Mateo’s Hoop Diary: Heat vanquish the Nets in the first game of the miniseries

It was easy work for the Heat as they figured out the tanking, visiting Nets by the second quarter, and earning their 19th win at Kaseya Center. The offense scored 125.3 points per 100 possessions, good enough for the 79th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass.

Danny Wolf gave the Heat fits in early, cutting, shooting and driving, yet the hosts finished the first period ahead by six thanks to Bam Adebayo carrying them with his rim pressure. 

Tyler Herro then took over for a stretch, piercing the lane thrice, plus Andrew Wiggins hit the fast lane in transition for two baskets, and Jaime Jaquez Jr. kept getting to the body and nailed two triples. 

The crew had a 15-point edge at intermission, having made a dent in transition and with second-chance opportunities. They subsequently were sloppy in the third quarter, committing avoidable turnovers and guarding in third gear, but the Nets could never get within striking distance, in part because Herro had a quick burst at the end of it. 

The fourth quarter was a formality as Simone Fontecchio got plenty of burn, making multiple 3-pointers and a few freebies. Adebayo stayed in the game for a bit to ensure the Nets wouldn’t make a comeback and checked out with fewer than four minutes left. 

The Heat won 124-98, and they had six double-figure scorers log between 11 and 23 points.

Takeaways: 

• Not much can be taken away from this victory, like when a fighter cruises to an easy win against a piece of meat. The Heat will play them again Thursday, giving them a chance to bolster their record, but the public will learn more in Friday’s matchup with the surging Charlotte Hornets, who have an 18-6 record since Jan. 10.

• Adebayo being in kill-mode early set the mood for the team, yet it took the defense a bit longer to catch up despite their blocks and steals. He even had five steals and a denial in the first half. Things would be different for the Heat this season if he were that player full-time, and maybe he can be. 

• The big front court featuring Adebayo and Kel’el Ware got some more time in the first half and in the fourth, yet it will take more than short stretches against a basement team for coach Erik Spoelstra to trust the lineup. They still need some fine-tuning, working with the other three to guard, but the lineups’ intensity on the glass is an edge the Heat needs. And of course, all of their minutes didn’t come together, but they combined for 11 steals. 

• Fouling on jump shooters is a league-wide problem, but it doesn’t make it any less embarrassing and inexcusable for the Heat to keep making them if they are serious about doing things this season. It happened thrice in the second quarter, including two behind the arc. The team that bites on fewer fakes, and doesn’t commit cheap fouls and unnecessarily sags off the 3-point line can easily save an extra 10 points per game.    

• Herro has never been scared to talk but this was his second straight game getting a technical foul. On Feb. 28, he had words with Kevin Durant, and on Tuesday it was with Noah Clowney, presumably after he stepped over Pelle Larsson after a blocking foul was called.