Heat wilt in Denver, skid continues
DENVER — This is why the ones that previously got away have the Miami Heat in a position where a season is slipping away and the draft lottery is starting to come into view.
Because competing almost to the finish against a playoff-desperate opponent like the Sacramento Kings isn’t enough.
Because putting a scare into the Golden State Warriors can sour with one referee whistle that does not sound.
Because playing the Denver Nuggets nearly even for a half eventually leads to wilting at altitude.
So, with Monday night’s 103-87 loss to the Nuggets at the Pepsi Center, it is now 10 losses in the last 14 games . . . the type of skid more easily stomached if not for those hideous earlier losses to the likes of the Atlanta Hawks, Orlando Magic and Chicago Bulls.
“Every time we made a little bit of a run, they created more separation,” coach Erik Spoelstra said after the Nuggets moved to 38-18 and the Heat to 25-30.
The Heat, it could be argued, have played some of their best sustained ball at times during the first four games of this five-game trip that has produced only a victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
“It’s more about the reality of where we are and the trends of where we think we’re going in,” Spoelstra said, “I think we’re going in the right direction.
“A lot of good things so far on this road trip. It hasn’t translated into the wins we would like, but just have to keep improving and making strides.”
With Nuggets center Nikola Jokic pacing the Nuggets with 23 points and 12 rebounds, good wasn’t good enough for the Heat.
Because this time, unlike when Josh Richardson scored a career-high 37 points the night before against the Warriors, there was no one up to the heavy lifting for the Heat.
Instead, with scoring still a struggle, Justise Winslow led the Heat with 15 points.
“You keep on making progress and then eventually you get the result that you want,” Spoelstra said. “There’s a reality of a bottom line with our record, but I’m seeing improvement with our team.”
Five degrees of Heat from Monday night’s game in Denver:
1. Tough spot: This set up as an ultimate challenge the moment the schedule was released.
Second night of a back to back. The fourth game of a five-game trip. At altitude. Coming off a game against the Warriors. Against a team coming off two days’ rest. With the week-long All-Star break only days away.
So the third quarter started and it all just about stopped for the Heat, with the deficit reaching 18.
Spoelstra tried to put forward the brave face going in.
“In this league, you want to be challenged, you want to be pushed,” he said. It’s what coaches say. But Nuggets coach Michael Malone knew attack mode would be the proper mode, in light of the Heat’s rough road.
“Hopefully, we can that back-to-back to advantage,” he said.
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2. Almost there: Dion Waiters and James Johnson are both coming around for the Heat. The problem is they’re both doing it with skill in the absence of explosion.
Stronger rehab from both could have had the Heat in a far better position than this desperate struggle for playoff positioning as they continue to work their way back, Waiters from ankle surgery, Johnson from surgery for a sports hernia.
“They’re both trending in the right direction,” Spoelstra said.
With Waiters, the first step is enough to get opponents off balance to set up his jumpers, but he hasn’t been able to explode to the rim.
“My game is coming,” Waiters said after scoring 11 points and adding six assists. “My body is not where I wanted it, though.”
With Johnson, only protracted ballhandling has created space. On one firsthalf sequence Monday, Johnson had a hard enough dribble to put his opponent off balance. The problem was it also put Johnson off balance, creating a turnover. He finished with 14 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.
“We’ve just got to vibe with each other a little more and start closing these games out,” he said.
Nikola: The last time around, there was a triple-double for Jokic in the Nuggets’ victory earlier this season in Miami.
This time, he was up to 19 points and seven rebounds by halftime.
There simply is a not a player in the NBA more orthodox with his success. Putting him off balance seemingly only increases his accuracy. And the spacing is sublime, 3 of 3 on 3-pointers in the first half.
4. Plan B: While Richardson didn’t approach the 37 points he scored in Sunday’s loss, he turned his focus to playmaking, with six of the Heat’s 14 first-half assists on the way to eight. The problem was he also had seven of the Heat’s 19 turnovers.
Richardson closed one shy of his career high for assists, set last month against the Grizzlies.
While that is all well and good, what the Heat need from Richardson is coldblooded offense. Because at the moment, there are not many other places to turn. This time there were 12 points, 2 of 7 on 3-pointers.
5. Not again: A night after shooting 18 of 43, the Heat found neither the volume nor the accuracy Monday, closing 9 of 23 from beyond the arc.
Malone went in hoping the Heat left their 3-point stroke in San Francisco (technically Oakland).
“I’m hoping they got all their makes out of the way,” he said.
They did, with the Nuggets, by contrast, 16 of 37 from beyond the arc.