4. Miami Heat (41-24)
Grade: A+
The Miami Heat have been one of the pleasant surprises of the entire league this season. Currently sitting as the 4th seed with a record of 41-24, there aren’t many people who expected them to be in this position. With the addition of Jimmy Butler, nobody knew how he would fair due to his experiences with his prior teams but he’s been a solid leader and the team seems to be fairing well in his first season.
While Jimmy Butler is a talented player and one of the best at his position, he isn’t the only one responsible for their successful season up to this point. The revelations of Kendrick Nunn (an undrafted second-year player, who is qualified as a rookie), Duncan Robinson (an undrafted second-year player) and Tyler Herro (2019 first-round draft pick) have been significant and one of the main reasons the Heat are one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the entire league.
Bam Adebayo has been one of the most improved players in the league, nearly doubling his points average from last year. He’s seen a spike in rebounds and most impressively, has become one of the best passing bigs in the league, averaging five assists per game. Goran Dragic has transitioned to the bench and flourished in his new role.
Nunn, Robinson, Herro, and Adebayo are all young players who are integral pieces of who is contributing in a big way. Adebayo is the most experienced player out of the four and he is a third-year player. They are coached by one of the best coaches in the league in Erik Spoelstra. There were doubts about him being a good coach after LeBron James left, even after two championships, but all that doubt should be erased. The only team in the East who are unbeaten against the Milwaukee Bucks this season, they’ve overachieved this season and the future is bright down in South Beach.