Tag Archive for: Goran Dragic

5 Key Moments from Media Availability with Spoelstra, Dragic, DJJ

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The Miami Heat had an earlier practice than usual on Thursday, while other teams are preparing for the first regular season game of the restart tonight. This was the first official practice for the Heat that will prepare them for these types of regular season games. Well, here’s what they had to say about their preparation for Saturday against the Denver Nuggets…

Post-Practice Comment #1:

Coach Erik Spoelstra talks a little about the preparation for these regular season games coming up. He says the plan is to “adjust and play the depth as necessary.” This is definitely a major advantage for the Heat, as mentioned many times. It seems pretty clear that depth is the biggest strength of their team. Sometimes it seems as if Spoelstra has a little too much depth to mess around with, but this is definitely a good problem to have in this format. He also says “I have to remain open to pivot as needed.” Spoelstra is one of the only coaches that have the ability to adjust quickly and succeed at it. As there’s been many different x-factors discussed for this season, Spoelstra may be the biggest one.

Post-Practice Comment #2:

Goran Dragic seems pretty excited to get back out their on the court with the team in games that count. He said, “I can’t wait to start.” He also mentions that today’s practice was really intense, which means they’re starting to ramp stuff up a little more. These practices are being utilized right now as a type of scouting format. The coaching staff is trying to find the guys that are in the best shape right now and who they can trust. This very well may be Goran Dragic. As mentioned before, it’s been very obvious that veterans are made for this format more than young guys. Plus, Goran is one of the Heat’s primary play-makers, which will begin to be needed more and more over the course of the next few weeks.

Post-Practice Comment #3:

Derrick Jones Jr got to talk with some media today after practice as well. He starts it off discussing the Heat’s primary struggle. Defense. He said, “We just got to get a little bit better rhythm playing together. Just getting locked in on defense.” Derrick Jones Jr is one of the few guys on the roster that has the ability to fix this problem. It’s been obvious that the defensive struggles have come from the lack of defense from the Heat’s guards. And well, DJJ has the ability to match-up against other guards, which he mentions, “I want to guard the best player every night.” But, there’s a lot of question marks around what he will be able to offer offensively. It seems pretty clear that Spo will have to make a decision on what he wants to prioritize.

Post-Practice Comment #4:

Spoelstra talks a little about the importance of these scrimmage games for this Heat team. He says, “We didn’t play particularly well in our last game, but there were moments in each game where we made progress.” The Heat’s final scrimmage game was definitely a bad note to leave on, but as Spoelstra said, they’re focusing on the positive moments. These scrimmages have helped Spoelstra find the right lineups, defensive schemes, and mainly the type of environment. Last game’s disaster may be the best thing that could’ve happened to the team, since that makes them practice that much harder and truly understand what it takes to win these games.

Post-Practice Comment #5:

The Miami Heat have just released some new shirts on the social justice issues. The team wore them in practice today, which include “Enough is enough,” “Silence is compliance,” and much more. Derrick Jones Jr talked a little about the shirts, saying “I love it.” He says there are some people that aren’t very comfortable speaking about this matter, so the shirt does the talking for them. Erik Spoelstra also spoke about these shirts, saying “This is the shirt that resonates with me,” when speaking about the “Silence is compliance” shirt he was wearing. This team continues to be vocal with their stance on social justice aspects, which is one of the main reasons they wanted to get back onto the highest stage possible.

5 Takeaways from Post-Practice Interviews with Iguodala, Dragic, Spoelstra

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The Miami Heat finished up a late practice tonight in the Orlando bubble. Afterward, Andre Iguodala, Goran Dragic, and Erik Spoelstra spoke with some media as they get closer and closer to their first scrimmage game this Wednesday. Here’s what was said…

Post-Practice Comment #1:

Coach Erik Spoelstra was asked about the current status of Bam Adebayo and Kendrick Nunn and if they would return in the next few days. Spoelstra responded with the words “we’ll see.” It seems as everything is “we’ll see” when discussing the circumstances of Covid-19, since there is truly so much unknown. Although, there seems to be a bunch of optimism upon them returning pretty soon, which will be much needed for this Miami Heat team to succeed.

Post-Practice Comment #2:

There’s been a lot of talk about players being able to talk with players from other teams, but there hasn’t been a lot of buzz about coaches. Erik Spoelstra said that he talked to some opposing coaches, including Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder, about different game plans in the bubble. This is something no coach has been able to do before or thought about doing, especially Erik. But, Spoelstra has used the word “adjusting” many times over the last week which is a clear clue that he will adapt to whatever circumstances.

Post-Practice Comment #3:

Andre Igudala discussed Heat’s rookie Tyler Herro today in a very positive way. He says, “He wants to be great for a really long time.” This has been proven true through his clear hard working attitude and winning mentality. Andre talks about how he wants to help Tyler both on and off the court. He says he is there for him if he needs help with the approachment of things like endorsements and social issues. This is another reason why having a veteran guy like Andre Iguodala on this team is so essential.

Post-Practice Comment #4:

Since two veterans got to talk with media tonight, there was a lot of talk about the young guys. Goran talked about Duncan Robinson, saying “He’s always first in the gym.” When the team usually talks about Duncan, it usually is about his lethal shooting. But not today. It’s about his hard working attitude. It seems like the players have an even more locked in attitude than usual. He also says that Duncan always wants to improve, which if he was able to improve his defense and shots off the dribble, he’d be an even bigger eye sore for teams.

Post-Practice Comment #5:

Coach Spoelstra also got to talking about the different defensive schemes we will see after this long hiatus. He says that this type of environment benefits this because they have more time to drill the zone defense. This is something that we most definitely might see more of in the playoffs. Either if its to lock up a 76ers team in a first round match-up or to catch the Indiana Pacers off guard. It seemed pretty productive this season when it was used, especially to help Heat bigs like Meyers Leonard. Spoelstra also said he will be drilling the basic switching principles over the next few practices to make sure his team is 100% ready.

Miami Heat(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)

5 Post-Practice Comments from Miami Heat in Orlando

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After the Miami Heat arrived to Orlando on Wednesday, they needed to quarantine before returning to practice. Today, they returned to practicing for the first time since early March.

Here’s some takeaways from interviews with the team…

Miami Heat in Orlando Post-Practice Comment 1:

Miami Heat practice in Orlando, and basketball is back. And it seems as if the players are just as excited as the fans are. Erik Spoelstra mentions that he’s “never seen a team move as fast as this team” on their way to get to the gym this afternoon. He also talks about the teams excitement on the court, discussing such things as each others hairstyles. Coach Spoelstra says “You can feel an incredible genuine sense of enthusiasm.” Like many people have mentioned about this Heat team, they enjoy being around each other, which means this bubble situation helps this Heat team.

Post-Practice Comment 2:

This team is full of many vocal leaders on and off the court. But there’s no one better than Miami’s own Udonis Haslem. He says he was very vocal today in their first day back, and told the guys today “it’s time to work.” And the thing is about this team, we know they all were ready to work. He also uses the words “locked in,” which he means in a couple different ways. He says during the interview that he is only going to keep to his team during his time in the bubble, even with the history of him and LeBron James. This team is indeed locked in and ready.

Post-Practice Comment 3:

While there has been a lot of speculation about this unique postseason, Spoelstra says he will use these scrimmage and regular season games to figure out his lineup. He once again says, “Our depth is going to be a factor,” which has been one of the many advantages for the Miami Heat heading into the playoffs. Even Udonis Haslem says he’s ready to go out their and play if Coach Spoelstra looks his way. Spoelstra also mentions that they will not prepare any differently for this postseason than they would for a traditional playoffs. He says “We will prepare the way a typical Miami Heat team would.”

Post-Practice Comment 4:

Goran Dragic says he felt good today during the first team practice in about four months. But he says it’ll be interesting to see how he feels once they do full contact drills starting tomorrow. It was also told that Meyers Leonard was a “full go” and “he’s moving great.” The team’s health is looking pretty promising according to the coaches and players, which will end up being a major factor once teams work their way back in to 100%.

Post-Practice Comment 5:

And of course the money quote. Udonis Haslem discusses Jamal Crawford getting signed and replacing him as oldest in the league. He replies with “I’m still the sexiest guy in the league.” Seems like Udonis Haslem is in good spirits upon the NBA’s return and is ready to prepare his guys for a postseason run.

Alejandro Villegas

5 Takeaways about Miami Heat Restart from Erik Spoelstra, Goran Dragic

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With the NBA and the Miami Heat restart set to return on July 30th, Erik Spoelstra and Goran Dragic hopped on a call today to discuss the team’s approach.

Here’s the five most important things discussed…

1.

The depth of this Miami Heat team has been one of the biggest questions come playoff time. We know they’re deep, but the question was if Coach Eric Spoelstra would go this deep into the bench in a playoff game. This seems to answer it with the quote, “We can go 3 deep at every position.” Be ready for some of Miami’s key role players to be huge sparks for the Heat off of the bench.

2.

Jimmy Butler is obviously one of the best leaders to have on your team in a format like this on and off the court. The young guys have somebody to keep them in line and focused off of the court. But also he’s a guy that will be physically and mentally ready for any match-up they face. Coach Spoelstra has the utmost confidence in Jimmy, and Heat fans should too.

3.

Less than a week ago, it was released that Derrick Jones Jr tested positive for the corona virus. The good news is that he is doing fine and still working out with the team over zoom. Also, no other Heat player has tested positive for Covid-19, which hopefully stays that way heading into the bubble for the Miami Heat restart.

4. 

Due to the fact that this type of format will be pretty close to a Summer League game, it gives a lot of the Heat’s young players an advantage for the Miami Heat restart. It also gives Goran Dragic an advantage since he’s played in these types of games in Europe many times. And as stated above, will help Miami adjust to these types of games very quickly.

5. 

Both Spoelstra and Dragic discussed the changes to be made about the social injustice in the world today. Coach Spoelstra talked about the use of their platform to the best of their abilities. He also states that all of the coaches in the NBA are working with the Obama Foundation on race related initiatives.

 

Miami Heat: Bench struggles contribute to loss against Spurs

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Sunday, while many were watching the AFC Championship game, Miami Heat lost to the San Antonio Spurs by a 107-102 margin. Although it was a close game throughout, a strong second quarter propelled San Antonio to victory. Outscoring the Heat by a 32-23 margin in the second frame, the bench was a huge reason why San Antonio was able to come away with the victory.

Derrick White had 11 points on five-of-11 shooting. Patrick Mills had 18 points on four-of-10 shooting. He was perfect from the free-throw line, making all four of his shots. Marco Belinelli also got into the action. He scored 12 points on two-of-six shooting. He made all six free throws he attempted.

San Antonio’s plus-minus numbers were impressive. White was a +21 while Mills was a +17. Belinelli and Jakob Poetl were  +11 and  while Lonnie Walker IV was a +10. Each of the players on the San Antonio bench were assets while they were on the floor.

Miami Heat bench struggles in loss

Miami’s bench had a tougher time getting things going. All five players recorded a minus rating while they were on the floor. Goran Dragic was the big bench scorer for Miami with 19 points in 24 minutes of play. Dragic was a -13 on the floor in this game. Derrick Jones Junior was a -21 in this contest. He finished with six points on the evening.

Kelly Olynyk and Tyler Herro each had zero points in this game. Olynyk played seven minutes while Herro played nine. Both players missed the two shots they attempted. Olynuk and Herro were both -13 respectively. This was Herro’s first game back from injury. He missed the past two contests with a knee bruise. And he appeared rusty.

Miami is going to have to have a better contributions from their bench, particularly as fatigue starts to set in during the remainder of the season. This was a rough night for the bench all-around. Up next, Miami plays host to the Sacramento Kings Monday evening. Tipoff is at 5:00 PM.

Miami Heat Need the Three Against Knicks on Sunday

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The Miami Heat need to shoot better from deep on Sunday.

The Miami Heat are set to take on the New York Knicks in what is going to be a bounce back game for Miami. One thing is for certain: If the Miami Heat want to beat the Knicks on Sunday, they need to be more efficient from three-point range.

In Friday’s loss against the Brooklyn Nets, Miami struggled from deep. They went seven-of-29 from beyond the arc. By comparison, the Nets went 15-of-44 from deep. That equaled out to a 34.1 three-point percentage.

The starting lineup was not efficient shooting the three ball. Duncan Robinson was the most productive for Miami. He went two-of-six from beyond the arc, finishing with eight points on the evening.

Interestingly enough, the bench did a bit better with their opportunities. James Johnson went two-of-two from beyond the arc and finished with six points in 12 minutes of play. Goran Dragic had a rough evening, going two-of-seven from deep.

The numbers bode well for Miami Heat

The three-point shot is undoubtedly the bread and butter of Miami’s offense. They are second in the league in three-point conversion percentage. Shooting at a 37.6 % rate, that puts them only second to Utah.  Over their last three games, they have been pretty consistent with the shot, shooting at a 36.9% clip.

New York is last in the entire NBA in opponent three-point field goal percentage. Their opponents have been converting at a 38.8% rate.  Things haven’t been much better for them over the past three games. They have been susceptible from long range, allowing opponents to convert on 43.6% of their tries. This is great news for Miami, and should allow for plenty of good looks for the shooters.

If Miami wants to beat New York on Sunday, getting more production from the starting lineup is crucial for a victory. This team plays much better when everyone contributes.  Miami needs to make sure they convert from beyond the arc, and put behind the poor performance in Brooklyn. If they can do that, a win is certainly in their future.

Winslow, Butler Practice for Miami Heat, Will Travel

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For all their success this year, the Miami Heat have yet to accomplish one important goal . . . fielding a healthy roster.  The Heat came into the season missing their newly signed superstar, Jimmy Butler, due to the birth of his first child.  And there were the self-inflicted setbacks, most notably from high-paid reserves Dion Waiters and James Johnson.

But most concerning has been the rash of injuries that has plagued the Heat’s back court rotation of Justise Winslow and Goran Dragic.  The injuries to both of Miami’s point guards has led to an increased burden on Butler and a “playoff-style” rotation of 8 or 9 players that has seemingly shown in weary legs at the end of road games and back to back scenarios.  Even with Dragic’s recent return and stellar play, the shortened rotation has still been in place thanks to the uneven play of forwards Kelly Olynyk and Chris Silva.

Reinforcements, however, look to be on the way with a breakout game from Johnson Sunday night against the Blazers.  Johnson’s size, playmaking ability and defense were on display for the first time in months as he finally received the nod from Coach Erik Spoelstra with Butler taking the night off.  “We stay ready around here,” replied Johnson when asked how he was able to shake off the rust of weeks on the bench to impact the game in such a fashion.

And it would seem that the return of Winslow may be on the horizon as he was upgraded to questionable on Sunday night, even though he didn’t play.  Monday Winslow was seen swimming with dolphins and teammate Bam Adebayo and Tuesday Spoelstra told media that he practiced with the team and was travelling to Indiana for Wednesday’s game against the Pacers, a positive sign.

Butler practiced with the team as well, which is a good signal that he will be available as well on Wednesday night.  So a fully healthy Heat squad is finally a real possibility in the coming days which should be a welcome sign to Spoelstra and his staff, as well as present new rotation challenges.  But after weeks of riding an 8-man rotation, those are great challenges to have.

Attrition may Have Uncovered Potent Lineup for Heat

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A potent lineup for the Heat may have revealed itself.

The Miami Heat have somehow managed to maintain course despite crucial injuries to Justise Winslow and Goran Dragic.

 

Miami has started to show some vulnerability, as evidenced by their first truly bad loss of the year at Memphis.

Jimmy Butler needs a break.

However the team once again found enough gas Wednesday to end Philadelphia’s undefeated run at home.  The common denominators for most Heat lineups lately have been Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Kendrick Nunn.  That trio has been in the top three lineups for Miami in terms of minutes per game, with Duncan Robinson and Meyers Leonard rounding things out.

Switching to Airplane Mode

One intriguing combination has been to bring in Derrick Jones Jr. for Meyers Leonard early and late.  Leonard typically opens each half but has not been utilized much, if at all down the stretch.  Jones, Jr. has been seeing a huge increase in minutes recently due to several factors, including the razor thin rotation Erik Spoelstra has to work with.  That faith has been rewarded as Jones continues to carve out a more significant role.  Over the last seven games, DJJ is averaging nearly 30 minutes per game and is starting to feel it from downtown.  He is 6-for-13 in his last four games and has scored in double figures three times in that span, while his defense has also made a huge impact.

 

The lineup featuring Butler/Jones, Jr./Adebayo/Robinson/Nunn has been used in just three games going into Wednesday.  Yet in that limited sample the numbers have been encouraging and perhaps worth a look.  Rebounding is a legitimate concern without a second traditional big however, time will tell how the scales balance in that aspect.

 

Butler has been all that Heat fans could have hoped for but is exerting a ton out there. He struggled in his latest return to Philadelphia and is logging a Thibodeau-ian amount of minutes lately.  Butler is playing almost 39 minutes per contest in December which is nearly six minutes more than his career average. His 26.3 usage rate this season would be the second highest total of his career if maintained.

While DJJ has been a key cog in the wheel, the emergence of Adebayo is what has held things together.  The reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week has continued to carry the load on both ends.  Adebayo is the anchor, not only on defense but from the high post where his skill set shines.  Bam is averaging 18/11/5  in December and his ability to finish on the pick-and-roll, or run things from the top, has kept defenses off balance.

Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson have been inconsistent but when they are on, they give this group the scoring from the perimeter it needs.  Nunn erupted for 26 points at Philadelphia and has hit half his three-point attempts on this road trip. If he can start making the easy plays and distribute the ball, expect another nice progression from the rookie.  Meanwhile, Robinson has been feast-or-famine, but when he’s eating the whole offense changes.  He has become a comfortable second option on the perimeter when the initial action doesn’t hit, while doing just enough on defense.  Robinson is shooting over 47% from deep this month and is getting almost six minutes more per game.

The lineup is shooting 59.6% overall and 52% from deep, while averaging a 3.6 assist-to-turnover ratio.  On the opposite end they are holding opponents to just 40% shooting, including 26.5% from beyond the arc.  Conversely, they are 6.5 points better overall than the opponent so far.  Perhaps that is why they were the “Five on the Floor” to close the game out in Philadelphia.

When Dragic (and Winslow?) return, it will likely shake up the backcourt rotation once again.

For now, we may be seeing this group again when it counts.

Goran Dragic provides spark in nailbiting victory

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Sunday’s action on the hardwood was exciting to the very end. The Miami Heat beat the Brooklyn Nets by a 109-106 score. It seemed like every starter contributed, and that was great to see. This season in particular, Miami has been all about balance in terms of scoring and that was evident on Sunday. And they once again got a major impact off the bench from Goran Dragic.

Dragic provides spark for Miami Heat

Dragic contributed 24 points, six assists, and two rebounds in 31 minutes of play. His 24 points were the most since he scored 25 on November 7 against the Phoenix Suns. This was another case of a player stepping up and helping Miami get the job done. He went three-of-six from behind the three-point line. He also chipped in three free throws.

Sunday night he was definitely looking for his shot, going nine-of-18 from the field. His 18 shot attempts were his most to this point in the season. If the Miami Heat can get him going on a consistent basis, that’s just another weapon they have in their arsenal.  Miami’s versatility this season has allowed Dragic to seamlessly transition from starter to sixth man. That’s the benefit of having depth on the roster. The rookies are playing so well that Miami can mix and match their lineups. For Miami, it’s a nice luxury to have.

With games against the Toronto raptors and Boston Celtics coming up, the Miami Heat need to be firing on all cylinders.  Dragic has been a valuable piece to their success so far. Playing well and with efficiency will be key for both the Heat and Dragic and it will be interesting to see how they do over these next couple of games. These will be two very difficult road tests and will pit Miami against two of the best in the Eastern Conference.

Bam, Heat hold off Pistons in matchup of undermanned

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At least through three quarters, the Miami Heat did what you should do to weary, groggy teams.

And the Detroit Pistons, in the state they arrived Tuesday, were that. Without Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose, their star and resurgent sixth man. Groggy after a flight that arrived at 5:30am.

While the 117-108 victory, which was supremely sloppy down the stretch, may not seem like much, this was the type of game the Heat has found a way to lose the past couple of seasons, especially when they were shorthanded themselves. On this night, however, without Tyler Herro, Derrick Jones Jr. and James Johnson — and playing three G-League players regularly — they dominated Detroit at the start and that was enough to survive. While the Pistons pulled closer late, even with Andre Drummond fouling out, it never felt as if the Heat lost control, especially as Jimmy Butler (20 points) finally started looking to score.

The pacesetters? The veterans. Goran Dragic entered the NBA in the top 5 in bench scoring, and continued his comfortable rhythm with his eighth double-digit performance (18 points) in 10 outings. Butler, as he’s done all but three times this season, worked his way into the game offensively, setting tempo and finding shooters, with 13 of Miami’s 34 assists. And Miami’s young vet, Bam Adebayo, who had 18 points and 14 rebounds, flashed his shooting touch with a 17-foot jumper and a nifty hook, before fouling out.

That, plus at least three three-pointers apiece from Duncan Robinson and the recently-struggling Kendrick Nunn and Kelly Olynyk, was sufficient. All 10 Heat players scored, including two-way guard Daryl Macon (flown in as a reinforcement) and Mr. 305 Udonis Haslem, who got the loudest ovation when he entered, chewing on his mouthpiece.

Cleveland is next, part of a stretch that should see the Heat soar to 11-3, provided they close better than they did Tuesday night.

(Cover photo by Alejandro Villegas)

Tweets of the night: