When the Miami Heat fell into a first half hole against the Philadelphia Sixers in their last game, coach Erik Spoelstra was desperate to find answers. The Heat have dealt with inconsistency in their play for the past few seasons now, and so far the 2024-25 campaign hasn’t looked any different. Spoelstra is deemed with a tough task in finding combinations that work, with his latest one providing a spark in the Sixers win.
With Terry Rozier out due to some foot pain amid his slow start in production this year, Miami needed to utilize their depth. The team went with the Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson starting backcourt, but the bench rotations weren’t getting the job done. Josh Richardson and Pelle Larsson got the first calls, until they provided empty minutes that featured Philadelphia go on a run.
That’s when Dru Smith and Alec Burks were inserted. The Heat had control ever since, with Smith making a case to earn a spot in the rotation moving forward. His two-way energy brought an impact that Richardson hasn’t been able to do in his 20-25 bench minutes over the past ten games.
It is never about the points whenever Smith gets opportunities. He just knows how to do all the little things that lead to winning. Whether that is being active in passing lanes, providing point of attack defense and picking up loose balls, he has a knack for being in the right spots on the court.
The most important stat during his outing was the fact that the Heat outscored the Sixers by 23 points in Smith’s minutes. He is never going to have eye popping numbers, which could lead to the mixed opinions Heat fans have with him utilizing a roster spot. However, there is a reason that the organization keeps bringing him back into the fold.
Spoelstra has made it known how much he trusts Smith as a role player. It is time that the fanbase starts to notice the things that the head coach does. There are good things he does in the limited minutes he has gotten over the years, with the Philly game being no different.
It will be interesting moving forward to see if Spoelstra continues to rely on Smith to contribute. But his recent performance brought more to the Heat than any other of the point guard options have throughout the beginning part of this season.
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My Man Drusky!
I like Smith’s maturity, control, quiet leadership, tempo, defensive tenacity, rebounding and overall leadership. He is the counterbalance Herro, Bam and Butler need.
All the team needs now is a two-way big who can help Bam on the boards and defensively, who can also score 15-18 points and grab 6-8 rebounds. Someone like Collins or Kuzma.
If Ware was ready to do that, it would be great. But he has a long way to go, especially if all he is doing now is sitting on the end of the bench collecting splinters.
not sure if ware is any good or great will u let him play sunman and i would like to know spobot
If not in Miami at least in Sioux Falls. He was drafted to help on the boards, just like all the other centers in the 2024 draft. He’s one of the few not getting playing time. Dude is getting 6.0 minutes per game, mostly during “garbage time.” Compare it to other rookie centers, some drafted after him.
Alexandre Sarr – 25.5 mpg
Yves Missi – 23.2 mpg
Zach Edey – 20.1 mpg
Kyle Filipowski – 19.1 mpg (second round pick)
Donovan Clingan – 16.6 mpg
Kel’el Ware – 6.0 mpg
If they weren’t going to use him, they could have drafted shooters like Jared McCain, drafted 16th by 76ers or Dalton Knect, drafted 17th by Lakers.
Knecht and McCain seems good players.