Rebounding struggles resurface during losing streak

The Miami Heat’s rebounding woes are neither new nor a secret.

They have struggled to finish defensive possessions all season long, with their defensive rebounding percentage of 72.2 percent ranking No. 24 in the league.

But they have particularly had difficulties with the defensive boards during their current losing streak entering Sunday afternoon’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets (3:30 p.m. on ESPN at AmericanAirlines Arena).

The Heat (28-28) have had a defensive rebounding percentage of 63.4 during their three-game losing streak, which is the worst mark in the league since they lost to the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday.

For context, the Indiana Pacers have the worst defensive rebounding percentage in the league for the entire season at 70.7 percent.

The Heat were out-rebounded 136-99 during the aforementioned stretch, with opponents recording 30 offensive rebounds compared to the Heat’s 19.

The results of the Heat allowing their opponents to have more scoring opportunities? Being outscored 45-16 on secondchance points and a 121.7 defensive rating, which is tied for the third-worst mark in the league during the losing streak.

The Heat’s recent rebounding woes have put a greater spotlight on their man-toman defensive schemes, which uses a lot of switching and blitzes to contain ball-handlers.

When the Heat are properly executing the scheme with active hands, quick recoveries and strong off-ball defense, they keep opponents from getting to the rim, create turnovers and force possessions to stall out — which they have successfully done for most of the season.

Defensively, the Heat rank in the top-six in both the accuracy and frequency of shots allowed at the rim or in the short midrange area, according to Cleaning The Glass.

Their 15.9 defensive turnover percentage on the season ranks No. 2 in the league and opponents’ offensive possessions last 14.9 seconds — the longest mark in the league — when defended by the Heat, according to Inpredictable.

But when they are not finishing possessions by boxing out and grabbing defensive rebounds, it seemingly negates the effort they put in before the shot was attempted.

“It is not only switching,” Goran Dragic said when asked about the rebounding

challenges the team faces with its defensive scheme. “It is when you are blitzing, the rotations are late. If you switch — the smaller guy to the big guy — you need to box out. We have had problems with that the last few games.”

The Heat did not have any players rank in the top 50 of individual defensive box-outs per game during their past three losses.

So as the Heat continue to search for solutions to prevent the season from taking a steeper turn in the wrong direction, grabbing a few more crucial rebounds each game is appearing to be the answer.

“We just need to help each other better,” Dragic said, “and play collectively defensively.”