Q: Kel’el Ware for six games was starting, looked energized and confident, a possible great 7-footer. Tyler Herro returns, literally anyone but Bam Adebayo and Ware should have come off the bench. Erik Spoelstra sends Ware to the bench and he went from great to horrible. Never mess with a good young 7-footer, they are rare. – Tom.
A: But also don’t accept anything less than complete effort. If the goal is for the Heat to maximize Kel’el Ware, then there should be expectations. The rim protection has been poor recently and the effort has been less than complete. This is about trying to win while also developing. To that end, Kel’el has to be an active participant in his own progression. Starting is overstated, and even Kel’el has downplayed that aspect. Minutes are meaningful, with those consistently available to be earned. They weren’t on Friday in Orlando or Saturday against the Kings, save for mop-up duty.
Q: Ira, looking at the standings, the Heat are just about where most people thought they would be, namely a play-in team. – Joel, Fort Lauderdale.
A: Water finds its level? We’re about to find out if this is a team that briefly gamed the system with a gimmick offense, or one built to endure. Even while winning, the Heat have never been far from the play-in cut line. The depth of quality in the East will leave a top-six finish as a challenge.
Q: What in the world has happened to Nikola Jovic? – Dim.
A: Seemingly a crisis of confidence. It will be interesting to see if the extended minutes in Saturday’s loss to Sacramento can help him turn it around, after his 12 points and six assists, mostly in mop-up duty. The reality is that when Davion Mitchell, Tyler Herro and Pelle Larsson get back in the mix, it is difficult to envision Niko even with a 10th-man role now that Simone Fontecchio showed signs of a bounceback on Saturday night.