball this season has been turnovers. They actually forced Boston into double their number last night, but they’re still putting up a pretty uncomfortable number. Some of that is fine if it’s occurring through an offensive process of risk taking in the half court, but I don’t truly feel that’s been the case. Many of them are just playing at a different speed than the next guy, or forcing stuff that is so clearly not there for them. If this team ends up in the bottom 10 in pace again, which will be the case, a high turnover outcome can’t be the result on a nightly basis.

2022 Senior Bowl midseason all riser team

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The Senior Bowl just released it’s 2022 midseason all riser team. It consists of offensive and defensive players that have risen two rounds or more on the Senior Bowl board from their Junior year tape grades.

Lets take a look at the offensive prospects.

Quarterback Hendon Hooker

The Tennessee quarterback is kind of like a mix between Young and Stroud physically. He has Stroud’s arm and size and Young’s athleticism and accuracy. He may win the Heisman. The only major flaw about Hendon Hooker is his age. It brings with it questions of how much upside is left?

Running back Chase Brown

The Illini product has the ability to see where holes are going to open up. Brown can twist his hips in between the blockers to squeeze through holes that aren’t there to the naked eye.

He’s capable as a receiver, a weapon on swing passes and in the screen game. His stats through seven games:

  • ATT: 192
  • YDS: 1,059
  • TD: 4
  • AVG: 5.5

All-riser Pass Catchers

Tight End Luke Schoonmaker

Senior Luke Schoonmaker has picked up where Michgan TE Erick All left off last year, becoming a key part of the Wolverines’ passing attack and a favorite target of J.J. McCarthy.

Through six games, the 6-foot-6, 250-pound tight end is second on the team in catches (23) and receiving yards (229). Schoonmaker has reliable hands and shows the willingness to make catches in traffic over the middle.

Wide Receiver Zay Flowers

Xavien “Zay” Kevonn Flowers has caught my eye for a while now and he’s been on the senior bowl radar for quite some time. The Eagles product is first or tied for first in the ACC in:

  • Targets (63)
  • Receptions (42)
  • Receiving yards (556)
  • Receiving TDs (5)
  • 40+ yard catches (4)

His stock hasn’t only rose in the senior bowl board, but also among NFL boards.

“He’s a smaller receiver, like a [Terry] McLaurin, that type of guy. He can fly. He’s a highlight reel. Probably a second-rounder, might sneak in first if he runs real fast [at the combine].”

NFC Scouting Director

Wide Receiver Charlie Jones

Purdue receiver Charlie Jones is coming of age, especially on the mid-season all riser team for the Senior Bowl. Although Jones is more of a possession target than a field stretcher, his fiercely competitive demeanor and run-after-catch ability make him a major threat in the middle of the field.

His play this season is even more impressive when you consider he had 39 career receptions coming into the year. Jones has become the most reliable target for Aidan O’Connell and consistently comes away with the difficult catch during the game’s critical moments. He has 62 catches for 735 yards and 9 touchdowns.

Wide Receiver Jonathan Mingo

Ole Miss Rebels receiver Jonathan Mingo was graded by Pro Football Focus as the No. 1 wideout in College Football. Mingo plays with a smoothness and balance, and Mingo shows a knack for setting up defensive backs. He’s equally dangerous in catch-and-run situations as he is taking the top off a defense.

Mingo transitions quickly from receiver to runner, and he has enough speed to threaten the seam and has a knack for getting open. Through six games, Mingo has amassed 22 receptions, 507 receiving yards, and three touchdowns. He is also now averaging 23.0 yards per reception, which is good for first in the SEC and second in the nation.

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All-riser Offensive Lineman

Offensive Tackle Tyler Steen

The development of Alabama offensive tackle Tyler Steen, a veteran transfer from Vanderbilt, has been critical for the Crimson Tide.

Through six weeks, he has been an anchor for the Crimson Tide at left tackle. He is a very instinctive player and leads by example along the offensive front. It will be interesting to see how he develops as the season progresses.

Offensive Guard O’Cyrus Torrence

Proving himself as Florida’s most impactful addition from the transfer portal this past offseason, Right guard O’Cyrus Torrence was recognized for his play twice through six games with the Gators as he lands on Associated Press Midseason All-American team and 2022 Reese’s Senior Bowl Midseason All-Riser Team.

Torrence does a nice job working with teammates to build the pocket, anchoring against bull rushers and displaying good awareness against stunts and twists. As a result, he’s continued his college career-long streak of games without giving up a sack, up to 42 games between his three years at Louisiana and six appearances at Florida.

Center Alex Forsyth

The Oregon product is little known outside of the college football community but has slowly risen up the ranks. Forsyth is currently on the mid-season watchlist for the Lombardi Award. In the run game, he shows good burst off the line of scrimmage, with the ability to win at the point of attack.

Forsyth has enough speed and athleticism to move to the second level and land blocks. He’s a rock in the middle of the line as a pass protector, with the heavy hands and strong grip to hold his own against bigger defensive tackles.

Offensive Guard Matthew Jones

Matthew Jones’ name has not been a hot name recently as Ohio State’s high powered offense has names like C.J. Stroud, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Paris Johnson. However, Matthew Jones is a key contributor to keeping C.J. Stroud upright and have one of the best run games in the nation.

Jones consistently lands blocks at the second level, and Jones finishes strong. As a pass protector, he has violent, heavy hands. Along with a strong initial punch, he has the hand strength to grip and redirect pass rushers.

Offensive Tackle Darnell Wright

Last week Volunteers offensive lineman Darnell Wright stood out against Alabama. He had the task playing against an impressive EDGE rusher in Will Anderson Jr.

***This article was originally published on the ATB Network by Hussam Patel***

 

Hussam Patel is a Miami Dolphins contributor and Lead NFL Draft analyst at Five Reasons Sports Network, Director of Scouting at PhinManiacs and Editor at Dolphins ATB. Follow him on Twitter at @HussamPatel

Five takeaways from Panthers 3-2 OT loss to Lightning

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SUNRISE – The Battle of Florida returned on Friday night as the cross-state rival Tampa Bay Lightning made the journey to Sunrise to face off against the Florida Panthers.

 

These two teams have a lot of history over the last two seasons and tonight some new faces became acquainted with this fierce rivalry. 

 

Tampa came out the victors of this matchup, defeating Florida 3-2 in overtime off a Brayden Point power play goal.

 

Here’s tonight’s takeaways:

 

Matthew Tkachuk 

Matthew Tkachuk definitely had this one circled on his calendar. In his introductory press conference, he said, “I hate Edmonton, but I hate Tampa more now.” The former Calgary Flame is used to rivalries as he was a frequent noise maker in the Battle of Alberta.

 

In his first Battle of Florida, Tkachuk wasted no time stamping his name into the rivalry as he scored a tip-in off a Brandon Montour shot in the first period to tie the game at one a piece. This would be the first goal Tkachuk scored at home in a Panthers uniform.

 

Tkachuk got into the mix of it tonight with a few Lightning players, he even witnessed Corey Perry chuck his stick across the ice. Tkachuk was on the receiving end of some physicality too. He had two points tonight and continues to be the Panthers leading scorer.

 

Unfortunately for Tkachuk and the Panthers, he took two penalties in one play in the OT, granting Tampa a two-minute, 4-on-3 power play. As well as the Panthers PK did during regulation, going 5/6 on the kill before OT, Tampa didn’t let the extra frame head back to even-strength with Brayden Point beating Bobrovsky to win the game.

 

Rudy continues his goal streak

Rudolfs Balcers introduced himself to the Florida faithful on Wednesday night at the home opener when he scored his first goal with the Panthers against Philadelphia.

 

Tonight, Rudy extended his goal streak to two games with a huge goal in front of Andrei Vasilevskiy’s goal to give Florida the lead.

 

In his first year with the team, Balcers has played well alongside Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett on the second line. 

 

After playing a career-high 61 games last season in San Jose, Balcers doesn’t look out of place in Florida’s top-six. 

 

Florida puts up shots, a lot of shots

Similar to last season’s team, this Panthers squad pushes the tempo in transition and picks up a ton of shots as a result. 

 

Over the last three games, Florida had at least 30 shots on goal. Tonight they continued that streak, hitting it before the third period puck-drop.

 

A big question around the league after the hiring of Paul Maurice was if Florida could sustain the high-octane offense they had the previous season under Andrew Brunette. 

 

Tonight was just another demonstration of the amount of chances Florida generates throughout the game. 

 

They ended the game with 38. 

 

A healthy Brandon Montour is big for Florida

Florida’s defense is already without their top defenseman in Aaron Ekblad for an extended period of time as he’s on LTIR. Prior to tonight, they were also without Brandon Montour for the last two games.

Florida was able to get Montour’s services back tonight and it was much needed. The 28-year-old had the most ice-time for the d-corps, clocking in just over 23 minutes.

 

Montour also picked up points on both of Florida’s goals tonight. He’s going to be relied on heavily this season, specifically during the absence of Ekblad. 

 

Montour didn’t play on the top power play unit tonight as he did to start the season, however he could be seeing time on that top unit again sooner than later. 

 

Too much time in the box

The Lightning power play has been a thorn to oppositions for years now and Florida is no stranger to this. Tampa’s first goal of the game was a power play one-timer from captain Steven Stamkos. Their last goal of the game was a powerplay goal from Brayden Point in OT.

 

The Lightning know how to work a power play. They waste no time moving the puck and use multiple players as bumpers, so the opposition has to respect all five guys on the ice. 

 

Florida’s PP did a good job at stopping Tampa’s PP onslaught in regulation after the Stamkos goal, but in these tight games, spending so much time in the box is a momentum killer for the most part and Florida looked like the better team 5-on-5.

 

Tampa retaining control on their 4-on-3 overtime PP gave them way too much open ice in the zone and it ended with Florida only picking up one point from this game.

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Celtics

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So we got an Eastern Conference Finals rematch on Friday night, immediately following a tough opening night performance for the Miami Heat.

Consistency felt like one of the main issues in this one, since even though the offense or defense was there at times, they just couldn’t sustain it long enough.

Even after making a late push, it wasn’t enough to steal a win against this gritty and skilled Celtics team. So here are some takeaways from this one…

#1: Tyler Herro: flattened offense to rim attempts to a fully open shot diet.

For scorers like Tyler Herro, the start of games hold high importance. It may sound wild, but he’s a rhythm player who needs to find his way a bit before truly popping. But that wasn’t the case early in this game. The Celtics were really flattening out the expected pick and rolls to come with Bam Adebayo, leaving Herro in a weird spot offensively. Then a few minutes into the second quarter, he found his way. Herro began getting to the rim a bunch, which is the true cursor to fully opening up his entire shot menu. That led into the free throw line floater opening up. Then the three-point shooting. Then the play-making. It’s a domino effect for Herro, but the ability to get out of the mud a bit at the start of games is a good sign.

#2: Bam Adebayo comes out aggressive…again. Just with different result.

After Bam Adebayo struggled on opening night against the Chicago Bulls, the topic about his scoring ability wasn’t the usual headliner: aggression. He was definitely getting shots up, they just weren’t dropping, which tends to happen. But the process was there. That stayed strong early in this game against Boston, as he wasn’t afraid to dive into the shots that Boston was giving him, which pretty much began and finished with the mid-range pull-up. Those jumpers led him to a 12 point first half stat line on 6 of 7 shooting. My point the other night was that inefficient nights for him will be fine throughout the season, as long as there’s a similar process along the way. Even though tonight had a bit of a different process with some early foul trouble.

#3: Where’s the movement?

In terms of the downside of Miami’s X’s and O’s, I must say I was expecting Miami to lean much more into their motion offense this year. They have multiple movement shooters on the floor together at times, a decent amount of on-ball creators, and a couple athletes. That roster construction screams nonstop movement, especially when linking that player grouping to the Miami Heat. But we’ve seen a lot of stagnant two-man actions early in this season, while the weak-side spacers are simply spotting up. Of course that can be the case depending on the action you’re running, but this team won’t be a successful scoring team off a bunch of isolations. I think they will find their identity here soon, but something to keep an eye on.

#4: The importance of the Kyle Lowry pull-up 3.

After talking about some of the minor negatives of the offense so far, it’s also important to talk some positives. And after a bad opening night for Kyle Lowry, he bounced back with some crucial buckets throughout. More specifically, it’s pretty clear that his pull-up triple changes the game for this team’s half-court offense. When he doesn’t take it, the defense goes under to flatten it, and it usually just ends up in a congested pass to the roller or resetting swing pass. Yet when he’s taking it, it puts more pressure on not only the on-ball defender, but the off-ball helpers. That’s the way to bend a good Celtics defense, and it’s with one single shot. It’ll be intriguing to monitor the efficiency and volume of it, but that’ what’ll make Lowry’s presence extremely helpful.

#5: A much needed defensive pick-up.

As I talked about the other night, Miami’s defensive rotations just weren’t there. This time around, it wasn’t as much the rotations. Instead it had many of us glued to their defensive layout. The Celtics are a heavy shot creation team, especially considering their molded around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. With that said, they enjoying picking their isolation matchup at any given moment. They were able to do that pretty easily at times with Miami’s switching, while yes it may have it’s perks with the randomized helps and doubles, just needs some type of mix-up against a team like Boston. The thing I’ve been advocating for is a mix of drop once in a while with Bam Adebayo on the floor. Maybe that says something about the point of attack defense in that first unit, but some defensive creativity and unpredictability is needed for this group with 80 games to go.

Five Takeaways from Heat’s Loss to Bulls

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The Miami Heat faced the Chicago Bulls in their season opener, and well, it didn’t go as expected.

They came out playing well out the gate, but that stalled quickly. The defensive lapses began to add up, as DeMar DeRozan continued to “heat” up.

So, here are some takeaways…

#1: Tyler Herro kicks off his new role with a scoring punch…with a changing profile.

There was no doubt that Tyler Herro would be a focal point of the starting group’s offensive flow, but his usage was peaking to an even further degree early. An immediate pull-up three to kick things off will always be a good sign, but the next possession spoke volume. Herro pick and roll, Chicago Bulls blitz. He showed patience, waited it out, flowed downhill, snaked insane, and put up the floater. Bucket. Shortly after, as Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo created, the ball ended up swinging to Herro in the corner for a spot-up three. The point is that his shot profile looks much different, while simultaneously looking much better. Pull-ups, spot-ups, blitzes: you know the deal. He’s just confident against all of it to start the season off.

#2: The rotation at the moment…

The starting lineup wasn’t much of a surprise heading in, (Lowry-Herro-Butler-Martin-Bam) but the questions were pointed at the bench unit without Victor Oladipo suiting up. Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, and Dewayne Dedmon were going to form the 8, but how would they regulate the rest? Well, the answer was quite simple. They went the Duncan Robinson route, and played him next to Strus for long stretches. Yet the key about the rotation is that they are matching good combinations. For example, they want to mirror the minutes of Herro and Bam as much as possible. So, they sub Butler out first, to then have him anchor the bench unit shortly after. It’s a solid philosophy to split up on-ball threats, but the next evaluation period will include how Butler and Oladipo look together once he returns.

#3: Caleb Martin isn’t PJ Tucker, and they won’t treat him like so.

Who will be the PJ Tucker replacement? That’s a question that has been asked all off-season, and the answer to that question has been Caleb Martin. Yes, he’s subbing into the position that he filled, but he’s not truly filling his role. Martin is surprising people with his growth at the moment, since he’s doing things that we’ve yet to see from him. Step 1 was the ability to size up defensively. Miami placed him on DeMar DeRozan early for the sole reason of predicting the switch, ending with him trying to hold his own on Nikola Vucevic. He had some good possessions early, but they continued to post him up a punch in the second half, proving the difference between PJ Tucker and himself. But the offensive stuff is a change of pace as well: rim pressure, tighter handle, better shooting, and constant movement. For an unexpected example. the dude literally ran a pick and roll for a tough mid-range pull-up early on. This is a different player right now, and there’s more to explore in my personal opinion.

#4: Bam Adebayo and Kyle Lowry struggling.

When looking at the stat sheet at halftime, two things would’ve caught you by surprise. Bam Adebayo was 1 for 10 from the field and Kyle Lowry had 0 points on two attempts. On the Bam front, he was just missing easy buckets at the rim time and time again. Bunnies, dunks, etc. I mean he was aggressive, but he didn’t have that usual focused flare from the jump. Lowry, on the other hand, wasn’t even looking for his shot. There weren’t many actions I can recall that he was heavily involved. Most of the offense included Bam or Jimmy post-splits, or Herro created buckets off pick and rolls or curls. I truly believe the Bam element is just one of those nights where easy ones don’t drop, but the Lowry part of it is about engagement level. Herro and Butler can only do so much to keep this group afloat. They’re going to need some type of punch on nights like this from Lowry and/or Bam.

#5: A step too slow defensively?

As the Bulls continued to pull away in the third quarter, there was a consistent theme: DeMar DeRozan tough buckets and sleepy Heat defensive possessions. This Heat team goes through shooting/scoring slumps all the time, but their energy and defensive rotations, specifically, usually carry them. That wasn’t the case for long periods in this one. Bulls were getting easy buckets at the rim and simple back-cuts were end results, which is far from a Miami Heat product. If there’s one thing this Heat team can’t afford to lose this season, it’s those crispy rotations on the defensive side of the ball night in and night out.

Miami Hurricanes: Duke QB Riley Leonard will challenge ‘Canes

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The Miami Hurricanes are set to take on the Duke Blue Devils as they look to bounce back from Saturday’s loss to Virginia Tech. Miami will have their work cut out for them, as they will be faced with another challenging quarterback in Riley Leonard.

Leonard has 1,557 passing yards, nine touchdowns, and four interceptions on the season. He played effectively in Duke’s loss to North Carolina last Saturday. He went 20-of-31 on the afternoon, throwing for 245 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.

He is an accurate quarterback, as he has a 66% completion percentage on the season. That puts him third in the ACC behind Syracuse’s Garrett Schrader, and UNC’s Drake Maye.

Leonard is accurate with the football, and does not make mistakes. This certainly resembles another quarterback that the Hurricanes have already faced in Maye They did a decent job of containing him,  as they intercepted him twice.

A tough test for Miami Hurricanes

Leonard has several traits that make him a bit quarterback. He throws a very tight spiral, which allows for the ball to get to the receivers quickly. In addition to his throwing motion, he goes through progressions quickly, and identifies his reads before the pass rush can get into the backfield.

He can also run a little bit, as he has 420 rushing yards on the year. He had 130 yards against UNC last Saturday, and has rushed for at least 60 yards in four games this season.

The Miami Hurricanes defense is going to have to be ready on Saturday. Leonard is a multi-skilled quarterback who and beat you in many ways. It is going to be a bit of a challenge, particularly for the Miami pass rush. However, they have playmakers and athletes that can help contain Leonard. It won’t be easy however, and if they do not contain him, he will take advantage of that. Making him uncomfortable in the pocket is going to have to be their top priority.

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Miami Hurricanes

Miami Hurricanes: Colbie Young is viable big-play threat

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There were some positives to take away from the Miami Hurricanes‘ win over Virginia Tech on Saturday. One of them was the play of wide receiver Colbie Young. Young played a big part in Miami’s offensive successes, and he also established himself as a deep threat for the offense.

Young played at a high level on Saturday. He caught nine passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. A 37-yard catch was his longest of the afternoon. Many fans have been clamoring to see him play for quite a while now. They certainly got their wish, and he played at a high level.

Coming into the game, he had three receptions for 43 yards against UNC last Saturday. He more than doubled that production against Virginia Tech.

Not only did he perform well in terms of production, he looked extremely comfortable while doing it. A one-handed catch was one of the highlights of his afternoon. It really highlighted his athleticism and coordination, as well as his big-play ability.  The fact that quarterback Tyler Van Dyke targeted him often was certainly a good sign. Establishing that rapport between the two will allow the Miami offense to have a  receiver they can rely on.

If Young can establish himself as a downfield threat for the Hurricanes, this would be extremely good news. Miami has been looking for that big-play weapon this season. The departures of wide receivers Charleston Rambo and Mike Harley took away those playmakers. This season, it’s been about trying to find production at the wide receiver position. The injuries at the position have created a lack of big-play threats.

Hopefully, Young will continue to establish his role in this offense. His emergence could be huge for the wide receiver room. He has the ability to be an X-factor, and Miami should continue to use him that way.

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Five takeaways from Panthers 4-3 win over Sabres

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The Florida Panthers are leaving New York the same way they entered the state two days ago, undefeated.

 

Yes, the season started two days ago but the Cats still began the campaign with two road wins following their 4-3 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. 

 

Spencer Knight picked up his first win of the season as the Panthers moved to 2-0 on the young NHL season.

 

Here’s the takeaways from today’s matinee game.

The power play scored, twice

Thursday’s game against the Islanders saw the new look Panthers power play get numerous scoring chances but no goals, going 0-5 on the night.

 

That changed today as the power play found the back of the net twice, with goals coming from defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour.

 

With the way Florida’s sets up their power play, it was bound to generate scoring chances off their quick passing and efficient off the puck movement within the zone. 

 

Having Montour control the top of the blueline allows Ekblad to freely move on the left side of the ice, which is his off-side wing. This opens up the opportunity for one-timers around the goal. 

 

Matthew Tkachuk hovers between the goal line and the crease, allowing him to be the bumper down low. Any time he is near the net, there’s bound to be some chaos, which is exactly what happened on Montour’s goal.

 

Tkachuk took open space near the net, fed the puck to the front and Montour found the loose puck and put it away.

 

This power play gets its fair share of looks and they didn’t waste their chances today. 

 

Matthew Tkachuk is living up to his trade value

For the second game in a row, Tkachuk found himself with a goal next to his name on the stat sheet.

 

He does so many little things right, with and without the puck. On his goal, he picked up the puck in the neutral zone and decided to use the small amount of space that was available on the boards to push the play rather than cutting into the middle. 

 

After making a great pass to set up Eetu Luostarinen in the slot, Tkachuk set up shop in front of the net as Gustav Forsling had a shooting lane from the point. Despite having two Sabres defenders and the goalie in his way, Tkachuk fought around the traffic to put away the rebound.

 

Sam Reinhart said a few weeks back, “I think he pisses you off because he’s good, he backs it up,” when speaking about Tkachuk. That quote was crystal clear today as he got into it more than a few times with the opposition, even after the final whistle was blown.

 

Between his offensive capabilities, physical play and ability to  draw penalties, he’s the perfect player for this team. He has three points on the year so far, expect that number to increase nearly every game. Also expect the post whistle fights to trend upwards as well.

 

The Lundell, Luostarinen, White line showed out again

This third line is an interesting one on paper. You have 21-year-old Anton Lundell, centering Eetu Luostarinen, who was moved to the wing after spending last year as the fourth line center and Colin White who was picked up in the offseason after being bought out by the Ottawa Senators.

 

Through two games, this trio haven’t looked out of place, with all of them getting on the scoresheet today.

 

Luostarinen’s increased ice time is allowing the skilled Finnish forward more chances to be a difference maker. He found the back of the net against the Islanders and he made a key pass to pick up a primary assist on Colin White’s goal today.

 

Speaking of White, the former 2015 first-round pick came to Florida looking for a fresh start after spending his entire NHL career with Ottawa. Today he not only got his first goal as a Panther, which was a nicely placed one-timer from the slot, but he also hit the 100 point milestone for his career.

 

Lundell was a standout last year in his rookie season and his sophomore year is off on the right track. Paul Maurice clearly trusts the youngster as he gets both penalty killing minutes and second unit power play time. He hit just over 17 minutes of ice time today and picked up his first point of the season. 

 

Both sides picked up A LOT of penalties 

If your favorite NHL trophy is the Lady Byng, this was not the game for you. 

 

The two sides combined for a total of 28 penalty minutes.

 

Buffalo had the edge on the undisciplined meter, picking up two more penalties than Florida.

 

The Panthers penalty kill was able to completely shut down the Sabres, as Buffalo wasn’t able to find the back of the net on the man advantage, even with an abbreviated 5-on-3 opportunity. 

 

Florida on the other hand didn’t let their numerous PP chances go down the drain as they picked up two power play goals.

 

The refs’ whistles were busy today in Buffalo.

 

Florida’s team defense locked it down in the third

Entering the third period, Florida’s lead was just one and Buffalo came out of the intermission with much needed momentum following Rasmus Dahlin’s last minute goal in the second.

 

The start of the third looked like it could all swing Buffalo’s way as they had an abbreviated 4-on-3 and 5-on-3 power play within the opening minutes. However, Florida locked it down. 

 

After killing off the penalties, Florida did not let a puck get near Spencer Knight for over 14 minutes. Buffalo got their first shot post power play with under two minutes remaining in the game and weren’t able to create any looks due to the Panthers defensive efforts. 

 

It was a huge team performance in the final period for Florida, they were rewarded with two points for their efforts.