Tag Archive for: NBA

Breaking it Down: Nekias Duncan on Heat-Hawks II

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How is this happening?

How are the Miami Heat off to a 4-1 start with Jimmy Butler missing three games and playing passively on offense for most of the other two?

How are Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro doing this…. as rookies?

How is someone on a two-way contract, such as Chris Silva, contributing so much?

After the Heat’s latest win, this one 106-97 against the Hawks in Atlanta, Nekias Duncan (@NekiasNBA) does what he does: a comprehensive video breakdown on Twitter.

Duncan contributes to Five Reasons Sports Network from time to time, so look for more of his work here.

Still, this thread is worth your time, just like this Heat team:

 

 

 

Old Teammates Won’t Let Jimmy Butler Move On

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Jimmy Butler seems to be living his best life of late.

He got paid this offseason, and traded to the city where he wanted to play.

He is a new father — of a baby girl.

And he with a team and teammates he clearly likes.

But others in the NBA won’t let the man be.

Joel Embiid and Karl-Anthony Towns, two of the game’s elite bigs — and each problematic for his own reasons — got in a skirmish Wednesday in the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves.

These days, what isn’t settled in person spills over into social media.

So it did.

And Embiid, well, he can’t leave anything alone, except the Eastern Conference Finals. He and Butler were on good terms in Philadelphia last season as teammates — Butler roundly praised Embiid a month ago during Heat training camp.

Butler was never as glowing about Towns, with the fraying of that relationship playing into his desire to leave the Timberwolves — that set up his brief partnership with Embiid in Philadelphia. Embiid apparently knows the history. Quite well.

The “3rd stringers” is a reference to Butler, during his self-imposed sabbatical in Minnesota, supposedly teaming up with 3rd stringers in practice and routing the Wolves’ starters, including Towns, in practice. You’ll remember Woj giving Jimmy something akin to Paul Bunyan status for this.

So, with two of his ex’s squabbling, will Butler leave this alone?

The answer, naturally, is no.

Butler chimed in on Embiid’s Instagram post.

So this won’t be the last of it.

Butler will be asked, probably prior to Thursday’s Miami Heat game in Atlanta. And you can be sure, he’ll answer. It would be fun if he just buried both of them.

 

Heat Win Behind Stellar Night from Bucket Bros

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The Miami Heat rolled into Tuesday night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks with a 2-1 record. Coming off a rollercoaster weekend that had fans salivating at the thought of adding a top 15 player to a roster that had shown loads of grit and resolve, but lacked the reliability of a tried and true closer.

Enter Jimmy Butler. Back with the team after the birth of his daughter, Rylee (pronounced Riley . . . how’s that for culture?) Jimmy entered a locker room full of young players, confident in their roles and a couple of vets adjusting to theirs.

Butler’s impact was felt almost immediately as he showcased his offensive arsenal early. A measured drive to the rim, a catch and shoot 3, an and-one off balance runner in the lane . . . Butler was in his bag early scoring 12 points in the first quarter.

The second quarter, however, belonged to Tyler Herro. Apparently Herro was tired of all the Kendrick Nunn love and decided to enter into the Rookie of the Year conversation himself. Herro scored 19 in the 2nd, rediscovering the shooting stroke that dazzled fans in the preseason.

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young came into the game torching opposing defenses, but his night was short-lived after he was stripped in the lane by Justise Winslow and stepped down awkwardly with his right foot, twisting his ankle.

But even before the Hawks lost their superstar point guard, the Heat’s defense looked stout, outside of consistently losing track of big man John Collins. After Young’s exit, though, the Hawks offense turned anemic without a consistent shot creator on the floor all night. The Heat took full advantage, keeping the Hawks in the low 40’s in FG percentage.

The defensive triumvirate of Butler, Winslow and Bam Adebayo will be something to watch closely all year. With Coach Erik Spoelstra leaving either Butler or Winslow on the floor until late in the game to guard the perimeter. The Hawks promptly scored with ease and Butler was back in the game the next play. With Winslow leading the team in minutes on the young season, he undoubtedly welcomed the opportunity to share the defensive load.

Goran Dragic chipped in another great performance off the bench with 21 pts.  The pressure that Dragic puts on opposing second units is impressive. He has stated that Sixth Man of the Year is his personal goal and so far it seems well within reach.

After carrying an 18 point lead into the 4th quarter, things got tight late behind a full court press from the Hawks and half court traps.  The Heat were able to hang on (112-97) with the night ultimately belonging to the debut of Butler with 21 pts and a record setting effort from Herro.

Herro scored the most ever points off the bench by a Heat rookie with 29, the record was previously held by Michael Beasley with 28.

Adebayo finished with 17 pts and 10 rebs, securing his third double-double in 4 games. Nunn finished with 17 pts as well, continuing his hot scoring streak.

The Heat play next on Thursday night against these same Hawks with Young’s return to the lineup uncertain.

 

Erik Spoelstra and the officials, a love story

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Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra had himself quite the weekend.

Miami had back to back games over the weekend against the Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves. In both games, Spoelstra received attention for his antics criticizing poor officiating In crucial parts of the game. Saturday night against Milwaukee Heat center, Bam Adebayo was trapped in the corner by George Hill and Brook Lopez. Spoelstra was signaling timeout to the referees but wasn’t awarded one, this led to him running onto the court during the middle of a Giannis Antetokounmpo fast break and receiving a technical foul.  

The following night in Minnesota during the fourth quarter of a closely contested game the officials seemed to have missed a kicked ball violation on Karl Anthony-Towns. This led to an Andrew Wiggins three which ultimately sealed the game for the Timberwolves. Spoelstra was livid and individually pointed at each official during a timeout in which he appears to be yelling at them as well. 

Emotions were extremely high as both games over the weekend came down to key possessions late. Last season Spoelstra also reached a point where he was clearly frustrated with Nba officiating after a loss to the Golden State Warriors In mid-February. This year however It starts early as he has shown his frustration often with crucial calls down the stretch going in favor of the opposition. The Heat split the weekend series and find themselves at 2-1 facing Eastern Conference player of the week, Trae Young, and the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night at the American Airlines Arena. 

The Miami Heat ended the Five Reasons curse!

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Pat Riley, Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat may win another championship together someday.

But they will never accomplish anything quite like this.

Since Five Reasons Sports Network was born in 2018, we had 12 watch parties prior to Saturday evening. One didn’t count for our record — it was FC Barcelona against Real Madrid, and we don’t really have a horse in that fight. But the other 11 were Miami Heat, Miami Dolphins or Miami Hurricanes road games.

And we lost them all.

Every single one.

And some weren’t close. That included a Heat at Milwaukee Bucks game last season, when we gathered at Duffy’s in North Miami Beach.

So we expected the same Saturday at GQ’s Drafthouse a little further north, in Lauderhill in Broward County.

Top team in the East as the opponent.

Road game.

No Jimmy Butler — and a thin bench due to suspensions.

Then, a 21-point deficit.

So did we all just drink too much?

Or did our halftime giveaways — shirts and autographed cards — turn the tide?

Did this really happen?

Did the Heat… win? In overtime, no less?

Yeah, it happened.

It happened even with the Heat shooting free throws at an Andre Drummond clip in the last few minutes.

It happened even after Derrick Jones Jr. got hurt (groin) and Kendrick Nunn (great again) fouled out.

It happened even with me posting premature tweets about them winning.

It happened even with us all dressed horribly.

It happened, because Bam Adebayo and Justise Winslow were relentless on defense, and Goran Dragic and Kelly Olynyk were major contributors on offense.

And now can it happen again?

We have another watch party, Nov. 26 at Duffy’s in North Miami Beach for the game against the Rockets.

Yes, Harden and Westbrook. On the road.

But we’re on a winning streak.

And the Heat are different this season.

We just promise we won’t do this:

 

Twitter Thread: Nekias Duncan breaks down Heat’s opening win

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The Miami Heat Opened up the much anticipated 2019-2020 season Tuesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies.  Nekias Duncan (@NekiasNBA) of @miaheatbeat, Bleacher Report and Five Reasons Sports breaks down and provides commentary for some of the Heat’s best plays and sequences in the 120-101 victory.

 

Follow the thread below:

Follow the Five on the Floor and @5ReasonsSports podcast for South Florida’s the most in-depth Miami Heat coverage all year long.

New father Jimmy Butler likely out for Bucks

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Jimmy Butler’s official Miami Heat debut is still on hold.

Butler, who missed the season opener for undisclosed personal reasons — though the team hinted it was the birth of a child — was still in the hospital with the child and mother Friday and Erik Spoelstra said he probably won’t make the Heat’s road trip that starts in Milwaukee on Saturday.

(Butler could join the team in Minnesota to face his former team Sunday.)

Here’s Spoelstra on the happy news:

Also not with the Heat on Friday: Dion Waiters. He won’t make either part of this trip and will rejoin the team Tuesday at home. James Johnson (conditioning) is not traveling either.

So it appears that the Heat will start the same lineup they did in the season opener.

That’s Bam Adebayo, Meyers Leonard, Justise Winslow and rookies Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Herro.

Nunn had 24 in his debut, and he sounded Friday as if he expected it, saying it went about how he visualized.

Here’s the clip:

Make sure to join us at GQ’s Crafthouse in Lauderhill starting at 5pm, for a watch party.

Free food, and t-shirt giveaways.

We’re 0-11.

Jimmy being out doesn’t help that. But at least we’ll be drinking.

Get Used to Kendrick Nunn

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You’ll have to get used to Kendrick Nunn.

Maybe we’ve been hyping the wrong rookie.

Well, not entirely. Tyler Herro is 19. He will have much better nights than he did in Wednesday’s season opening 120-101 win for the Miami Heat against the Memphis Grizzlies, when he was often squeezed off his spots and tried to do much creating to compensate.

But it was his summer league backcourt mate, the one who has appeared polished in every game he’s played for Miami — Las Vegas to preseason to now the regular season — who shined the most.

Kendrick Nunn is 24 already. And the guard — snatched from Golden State on the last day of last season — matched his age with his scoring in his Miami Heat debut, a debut that came as a surprise starter. Not a substitute starter. That was Herro, in for Jimmy Butler, who missed the game with a personal issue (nothing to worry about). Nunn was supposed to start all along.

Think about that.

Nunn, who wasn’t drafted, who wasn’t valued enough by a thin Warriors team to be kept safe from poachers, who was an afterthought heading into the offseason, was given the starting job between Butler and Justise Winslow for the season opener at home. Ahead of Herro. Ahead of Dion Waiters, before Waiters’ complaining and IG stalking got him suspended.

Eric Reid, who has called 31 seasons of Heat basketball, tried to tell you on the Five on the Floor we posted just prior to the opener:

As Reid noted, this promotion wasn’t just about that 40-point game, mostly against Houston’s starters, in the Heat’s preseason finale. It was about the steady approach Nunn has shown for months now. His hesitation dribble is elite. He does not rush. He switches comfortably between both guard spots. He competes on defense. And he’s not afraid to pull up and launch when he sees some space.

The Heat have a long history of unearthing point guards. Anthony Carter, now on the staff, and Mike James had long NBA careers after no team really wanted either. But Nunn is a combo of the two. He shoots much better than Carter. And he’s more versatile and polished than James.

Also, the attitude.

Listen here:

 

 

Charles Barkley loves Dwyane, Herro & Heat?

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What’s happening in the sports media world tonight?

Dwyane Wade told us on Twitter that he got some good news Monday. But no one could have anticipated this.

Joining forces with Charles Barkley on TNT?

Is everyone forgetting the way that Barkley has treated Dwyane Wade over the years, to the point that even Wade’s buddy (LeBron James) and wife (Gabrielle Union) had to step in and talk back?

I mean, just click on this history of the Barkley/Wade feud.

And that feud has gone beyond Wade. Barkley has never ceased taking shots at the Miami Heat. He didn’t think James should have signed with them. Then he said James should go back to Cleveland. Then he said the Cavaliers title meant more than the Heat title.

And on and on and on.

Now, suddenly, Barkley and Wade are teammates.

And of course, Shaquille O’Neal — whose relationship with Wade has been hot and cold since O’Neal forced his way out of Miami in 2008 — is Wade’s teammate again now too.

But now, what’s gotten into Barkley? He’s not just making jokes at Shaq’s expense in favor of Wade — saying that Wade carried Shaq to the 2006 title, but he’s praising Wade’s heir apparent as the Heat’s featured 2-guard.

But here’s the thing: Barkley didn’t just start liking Herro. The Basketball Hall of Famer is also part of Turner’s NCAA Tournament coverage, on which he is forced to fake it most of the time. He was, however, high on Herro prior to Miami drafting the Kentucky freshman. Very high.

Look:

Herro calls it drip.

But whatever.

Barkley liking the Heat now is such a stunner that it will take some getting used to. With Wade classing up Turner, and Paul Pierce still polluting ESPN’s studio shows with his terrible (sorry Charles) takes, we know where we will turn first for NBA analysis this season.

 

Miami Heat suspend Dion Waiters before zero tolerance season

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“I let the culture slip.”

With those words — spoken after last season by Miami Heat president Pat Riley — you knew the next season would be different. Riley felt burned after he gave much-criticized lucrative long-term contracts to non-stars in 2016 and 2017 and then those players returned the reward by slacking on their conditioning.

And before it even begins, this season is different.

First, Riley banished James Johnson from training camp not for failing the conditioning test — he passed — but for failing to meet Riley’s special weight requirement.

Now, Dion Waiters, who had weight issues last season but got himself in better shape this offseason, has been told he isn’t “in Heat shape” by Erik Spoelstra (we posted that video), and has been steered toward a bench role as Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro have gotten preseason starts.

And he’s been openly unhappy about it.

So now he’s been suspended for one game.

Notice the language.

“Number of unacceptable incidents.”

Remember Waiters telling Ira Winderman that he wasn’t cool with coming off the bench, even after he flourished in that role against Charlotte in the third preseason game?

Remember this from Spoelstra about what he wants from Waiters, which Waiters then somewhat contradicted right after?

Here was Waiters:

There was some speculation that Waiters was away from the team for three days this week after Charlotte game because of a disciplinary action, though my sources did confirm an actual personal issue unrelated to his unhappiness.

Even so, it doesn’t seem to be stopping.

Here are some tweets that tell the story:

 

Instagram always remembers, and this doesn’t appear that it is going away anytime soon. Unless Waiters ends up elsewhere:

We know how this goes.

Just ask Hassan Whiteside. In Portland.