Like we delved into ahead of the Miami Heat’s first-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, this one was a very good litmus test for Heat first-round rookie Kel’el Ware.
The 7-foot big had a successful regular season, but right away, the rookie was going to get a taste of his first postseason against one of the best frontcourt duos in the NBA in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. That dynamic duo–in addition its star-studded backcourt in Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland–helped lead Cleveland to one of its best seasons in franchise history.
Game 1 wasn’t kindest to the Heat’s rookie, getting played off the floor in 20 minutes–nearly three months after struggling mightily in 30 minutes in their Jan. 29 meeting against Cleveland, the only other game Ware has played against them this season.
On Saturday, Ware finished with two points, two blocks, three rebounds and two assists. He did not record his first rebound until 10:09 left in the third quarter with his first basket coming on a putback slam at the 7:08 mark
Both Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro opined about the rookie’s first struggles in his first career postseason game on Monday–with both believing he will bounce back.
“He has to go through it,” Adebayo said on the rookie, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “He’s young, but the thing about it is we know he’ll bounce back. He’s one of those rookies who retains a lot of information very well and we need him. So from that standpoint, understanding we get two days to lock in and he gets to refocus and he’s already got that first game out of the way. Now we go into this game Wednesday with a different mindset.”“Kel’el being in that environment, going through his very first playoff game, it probably surprised him a little bit,” Herro said. “But he’ll be better and he’ll continue to improve and figure out what works in each series. Obviously, we need him big time if we’re going to compete in this series.”
It’s a small sample, but the Heat has been outscored by 27.7 points per 100 possessions with Ware on the floor against the Cavaliers in two games. Single game plus-minus is one the flukiest stats in sports, but Ware’s lack of physicality, body positioning and assertiveness has hurt in those two meetings.
The recently-turned 21-year-old will have to adjust to this seismic test. Miami’s point-of-attack defense–or lack thereof–didn’t do Ware and its backline any favors. Herro got hunted relentlessly; Highsmith’s perimeter defense fell way below his standard; Burks and Robinson’s impact defensively were negligible.
There was a lot of strain applied by Mitchell, Garland and Ty Jerome, who became the first guard trio in NBA History to score at least 27 points each in a playoff game. It wasn’t all Ware, but he also didn’t do himself any favors by looking like a deer in headlights.
“This is the life of a young player,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “You’re being fed through a fire hose and he’s important to what we do. He’ll get to work. That’s the thing I really respect about Kel’el. And the areas that he’s gotten a lot better, we’re going to need in this series.”
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Yeah, I know a lot of people disagree, but I think seeing guys like Ware and Mitchell get exposed to playoff intensity is worth the loss of draft capital.
I’ve been watching the Blazers tank for draft picks for years, and all they’re doing is teaching talented young guys how to half-ass their way through the season. Even compared to other playoffs games, the speed of the Cleveland/Miami game jumped off the screen. If the young guys are learning how to play at that speed, I think it’s a valuable investment in the future of the team.
Exactly! They have to get their feet wet re: the intensity and focus required to be successful in the playoffs. It’s a whole different animal. The sooner they experience the reality of it, the sooner they can focus their efforts on preparing themselves mentally, physically and emotionally to be successful in the future. I noticed Edey got his butt handed him tonight by OKC again. It’s a valuable process they all must experience. You need to lose in order to learn what it takes to win (you need to learn how to crawl before you learn to walk).
the stakes are higher the intensity picks up but its still basketball sun.if u have bball instincts youll be fine.what separates the great players from good players lots times is between their ears.aka joker luka magic quitter.just smart friggin players
Can’t get your feet wet if they don’t play you. Sitting on the sidelines isn’t the same.
agree waited to long to integrate ware in offense.should have been from game 1 work the kinks out in reg season,now the kid looks lost out there at times
Nope. At the beginning, he looked exactly like he did in this game – lost. Day 1 would have been a mistake as much as you push the idea. Game 15-20 would’ve been better. Game 40 was too long to do it
jovic and hh are not world beaters.both below avg players,wares ceiling very high needs pt
I agree. But don’t put too much pressure or too high expectations on him. He’s young and centers, more than any other position, require years to mature, mentally and physically. Dude just turned 21 three days ago. He doesn’t even have his “man strength” yet.
Ware is going to be a very good center for years to come. However, it’s not going to happen overnight. To put things in perspective:
Like SM, I strongly believe Ware will be one of the best centers in the league for years to come. He was a great pick at 15. Jury is still out on the other 2, but I see them as average potential players. Maybe we just rate players differently. To me, an average player is a player who can be your number 8-9 in the rotation and stick around the league 8-10 years. I think both are capable of that, Jovic perhaps more than Jaquez.
I see Jovic as a similar player then Avdija.. He is an absolute monster now, after 5 years in the league.
I’d be very happy if that turned out to be true. (As long as he’s still on the team)
Next season will be “make or break” years for Jaquez, Jovic, Larsson, Johnson and G Leaguers. They either challenge for solid rotation spots or they will be gone via trade or contract expirations.
yeah, I think Mitchell and Ware will be better next regular season after experiencing playoff intensity
Starting the season confident of their rotation roles should also help… assuming Riley really wants to keep Mitchell/doesn’t try to “lowball” him.
Ja welcome to south beach
Ware has to go through this process so he can learn, first hand, what his job entails and what he has to work on to be better in the future. It’s better for him to gain this valuable experience now rather than missing the playoffs entirely and having to go through it a year from now.
No one expected Miami to win this series. Therefore, we must look at what the benefit of playoff experience does for the players Miami plans to keep while clarifying which players the team needs to move on from (the sooner the better).
Highsmith should be getting 15, max. He got 30. No Jovic or JJJ. I’m okay with the argument if you actually play those guys, including more than 19 minutes for Ware. But if they are going to play minimum contract Burks then WTF are we doing this for?
Game 2 is going to tell a lot.
burks shot 42.5 % on 3s.this year,
Burks is on a one year minimum and no guarantee he’s back. Don’t tell me we blew two picks to play this guy instead of a Jovic or JJJ while out the other side saying the young guys need the experience. Ok, play Pelle. Pretty much anyone not on a one year minimum. That comment is not controversial if we are here for the reasons the team says we’re here.
what does contract have to do with it.hes played ok and his d doesnt kill us.hes a journeyman vet who can shoot above average.jjj been a disaster this year.pelle brings d wouldnt mind him,jovic been out to long hes not the answer this year.
Contract has absolute everything to do with it if you are going to sell me on missing two picks to give the guys experience. There is like a 90% chance Burks isn’t even on the team next year. We want to resign Davion, so playing him makes sense. Since I know this will end up with a Duncan comment, well he is still under contract and you want to get value for him in a trade, so him playing also makes sense. Burks is fine for some minutes to see if he’s hot, but other than that, not.
After Jovic got hurt the team went on a 10 game losing streak. He was their 6th man. He too is under contract for next year, so play him a few minutes tonight to knock some rust off so he has a chance to be successful in front of the home crowd. To sit him until next year is pure negligence and flies in the face of their claims of getting experience.
im not conceding we are not good enough wonder boys gonna have to toughen up and play some d he gave up 64 pts.u could have put him out with mj prob still would have lost.this is on ty
The primary objective in the playoffs is to win using the best players you have available. The secondary objective is to give the players (especially those you intend to keep long-term, such as Ware) playoff experience.
Going forward after the playoffs, I think decisions need to be made regarding several players.
I can see several of the players listed above being gone (via expiring contracts, trades or free agency) after this season, by the February 2026 trade deadline and after the 2025-2026 season. Exactly who goes and who remains (and for how long) is yet to be determined. The jury is still out on several of the younger players (those on rookie contracts and G Leaguers).
It is still too early to speculate on which player(s) Miami may be interested in or able to attract. However, there are several rumors swirling around suggesting the Heat may trade for Durant, Antetokounmpo, Booker or some other star. There are also rumors that Miami may try to attract one of the free agents expected to hit the open market in 2026, such as Young, Luka, Irving, Fox and others.
Meanwhile, grab your popcorn, relax and enjoy whatever games we have left this season. There will be plenty of time to predict, postulate, presuppose, prophesize and prognosticate after the season is over.
GO HEAT!!!
Spo finds his 8 man rotation, and he will stick with it, despite its clear, that its 15 points short of Cavs team every game.
But there is no other option. You cant play JJJ against Cleveland bigs, if he doesn’t shoot 40 % from 3p line. He is not able to do that. Rosier is lost. Love is not available. Jovic didnt play for 2 months and he is usually need 5-10 games to get into rhythm.
Of course we can play them. We played JJJ last year against the Celtics who went on to win title. We can play Jovic as we need to know what he has in moments like this. Forget rust. Did you watch the team in game 1? Nobody was setting the world on fire. Play all the young guys if this is why we are here. I’m okay with doing that instead of wasting minutes on a one year vet minimum journeyman just to try and win a single game in the series. This is my opinion now that we are being told our young guys need this experience. Well if they say that then they should do it.
I m saying is that Spo will put the best team he could on the floor, and thats 8 man rotation which is playing lately. In game 1 and 2, and maybe game 3, thats makes sense. After that, if the result is 3:0, not really, so I would agree that young players should earn some time. But who?
Ware? For sure. JJJ, no in my opinion. He was bad this year. Jovic maybe. Pelle, yes.
So, Spo should maintain this rotation, give Ware more minutes, and maybe send Pelle and Jovic for 5-10 minutes on the floor. I believe we will see sooner or later something like that.
Good comment. The saying goes the role players play better at home. Well, they also have to get some playing time on the road so they’re not getting their feet wet for the first time at home. That is why I think game 2 should feature Jovic and Pelle for at least 10-15 mins.
Regarding JJJ, he has had a bad year, but he always plays hard, and the team might need some fresh legs. Maybe he gets in later on in the series. I would like to see all our first through third year players to get playing time since we are here.
I agree with all you said. We wont win this series, but good minutes from young player would be a great conversation topic over long, hot summer.
shorten rotation to the 8 that got us 6 game winning streak no time to experiement now,thats not how it works in playoffs.bench is shortened
Come on, Kel’el. We gave up a pick so you could go through this. Show us it wasn’t a terrible idea. 😉
u and 2qb same person
He’s a rookie. He isn’t the team’s savior. Give him a break. Chingao!
Who said savior? But 19 mins when they tell everyone we got here to get experience. Team talking out of both sides of their mouth right now playing one year vet minimum guy over a Pelle, Jovic or JJJ. Jmo
Come on, Kel’el. We gave up a pick so you could go through this. Show us it wasn’t a terrible idea. 😉
He’s a rookie. He isn’t the team’s savior. Give him a break. Chingao! What heat said.
rookie or vet dont givea crape hes in there,gotta be better than that game one pos performance.your 7 ft tall and your hanging around 3 pt line.out of position son get under the boards and get dirty.how bout some second chance pts ware.believe he had 3 rebounds last game smh.