Q: I didn’t know they had six exhibitions. That’s a lot. Erik Spoelstra is going to have to be careful. – Sid.
A: Or perhaps the opposite, and instead will have to make sure everything is in place to hit the ground running at the start of the regular season. The Heat opening schedule is brutal, arguably to be favored in only one of the first eight games (the Oct. 28 home game against the Hornets). Otherwise it’s on the road at Orlando and Memphis to open the season, home against New York, and then, after that home game against Charlotte, on the road for games against the Spurs, Lakers, Clippers and Nuggets. Basically, to avoid 1-7, the Heat will have to defy the odds. So, yes, six exhibitions and an open scrimmage is plenty over two weeks. But it also will allow for fine tuning to hit the ground – and the road, running – Much of the tenor for a season of great unknowns could be over those opening two weeks.
Q: Simon Fontecchio reminds me of someone on the Heat named Duncan Robinson. – Johnny.
A: Yes, like many shooting specialists, Simone Fontecchio can be up and down, as shown in the difference between Sunday’s record 39-point performance for Italy in EuroBasket against Bosnia-Herzegovina and then his eight-point (2 of 11) his struggles on Tuesday against the higher level of competition provided by Spain. And that’s why it can’t be lost on the reality, as with Duncan Robinson, that you’re primarily talking about a specialist, a hot hand you can ride when hot, but can’t necessarily count on as a rotation producer. If the Heat are to make gains with their 3-point shooting, that productivity likely will have to come from the likes of Tyler Herro, Norman Powell, Nikola Jovic and other rotation mainstays.
Q: The Heat have a Pacers-like roster and that’s how they should play: fast-paced offense, swarming defense, play 10 to 11 guys, so no one wears down. – Tom.
A: First, I can’t recall a season when Erik Spoelstra didn’t go into camp stressing pace. I also can’t recall a season when there actually was pace (at least in recent Heat history). As for playing so deep into a roster, that also sounds good on the surface, especially based on relatively equal talent on the back end of the rotation. But as the Warriors showed at the start of last season, when Steve Kerr tried to go double-digits with his rotation, rhythm can be difficult to develop for both the team and the leading men. I would suspect no more than 10, and likely fewer with quality minutes. The guaranteed would appear to be Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Andrew Wiggins, Kel’el Ware, Norman Powell, Nikola Jovic and Davion Mitchell. After that, open competition for what likely would not be more than three additional rotation spots, if that (from the remaining group that includes Jaime Jaquez Jr., Pelle Larsson, Simone Fontecchio, Dru Smith and perhaps Kasparas Jakucionis.)