Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Heat build on adversity
N.Y. Knicks first of four games in five nights scheduled
PORTLAND, Ore. — This is when the Miami Heat are supposed to be able to exhale, clear of their three-game western swing that ended with the sputter of being outscored 14-1 at the close of Saturday’s 99-92 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. Except it only gets tougher.
Not only is their only one home game — Tuesday against the New York Knicks at AmericanAirlines Arena — before the Heat again head out on the road for yet another threegame trip, but the game against the Knicks begins the Heat’s lone set of four games in five nights this season.
“With these guys, I don’t even worry about that with these guys,” forward and team captain Udonis Haslem said. “Maybe with an older team. But with these guys, on a young team, they don’t know any different. They just know it’s another game to play.
“I kind of like it that way. Every time they step on the floor, they’re just excited to go out there and play basketball. And whether it’s home or away, they have no fear.”
If nothing else, there figures to be additional support going forward, with Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson and Dion Waiters already back in South Florida rehabilitating injuries before the Heat ended their western swing, and Luke Babbitt unable to play in Portland because of a hip flexor.
“It will be good to have those guys back, some familiar faces,” center Hassan Whiteside said, with Monday’s practice expected to be Winslow’s first work with the team in nearly three weeks, having missed the past 11 games with a sore left wrist. “I can’t wait for those guys to come back and we get our whole team back. Those guys can really help.”
The Heat actually did a reasonable job playing through adversity, winning the first two games of their trip and playing the Blazers tight to Saturday’s finish.
“We said after this game, if we’re going to play at home like we did tonight, we’re going to take care of business at home,” point guard Goran Dragic said, with the Heat 2-9 at home this season.
At 7-13, Whiteside said the urgency has to increase.
“We want to get above .500. We don’t want to get down too many games,” said Whiteside, who led the Heat with 28 points, 16 rebounds, and five blocked shots against the Blazers, joining Alonzo Mourning as the only other player in the franchise’s 29 seasons to reach all of those thresholds in the same game. “But guys are not getting down on themselves, either. There’s a lot of season left. Guys are still learning how to play with each other.”
The evolution during the trip included the injection of guard Wayne Ellington into the rotation, the move of power forward Josh McRoberts into the starting lineup, and an increased role for Dragic.
“I think when you have opportunities under adversity, those are your biggest opportunities for growth,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “But this process has been happening. So even two weeks ago, while we were losing games, we were building some toughness. And you could feel it. Guys were gaining confidence from it. Our offensive organization and confidence now is getting better. Guys feel much more comfortable.
“So that’s why you can’t just — as much as this business is about the win and the loss, and we get that as much as anybody — it has to be about our process in getting better. You see our team getting better. Nobody will recognize you with our record, but the team is getting better.”
What the trip confirmed is that success will be built on the play of Whiteside and Dragic.
“Hassan Whiteside from the first two weeks of the season to where he is now, and where he’s going to go, it’s night and day,” Spoelstra said. “This guy’s coming.”
As for Dragic, Spoelstra said, “The more banged up he gets, the better he’s playing. And that’s the kind of competitor he is. He loves competition. He loves playing against the best in this league. Goran is getting into a great groove for us. And we need him.”
The next step is getting even healthier and bringing home the grit that defined the western swing.
“I think we build on this,” Whiteside said.