Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Heat energized with return of Adebayo, Richardson in first preseason victory
MIAMI — This wasn’t the whole Miami Heat, but it was a lot closer to whole as the start of the regular season now stands just over a week away.
Both Josh Richardson and Bam Adebayo made their preseason debuts in Monday night’s 90-89 victory over the Orlando Magic at AmericanAirlines Arena. Both were injured in the Sept. 29 preseason scrimmage at Florida Atlantic University, Richardson with a thigh bruise, Adebayo with a shoulder injury.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra treated the fourth of his team’s six exhibitions as somewhat of a dress rehearsal, playing his regulars into the fourth quarter.
The game allowed point guard Goran Dragic to regain his stride, closing with a preseason-high16 points and five assists in his 22 minutes. There also were 13 rebounds from Heat center Hassan Whiteside in his 24 minutes.
The Heat remained without projected starters Dion Waiters and James
Johnson, both of whom appear longshots for the Oct. 17 season opener against the Magic at the Amway Center, with Wayne Ellington and Derrick Jones Jr. also out.
A late go-ahead basket by Rodney McGruder with 1:35 to play proved decisive. McGruder closed with 19 points, eight rebound and five assists.
The game ended on a defensive stop by Adebayo.
Five degrees of Heat from Monday’s exhibition:
1. Richardson steps out of the rumors:
Previously active only in trade rumors to this stage of the preseason, Richardson opened at shooting guard and immediately showed his ability as a catalyst on both ends of the court.
Mentioned as the Minnesota Timberwolves’ prime target in the wake of Jimmy Butler seeking a trade, Richardson largely differed in his minutes, again raising question of whether complementary player can evolve into leading man.
“I just want to be aggressive,” he said going in. “I want to work on my leadership.”
He closed with five points on 2-of-6 shooting in 26 minutes, the Heat outscoring the Magic by 12 when he was on the court.
If the Heat wind up moving forward without Butler and with an approach of internal growth, that was on display in a starting lineup that had Justise Winslow starting at small forward alongside Richardson.
“In practice it’s looked good,” Spoelstra said of the combination. “They have a great chemistry together, but they also have developed enough chemistry in other units to be able to be effective.”
2. Adebayo creates big decisions:
With Adebayo back, Spoelstra again opened with Kelly Olynyk at power forward, as a means of getting his three centers ample opportunity.
That had Olynyk opening alongside Hassan Whiteside and then Olynyk and Adebayo playing together later in the first half.
Adebayo again showed a bounce in his step in the alley-oop game and set several bruise-causing screens, in addition to taking on perimeter defensive challenges against Aaron Gordon and Jonathan Simmons. His preseason debut came only hours after Spoelstra said he first wanted to get a full practice in with the second-year big man.
3. Winslow in reserve?
As the Heat wait on Waiters, who worked pregame with assistant coach Anthony Carter, Winslow again was in the starting lineup.
Ultimately, to avoid passive outings such as this one, when Winslow did not have a basket or assist in the first half, separating Winslow in rotations from Dragic would seem to make the most sense.
That proved to be the case when Winslow broke out for nine third-quarter points Monday.
“The way I’ve been doing it, he plays in both lineups,” Spoelstra said. “So he gets the best of both worlds right now. We’re not overthinking it. He should be able to log enough minutes to be able to play in both lineups.”
4. McGruder again:
It is becoming increasingly difficult to imagine a world with Tyler Johnson in the Heat rotation at the expense of McGruder. This time, while Johnson was shooting 1 of 10, McGruder was consistently stepping forward.
McGruder to this stage also has been the better of the two as playmaker and defender.
5. Not exactly a sneak preview:
While the teams will meet next week in their season opener, the Heat on Monday night got a Magic team lacking Jonathan Isaac (ankle) and Terrence Ross (foot), with the Heat with their aforementioned injuries.
“Both teams have guys that are out. The rotation potentially could be different for both teams,” Spoelstra said. “I think both teams are focused on getting your team right and building the right habits.”