ASK IRA: What does it say about Heat’s Spoelstra already having an eye on the standings?
Q: All I know is they can’t lose to the Hornets. Can’t. You wrote they could complete a 3-1 homestand Sunday. Poor word choices. They have to. – Ted.
A: With the Heat injury situation, nothing is a given. But using your measure of having to take measure against the league’s lesser teams, they also should win Monday in Brooklyn and Wednesday in Toronto. Erik Spoelstra pointedly noted after Friday night’s victory over the Magic that the Heat were seventh in the East, stressing that is not where they want to be. It was interesting for Spoelstra to note the standings without being directly prompted, which tells you that he has expectations of greater success. And that most definitely means not losing at home to an 8-28 opponent. The desperation of the play-in round clearly is something Spoelstra prefers not to endure.
Q: Wait, no Jimmy Butler on Sunday, too? – Ashley.
A: The back-to-back set on Sunday at home against the Hornets and Monday in Brooklyn complicates things. You don’t go from sitting out 10 of 11 to playing on consecutive nights. So this way there can be a hard practice Saturday, taking stock Sunday, and going from there Monday. But the Heat also need to get a read soon on who they are and what they have, as the Feb. 8 NBA trading deadline approaches. A Butler absence Sunday would mean missing 15 of the first 39 games.
Q: I like the way Nikola Jovic is developing. The next step that I would like to see is him being more aggressive on offense when he has the ball. Think about taking the shot instead of passing. – Joel, Fort Lauderdale.
A: But at 20, with so many veterans on the team, one can appreciate the mentality of deferring. In fact, if Nikola Jovic is going to continue to get time when Jimmy Butler gets up to speed, then deferring will almost be mandatory. It is the complementary skills that are most likely to keep Nikola in the rotation during this developmental part of his process. As it was, Nikola stood as the de facto starting point guard in Friday night’s starting lineup.