Miami Heat – by Michael Saenz
Just a few weeks ago, I don’t think anyone could’ve predicted this sort of start from the Miami Heat. And while wins against the Grizzlies and back-to-back wins against the Hawks (without Trae Young, for context) to start the year couldn’t exactly be viewed as impressive in any way, you can’t simply shrug off an impressive come-from-behind win against the Bucks a couple of weeks ago and their most recent demolition of the Rockets with a grain of salt.
It’s not just that the Heat are winning against championship contenders, it’s how they’re doing it. The Heat beat the Bucks without Jimmy Butler and destroyed the Rockets – from the opening tip – without Justise Winslow or Derrick Jones Jr.
Against the Rockets, it was over before the first media timeout. The Heat raced out to a 46-14 first-quarter lead, and never looked back. Jimmy Butler and Kendrick Nunn held Russell Westbrook and James Harden to a combined 9-25 shooting from the field and 4-15 from 3-point range. Westbrook was held to 10 points and finished the game with a team-worst -46 plus/minus.
Six-months ago we labeled the Miami Heat vanilla, in cap purgatory, stuck on the treadmill of mediocrity and in a holding pattern until the summer of 2021. Now? A roster transformed that has the early makings of a top 4 team in the East.
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) November 3, 2019
The Heat’s 29-point domination over the Rockets was certainly this team’s coming out party of the year, and the national media is beginning to take notice. There’s still plenty of the season that needs to be played out, but the Heat has the look of a real homecourt contender in the Eastern Conference.