Q: Davion Mitchell or Dru Smith filling in for Tyler Herro on opening night? – Samson.
A: We probably won’t know for sure until the end of the preseason about where Davion Mitchell stands in his return from calf soreness, with Monday just his second game back. But the hunch here is that it will be Davion as opening-night starter, if only not to create issues where they are not needed, after re-signing Davion to that two-year, $24 million contract in free agency. Plus, it allows the Heat to further monitor Dru Smith’s minutes in his return from last season’s Achilles tear. That said, Davion well could eventually wind up with the second unit when Tyler returns next month from last month’s ankle surgery. As it was, Smith started and Mitchell played off the bench Monday night in Atlanta. Ultimately, each finished Monday with just one assist. So, yes, fluid. (But Kasparas Jakucionis fluid?)
Q: They play way too many preseason games in the NBA. – Mike.
A: Two per team would be perfect, allowing every team to get game-night operations in order before the regular-season starts. But money talks, as do international exhibitions and promoters willing to pay to buy games for neutral sites. So you wind up with games such as Monday in Atlanta, when the Hawks did not deem it necessary to even dress their regular starters. And can only imagine what the Heat will field when they host the Grizzlies on Friday night in their preseason finale.
Q: Ira, this is not intended as a knee-jerk blow-it-up Ask Ira, but the timeline for this team is not aligned. Two of the key players have proven to be very injury prone (Tyler Herro and Nikola Jovic). Why not move Norman Powell, Andrew Wiggins, Nikola Jovic, Tyler Herro and Terry Rozier for assets and build in a new world around Bam Adebayo, Kel’el Ware (unless he nets a big return) and Davion Mitchell? Otherwise we are just delaying the inevitable blow up. – Jim, Mooresville, N.C.
A: You have some apples-and-oranges grouping there. If you’re going to go young and rebuild, then it’s Tyler Herro, Nikola Jovic, Kel’el Ware and some of the other kids. And as for blowing it up, it isn’t that simple. With his extension, Jovic becomes subject to a poison pill in his contract that makes him virtually untradeable this season. If Herro gets an extension, it would be something similar. And no one is trading for Terry Rozier. So yes, the Heat seem stuck in the middle. But there also are no easy outs.