This is our GAMETHREAD: Chat live about the game here!
Injury Report:
Milwaukee Bucks:
- Kevin Porter Jr. (knee) — AVAILABLE
- Bobby Portis (back) — AVAILABLE
- Jericho Sims (patella) — AVAILABLE
- Alex Antetokounmpo (G-League) — OUT
Miami Heat:
- Andrew Wiggins (toe) — OUT
- Norman Powell (groin) — OUT
- Tyler Herro (quad) — OUT
- Nikola Jovic (back) — OUT
- Kel’el Ware (shoulder) — AVAILABLE
- Jahmir Young (G-League) — OUT
- Terry Rozier (not with team) — OUT
Starting 5:
Milwaukee Bucks:
- Ryan Rollins, G
- A.J. Green, G
- Ousmane Dieng, F
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, F
- Myles Turner, C
Miami Heat:
- Davion Mitchell, G
- Kasparas Jakucionis, G
- Pelle Larsson, F
- Bam Adebayo, F
- Kel’el Ware C
Broadcast Info:
- Tipoff: 7:30 PM EST
- TV: FanDuel Sports Network Sun (Eric Reid & John Crotty)
- Radio: AM 560 Sports WQAM & The HEAT Radio Network (Jason Jackson)
- Spanish Radio: WAQI 710 AM & The HEAT Spanish Radio Network (José Pañeda)
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Closing lineup was the 5 best defensive players active tonight – Davion/Kasparas/Pelle/Jaquez/Bam. They were missing 3 starters tonight (Powell, Herro, Wiggins). Together that’s the 8 man playoff rotation with Ware as 9th man, Dru Smith 10th, Gardner 11th. They just need to find the right combinations in those top 8 and keep Ware engaged, with Jovic out he is a key to the team’s success
I remember some folks sayin something about the number of “non-athletic” players the Heat had on the roster. I remember saying athleticism is just one factor to consider when selecting a player. IQ, work ethic, unselfishness, grit/toughness, overall skills, ability to mesh with the other players, baggage (or lack of baggage), etc. After watching Larsson and Jakučionis bail the team out tonight. I stand my my earlier statement. One is a rookie and the other is a second year/second round pick. Both are on rookie scale contracts and make $5.6M combined.
Personally, I could GAF what the player looks like, where he’s from, what religion he follows (if any) “what’s his name or who’s his daddy” (Zombies, 1968). I’m looking to see if he has the potential to be a very good basketball player and if his personality and work ethic fit Miami’s culture.
Agree in part but the Heat team from a few years ago desperately needed to get more athletic around Jimmy/Bam/Herro, that was one reason they traded Lowry for Rozier.
Over the past two years they’ve done that – added Ware, Larsson, Jakucionas, Wiggins, Mitchell, Powell. This has changed how the team plays and also made their average age younger. Wiggins in particular has given them a profile of a big athletic wing (7′ wingspan, 8’11” standing reach) that is hard to find. Mitchell gives them an elite POA defender at PG that they were also missing recently. Larsson is very athletic at wing. Jakucionias looks like he lacks burst/explosiveness but is also just 19, and his quick feet and strength on defense stands out. He’s going to be a special player.
We, and others, have banged our collective heads against the wall for a long time arguing these points. Judge players on quality and performance and nothing else. Don’t rush to judgment on young players if they have a bad game, bad month, bad season. We are now seeing how this rebuild on the fly is paying dividends. While it is fair to be upset about the Jovic contract, I am not yet ready to entirely give up on the player. If I’m wrong, so be it. But I still see potential there. Whether he works to develop and realize that potential, I have no idea.
Exactly. I can see him following the JJJs path.
Credit where credit is due. Pelle and Kas were both great picks by the Heat, and in case some of you haven’t noticed, both of them are, um, uh,
foreigners. Lol!
Yes, and they both belong.
so are greeek wemby jokic luka as a69 year old hhher who would have thought that
I think what we are referring to are the Whiteside comments.
Stereotyping and bias go both ways. I would prefer to talk about how players perform rather than their gene pools.
I guarantee you there are several teams that would trade for Jaquez, Larsson and Jakucionis in a New York minute if they could. Even Fontecchio has a role when he’s hot and you need a bucket getter. He’s not the best defender, but he gives you everything he has.
The big disappointment is Jovic. His self-confidence is in the toilet. I guarantee you 2-3 weeks of regular playing time in G League and therapy sessions with a good sports psychologist would do him wonders. He’ll have all summer to get his s*** together before the extension kicks in. Like Jaquez, Larsson and Jakucionis, he needs to make a breakthrough to begin playing up to his potential.
Pelle’s breakout game was tonight, he had some huge shots down the stretch to win the game, and Kasparas is only a matter of time, he is top 10 in a loaded 2025 draft. Both picked outside the lottery but in talent they are lottery picks. Heat have added so much talent to this team over the last two drafts and about to have two more picks in the best draft class in years
I am a great admirer of both of those young men.
Its all about confidence. Bam reached a new level of confidence on Tuesday. Pelle and Kasparas acquired a little more confidence tonight. It’s a process. Confidence is what separates the men from the boys. Confidence and performance go hand in hand. They feed on each other.
That is 99% of Jovic’s problem. He hasn’t come to terms with what his role should be and what his ceiling can be. He wants to be a playmaking finesse point forward and the team wants/needs him to be a physically assertive power forward (with an emphasis on “power”). At 6’10” and 240 lbs, he needs to play to his size. He needs to be more Pao Gasol and less Dirk Nowitzki.
hhhers rollins or portis who u taking
Both good. You know I always prefer younger players, so Rollins.
what is our biggest need besides a stud pg which rollins isnt a backup what
I don’t agree with you that we need a pg. I believe strongest need is a power player.
bobby portis would be perfect no?
Yes, not taking into account the age or salary, Portis would be a better fit on this team right now.
Rollins 16.6pts/5.5ast/4.7reb, 40.5% 3FG on 6 attempts per game, +6.5 on/off
Portis 13.3pts/6.5reb/1.5ast, 46% 3FG on 4.3 attempts per game, -4.3 on/off
Rollins is a legit starting two-way guard, Portis is a bench big who is a great shooter and culture guy/fan favorite. Not comparable players at all.
Miami has a very good guard rotation (Kasparas already turning into one of the best backup PGs in the league, and Dru Smith has to be the best third string PG in the league) but Rollins would be #2 in the Heat PG rotation.
Biggest Heat need right now is a backup big who can hold up defensively when Bam is off the court. That is not Portis’ game. The Bucks are worse on defense when he’s on the court (120.6 on vs 117.4 off), he’s out there for his shooting
That’s easy. Portis. Perfect third big with Ware and Bam.
96 minutes divided by 3 (example)
Congrats to the Heat, showed their mettle, very impressive win tonight. I’m happy for the players, especially Pelle as he really showed out down the stretch. Kaspar and Bam also deserve a lot of credit.
Pelle looking like an all time steal. Great scouting by the FO. Don’t know what his upside will be, but good in all phases of the game.
panthers win more impressive beat a good team w/o barky marchy benny
usually take wife out sat night this orlando game might make it a short dinner out
Pelle 28/6/6, going to start getting national buzz soon. He’s a legit starting 3
Strange game, inexplicable rotations from Doc unless the goal was to lose the game (which it might be). Giannis almost out there just to get his numbers
The next ten games or so will almost all be games that both teams are motivated and have incentive to win.,
You can question rotations the same way you could question Spo’s rotations in this game. But you don’t play your superstar 31 minutes trying to lose.
They don’t have a choice w Giannis, they do whatever he says. When he wants to play he plays and when he needs a sub he signals to the bench to come out. All of their decisions as a team/front office are built around what he wants because they want to keep him as long as possible. This game it looked like he was just going through the motions out there.
On Spo vs Doc’s rotations, Spo is trying to win, not sure Doc/the Bucks are. Spo was down 3 starters this game while Doc had a full rotation. Bucks are the 2nd best 3PT shooting team in the league, they average almost 15 3PM per game on 38 attempts. Tonight they were 9-26 because Rollins and Green were not starting but the 8th and 9th off the bench. Not complaining – a win is a win – but not a serious effort from the Bucks and that’s coaching/front office decisions
Not a serious effort from the Bucks? Lol. Certainly not fact, just opinion like anyone else. They came back from 15 to close within 2. They were clearly trying to win imho.
Does anyone else here think the Bucks were not trying to win?
2015 full of stats but his takes are off quite a bit.of course they were trying to win slim chance to slip into 10th spot.but a chance
I’m not making a moral claim about the players effort etc, just trying to understand what happened
With tonight’s loss Milwaukee is now tied with Chicago for record (27-38) and #9 in lottery
They left two 40% 3PT shooters on the bench (Rollins and Green) to start and went with a huge starting lineup instead tonight, but Miami still outrebounded them 53-36. They did outscore Miami by +8 in the paint but lost -12 in fast break points – sign of a bad defense.
Kuzma was awful – couldn’t guard Larsson and he scored only 5 after having a big game last time vs Miami.
It doesn’t matter at this point if Milwaukee wins or loses – it’s better for their tanking odds if they lose – and that was reflected in their approach tonight
Once again, we will agree to disagree, at least as far as Milwaukee trying to lose. But you’re right about Kuzma, who has had an off season. I believe the Bucks have tried to move him and might do so again in the offseason.
they got nothing to play for.5 games out of 10th spot.this is not even a play in team the age of jrue holiday dame lillard chris middleton screwed this team.giannis will be on a diff team next year
Unless the Bucks make a big splash after the season. But it is certainly possible.
depth rc 3 of your best players out still win versus a greek team pretty good w
Absolutely
Wasn’t pretty, but it was a gritty win.
Pelle and Kaspar carried most of the game.
spos use of personnel tonight not good he got away with it though
Huge win!! The streak continues!!
need a stop and dru not on ct head scratcher
Larsson comes up clutch!
pelle dagger wow
Let’s gooooo!!
Seriously Jaquez role in this game has been awful.
Tough matchup for him, Milwaukee packs the paint and Jericho Sims does a great job defending him. He struggled last game vs MIL also
rollins waived by wash guess hes improved
2 fouls on heat not called same play good
I guess his headbutt helped us lead a fast break.
heat very small why not put ware in
Good question
jerrico sims greek portis in and wares on bench and jjj suking big time head scratcher
Seriously what good is having Jaquez out there right now? Spo, you are gonna lose this game.
wiggy norm herro need at least two back for orlando
Orlando has just kinda owned Miami the last few years. Hopefully whoever is available shows up, but that team has some Miami voodoo doll, that seems to work.
size believe the good wagner out for year though
Could have been a lane violation called there
no foul jeez challenge that
As I’m pretty sure Cam Thomas or Porter was yelling at Bam after his FT miss – ‘ball don’t lie’.
I might be nuts, but I’d prefer Ware in there right now over Jaquez. Better rebounding.
Although Ware’s effort tonight has been questionable, can’t give up 2nd chance points in this close contest
I’m with you. No deterrence at the rim.
No 83 tonight
jjj style of play hard to endure that thru 82 give him few games off
Jaquez, cmon man!!
Played timid most of the game, and now getting blocked by the rim. Gotta sit him.
Get Jaquez out. Awful tonight,
What a game by Pelle!
Great d by Dru. Always.
i dont remember portis being this good a shooter throughout his career.he use to be a muscleman bad ass type
jjj dipping dru balling.hard to get everybody playing good at same time
Ware, Bam and Jaquez letting Miami down on the offensive end. Hopefully the other guys can keep the afloat.
does kuzman have any room for anymore tatoos
Doc’s rotations are so strange. Starts a huge lineup – Kuzma at SF, Dieng at SG – then substitutes in another SF and PF Prince and Portis. Rollins (2-3rd best player on the team) and AJ Green (one of the best volume shooters in NBA and a starting caliber SG) are 8th and 9th off the bench.
Bucks are only 5-13 from 3 at the half and they are the 2nd best 3PT shooting team in the league. And the big lineup is too slow to guard Miami
portis clearly their second best player turner third prob kuzma 4th
Haha no way, salary does not equal impact. Rollins is a MIP candidate this year averaging 16/5/5 and shooting 40% from 3, also a two way player. Either him or KPJ is the 2nd best on the team, Portis and Turner are not close. Portis is a good role player but he’s a one way offensive player/microwave scorer
glad your not my gm .as old as portis is u ask 30 gms who u taking i think most taking portis
All 30 are taking the 23 year old PG making only $4m per year who is 3rd favorite in MIP odds, not even a comparison
this is rollins 3rd team btw.portis can play d btw
Portis 70th percentile offense, 9th percentile defense. Always been known for his offense as a stretch big and not for his defense
https://xrapm.com/player_pages/1626171.html
Ryan Rollins 86 offense, 82 defense. A real two way guard. Only reason not to start him is if you’re trying to lose games
https://xrapm.com/player_pages/1631157.html
doesnt giannis ever get tired a decade of playing like this wow
pelle for 83
pelle was very touchy there def foul first
Pelle!
cotton fitzsimmons great name
dav u had a layup jeez
paying myles turner lots $$$ no thanks
greek still might be the second best player behind jokic
greeks a fa hes not coming back to milw any predictions where he goes im saying nyk
Have to get more production from Bam, Ware and others in the second half. Jaquez seems to be in a little slump lately.
7 wins in a row
Oh really? I didn’t know that. Thanks for the update.
Not that I’m getting greedy. Just want to beat a slumping team like this.
what are his #s rc hes been relatively quiet lately
2 tonight, 5 previous game. But had 19 Sunday. But our little guys are carrying us tonight. We need others to step up.
Kaspar gets in sync with the game flow. He lets the game come to him, seldom forces the action. He’s doing well again tonight. So does Davion when he’s going well. And Pelle., Those are three guys who are very team oriented.
Kaspar and Pelle the reason we are still leading this game, but I’m not sure that’s a winning formula.
What do I know, they keep scoring.
I know, weird. And Bam with 6. Hangover maybe?
I know I’ve said this before. I LOVE the youth movement on this team.
rankem
Why? They’re all different and bring different skills. But I’ll go with Jovic.
Lurkers?