Building a foundation

Spoelstra wants to see improvement in each 20-game block

CLEVELAND — The Rule of 20 has been a staple of the Miami Heat and several other NBA teams over the years. Essentially, you assess your team’s play during each 20-game segment of the 82-game season and then reestablish goals going forward.

A year ago, coach Erik Spoelstra unilaterally suspended that part of the equation, with the Heat 7-13 over their first 20 games. And it actually got worse over the next 20.

But now, with the Heat at 10-9 entering tonight’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena, he appreciates that it again is assessment time.

“You have a pretty good idea of your general feel and context of your team, but that’s not always in cement,” he said of quartering the season. “Just look at us last year. We didn’t really understand where we were.

“But you have an idea of what direction, usually, that your team is going in. But I hope that’s not the case this year as it was last year.”

The lineup instability at the start of last season and even the start of this season appears to be gone. The Heat have gone 6-3 with their current lineup of Hassan Whiteside, Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson, Goran Dragic and Dion Waiters. There also has been a narrowing down of the reserve rotation to Tyler Johnson, James Johnson, Kelly Olynyk and Wayne Ellington, with those four all on the floor for the final 12 minutes of Sunday’s 100-93 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

Although it’s one game shy of that 20-game assessment, by winning the first two games of this four-game trip, there at least won’t be a losing record.

“We’ll see. We’ve got a ways to go,” Spoelstra said. “We’re building habits. We’re building better behavior, all the little things that lead to winning, so hopefully we’ll be a much better team every 20-game block from here on out.”

One thing that Spoelstra insisted won’t change is the ongoing back-tobasics approach.

“That’s just what we have to develop right now,” he said. “We have to develop better habits. It’s as simple as that. And that doesn’t guarantee anything. Our guys work at it. So I don’t want that to be translated as a negative. But we have to develop better behavior, better habits, better approach.

“If you want to find more consistency at 7:30 at night, you have to be consistent, reliable in all the other areas of your life that lead up to that point. And that’s what we’re trying to improve.” are appreciating Johnson’s contributions.

“He can do many things. He can drive. He can shoot. He can involve everybody else,” Dragic said. “That’s why we love him. He can play great defense.”

Johnson said he can feel the Heat coming together.

“We’re trending,” he said. “Like I said, we’ve been trending in the right direction. We’re going to take some bumps and bruises along the way, but as long as we’re playing consistent and stick to our habits, I think everything is always going to fall our way.”

Derrick Walton Jr.

NICK WASS/AP Erik Spoelstra says he generally has an idea about his team after 20 games, but like last season, that isn’t written in stone.