One of the Miami Heat’s biggest takeaways after five games is not only their new up-tempo style, but how quickly they have jelled through the first five games of the season.
Acquired in July in a three-team trade, guard Norman Powell has been an essential part of their surge. You could go a step further in saying he’s been their best offensive player, even though he’s missed the last two games with a groin strain.
During an appearance on Prime Video this week, Powell, 32, still isn’t considering himself as a player who’s respected enough against his peers across the league.
“I think so,” he said when asked if he thought he was underrated. “I think the roles that I’ve had the players that I’ve played with, you’re on championship teams and they have already built their franchise player. So now you’re coming in to help them win. So the promotion is on those guys and things you’re doing kind of flies under the radar, even though you’re having a great season and you’re having great games.
“I could have 20 (points) and eight (rebounds), but you’re with [James Harden], [Russell Westbrook], and [Kawhi Leonard] and [Paul George]. And no matter how good your games are, they’re promoting them, so you’re kind of flying under the radar. But I think the last 2-3 years, I’ve been able to have my opportunity and it’s shown.”
Norman Powell’s presence changes complexion of Heat offense:
In three games, Powell’s averaging 24.0 points on 47.7 percent shooting and 50.0 percent from 3-point range, in addition to 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals.
It’s safe to say he’s been a breath of fresh air for an offense missing one of their best scorers in Tyler Herro, an All-Star last year. So far, the 6-foot-4 guard has changed the calculus of how teams have been able to defend the Heat in the halfcourt and in transition.
Whether it’s flying off pin-downs or spotting up in transition, everything Powell’s done has come within the flow of the offense. He takes what the defense gives him and attracts plenty of gravity, which can be leveraged in myriad ways.
Miami missed him in the second half of Thursday’s six-point loss in San Antonio and will have another challenging back-to-back against the Los Angeles Lakers and Clippers, respectively, beginning on Sunday.
***
To check out our other content, click here.
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Twitter/X here!
Follow Hot Hot Hoops on Instagram here!
Subscribe to our YouTube channel here!
- Heat escape with 136-131 win over Trail Blazers behind Nikola Jovic’s career night
- NBA GAMETHREAD: Portland Trail Blazers (5-3) @ Miami HEAT (5-4)
- Heat must weather storm in this area amid Bam Adebayo’s absence
- Heat officially announce return of ‘Vice Nights’ uniforms
- GAME PREVIEW: Heat host Blazers on the second night of back-to-back
- Heat earn the bounce back win at home, beat Hornets 126-108
- NBA CUP GAMETHREAD: Charlotte Hornets (3-5) @ Miami HEAT (4-4)
If Powell is still playing like he is by Christmas, give him a present (a 3 year extension).
P.S. How about them Dodgers. Last 2 games were unbelievable!
trade Herro
Too early. But if its for Giannis, yes pls.
Herro is innocent until proven guilty.
He needs to commit to being the best possible PG he can be, since we already have a SG named Powell.
If he is able to mesh with the Heat’s new faster paced offense and defense as a playmaking PG and does well (e.g., 20 ppg, 5 rpg, 8 apg) 36%+ 3pt and acceptable defense in a team scheme) I would support a contract extension of no more than $40M, preferably less ($38M has a nice team friendly ring to it).
If he isn’t able to make the adjustment, (on both offense and defense) he should be traded before the February deadline, preferably for comparable veteran talent (e.g., DeJounte Murray) or younger players and picks.
I say give Herro a chance. Let’s see how well he fits with our different personnel from last year. But, the problem is we aren’t honest in our evaluations, as we keep hoping some players will play better and results will be better than they are. It can be harsh and unpleasant to be critical, but then at the same time we wonder why we stay mediocre when we have some really good players.
We now know that we brought in a very good player in Powell, and with Bam, Mitchell, Wiggins, Dru, Jaime, and Simone, we have a decent, competitive core. I still believe that Ware is a useful player, in several ways, whether he continues to develop a lot or only a little. He already has a skillset no one else on this team has, with his rim protection and rebounding.
Ideally, this team would be better off with another big man, and another Wiggins type, a two wayer. If we somehow got those two players we would be a better team than we are, a team that I believe could go deep into the playoffs. You could see the deficiency in the Spurs game as we just didn’t have enough options.
But, we also have a couple of players that may be better off and maybe flourish on other teams, but don’t fit as well on ours. We are already pretty well set at guard, and still have extra players there, even without Rozier, in Kaspar and Pelle. As for Ty, who is a good player, it might be that we would be better off if we received a player more aligned to our needs. And his contract situation is an issue because it will limit our options. We have to be realistic in these situations. So, let’s see how Ty does as his return is imminent. But, we do have to care more about winning more than anything else.
herro is not a pg youve said this numerous times,hes a scorer his passing is erratic when he does pass.trade him with the arrivlal of norm.same type player but norms the better all round player.how bout naz reid
I’d love Naz Reid. In my new way of evaluating players, he’s high on the power/strength spectrum, but only a B player on the finesse axis. Ty, for example, is an A player on finesse, but a C at best in the power/strength department. The best players are high ability in both ways. So, to me Reid is the overall equivalent to maybe even better player, even though he may not be valued as highly. Furthermore, while we have something of a surplus and redundancy at guard positions, we have no one as powerful as Naz Reid. And we need a burly, rough, physical big like that to play bully ball with certain teams.
Sure glad we got him. Rather amazing trade, Riley magic. He’s the closest thing we have to a closer. He is our number one option.
Bottom line – he’s not underrated here!
Worry bout your game, your team’s performance. underrated, overrated… they’re fans perception, sport’s construct of people’s opinion and a lot of times doesn’t really matter and just affects you once you let it get to your head. Need to drown out unnecessary noise and focus on the goal. And of course get healthy.
What he said.