Five takeaways from the Miami Heat\u2019s 136-120 win over the Memphis Grizzlies (21-34) on Saturday night at Kaseya Center to complete a back-to-back set. The Heat (31-27) now enters a two-day break before going on the road to begin a two-game trip on Tuesday against the Milwaukee Bucks:<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t look now, but the Heat has now won three straight games for the first time in almost two months on a memorable night for Andrew Wiggins.<\/p>\n
After defeating the Pelicans in New Orleans before the NBA All-Star break, the Heat returned from the break to earn a road victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday and a home win over the Grizzlies on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
This is the Heat\u2019s first three-game winning streak since winning four straight from Dec. 26 through Jan. 1.<\/p>\n
The Heat has done it in convincing fashion, too. All three victories during this current three-game winning streak have come by double-digits.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing else matters besides winning,\u201d Heat guard Norman Powell said. \u201cI think that\u2019s the most important thing. And I think we\u2019re really starting to buy into the collective effort and trusting one another working the game. I think that\u2019s the biggest part.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Heat led the undermanned Grizzlies by as many as 10 points in the first half before entering halftime with a 73-68 lead.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
The Heat then blew the game open in the third quarter, outscoring the Grizzlies 39-26 in the period to take an 18-point lead into the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
The Heat\u2019s lead grew to as large as 24 points in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
With the Heat nearly at full health, its depth was on display. Eight Heat players finished with double-digit points on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Wiggins led the way with a near perfect shooting night, finishing the Heat\u2019s win over the Grizzlies with 28 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field, 4-of-4 shooting on threes and 6-of-6 shooting from the foul line, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal. Along the way, he reached 15,000 career points in the NBA on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
Wiggins was unaware of the milestone before the Heat announced the accomplishment during Saturday\u2019s game, saying: \u201cI knew nothing. I thought it was a timeout. Just a regular timeout. So I was just, you know, la-di-da-di-da, just running to the bench. … I didn\u2019t know how [many points] I had before this.\u201d<\/p>\n
Powell added 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field and 3-of-8 shooting on threes, two rebounds, six assists, two steals and one block.<\/p>\n
Then there were 14 points from Tyler Herro, 13 points from Bam Adebayo, 12 points from Kasparas Jakucionis, 12 points from Jaime Jaquez Jr., 11 points from Kel\u2019el Ware and 10 points from Pelle Larsson.<\/p>\n
Adebayo\u2019s stat line looked quiet on the surface, finishing with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field, six rebounds and five assists. But he posted a team-best plus\/minus of plus 27, as the Heat\u2019s offense played off all the defensive attention that the Grizzlies sent at Adebayo.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was one of the most mature post-up games Bam has played,\u201d Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. \u201cHe just allowed the defense to overreact, and then he made the easy play over and over and over. That\u2019s what the great players do.\u201d<\/p>\n
GG Jackson scored a team-high 28 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds for the Grizzlies.<\/p>\n
The Heat\u2019s offense was efficient despite committing 17 turnovers on Saturday. Miami totaled 136 points on 51 percent shooting from the field and 13 of 36 (36.1 percent) shooting from three-point range.<\/p>\n
The Heat also outscored the Grizzlies 70-54 in the paint, and has scored 70 or more paint points in two straight games. Miami is now 8-0 this season when scoring at least 70 paint points.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we\u2019re a full squad and everyone is healthy, we\u2019re very hard to deal with,\u201d Wiggins said. \u201cBecause from the first man to the last man, everyone can go in there and do something special to change the outcome of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even with starting guard Davion Mitchell unavailable on Saturday because of an illness, Herro again played off the bench in his second game back from injury.<\/p>\n
After totaling a game-high 24 points in 23 minutes off the bench in his return from a rib injury to help the Heat defeat the Hawks in Atlanta on Friday, Herro again played as a reserve on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Herro wasn\u2019t as efficient, though, finishing Saturday\u2019s win with 14 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the field and 1-of-4 shooting on threes, five rebounds and six assists in 23 minutes off the bench.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
Before this two-game stretch, Herro hadn\u2019t played in a game in over a month. He missed 15 straight games because of his rib injury prior to making his return on Friday.<\/p>\n
This also represents just the second full back-to-back set that Herro has played in this season.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was encouraging that my body feels good after the game,\u201d Herro said after playing two games in two nights. \u201cI missed, obviously, a lot of time. And a lot of the time I was just sitting and relaxing and letting my ribs heal. So it just feels good to be out here again.\u201d<\/p>\n
In fact, Saturday only marked Herro\u2019s 13th game of the season due to injury issues. He missed the first 17 games of the season due to offseason ankle surgery, 13 games because of a toe contusion and then 15 straight games because of his rib injury.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
Saturday also only marked the fifth game that Herro has played off the bench since the start of the 2022-23 season.<\/p>\n
Herro played as part of a Heat bench rotation that also included Ware, Jaquez, Dru Smith and Gardner on Saturday.<\/p>\n
With Herro now playing two straight games off the bench, it remains to be seen how long he\u2019ll play as a reserve this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m coming off the bench right now, and it doesn\u2019t really feel like out of place because we\u2019ve got guys that can start and I\u2019m comfortable in my role and in myself,\u201d Herro said. \u201cSo, I\u2019m happy where I\u2019m at.\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead of Herro, the Heat started Jakucionis in Mitchell\u2019s place against the Grizzlies.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
Jakucionis made the ninth NBA start of his rookie season, beginning Saturday\u2019s game alongside Powell, Larsson, Wiggins and Adebayo in the Heat\u2019s starting unit.<\/p>\n
This lineup has now started seven games this season, with the Heat 5-2 in those games after Saturday\u2019s win.<\/p>\n
Jakucionis, 19, again made the most of his opportunity. He finished Saturday\u2019s victory with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field, 2-of-3 shooting on threes and 2-of-2 shooting from the foul line, three rebounds and five assists in 23 minutes.<\/p>\n
The Heat\u2019s trust in Jakucionis continues to grow. He has now logged double-digit minutes in 17 of the Heat\u2019s last 18 games after playing only 53.7 seconds in the NBA through the Heat\u2019s first 26 games of the season.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s doing what we talk about all the time,\u201d Spoelstra said of Jakucionis. \u201cMake us watch you. Make us pay attention a little bit more. Impact the game. Make us think about playing you more. And he\u2019s earning everything right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Saturday\u2019s game didn\u2019t end without a scuffle between the two teams.<\/p>\n
With 1:55 left in the fourth quarter, Grizzlies guard Scottie Pippen Jr. charged at Gardner and shoved him to the court. Their teammates immediately rushed over, and Pippen and Gardner were both ejected from the game after the altercation was broken up.<\/p>\n
What led to Pippen going at Gardner?<\/p>\n
On the previous possession, Gardner seemed to push Pippen down to the court from behind after Pippen put up a three-pointer.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it was kind of a cheap shot,\u201d Pippen said. \u201cHe kind of hit me from when I didn\u2019t see him. So I thought it was a soft move.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pippen got up and immediately charged at Gardner, with both players going down to the court. Pipped added after the game that he doesn\u2019t believe he deserves a fine or suspension from the NBA.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think any punches or anything were thrown,\u201d he said. \u201cI think it was, like I said, a hug. I don\u2019t think it was too crazy. I got ejected. I think it should be left at that, but we\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gardner, who had his two-way contract converted to a standard deal by the Heat earlier this week, has become known for getting under opponents\u2019 skin with his physical play. Even after Saturday\u2019s fight, Spoelstra doesn\u2019t want Gardner to change.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
\u201cHis greatest strength is this unbridled intensity and effort and energy, and his heart is in a great place, and he\u2019s wired like us competitively,\u201d Spoelstra said of Gardner. \u201cSo you add that type of intensity to this competitive will that will boil over at times. I don\u2019t want to take away from that competitiveness.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe love Myron. I don\u2019t know what happened on the three-point shot. I just saw Pippen fall. I haven\u2019t seen the replay on that one. I just saw the play after that, and that looked like it was 95 percent Pippen. But let\u2019s just see what it is. I love Myron regardless.\u201d<\/p>\n
The rebuilding Grizzlies didn\u2019t offer much resistance, missing most of their regulars on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Along with trading two-time NBA All-Star center Jaren Jackson Jr. to the Utah Jazz earlier this month, the Grizzlies were without Santi Aldama (right knee injury management), Kyle Anderson (knee soreness), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (finger surgery recovery), Brandon Clarke (calf strain), Cedric Coward (knee hyperextension), Zach Edey (ankle stress reaction) and Ja Morant (elbow UCL sprain) against the Heat.<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
That left Memphis with a starting lineup of Jaylen Wells, Ty Jerome, Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Taylor Hendricks and Walter Clayton Jr. against Miami.<\/p>\n
The Grizzlies, which have now lost 11 of their last 14 games, had 11 available players on Saturday.<\/p>\n
With the Grizzlies now in 11th place in the Western Conference and moving in the wrong direction, one could say this is an example of tanking. Memphis owns its first-round pick in this year\u2019s draft.<\/p>\n
But Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo made it clear before Saturday\u2019s game that the team is still \u201ctrying to accomplish a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe expectations have not changed,\u201d Iisalo said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t have anything to do with the roster we play. We still expect everybody to give max effort, max focus, play for the team and learn new things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Heat was without Mitchell, Nikola Jovic (low back tightness), Vlad Goldin (G League), Jahmir Young (G League) and Terry Rozier (not with team) against the Grizzlies.<\/p>\n
It was a productive night for the Heat in its effort to avoid the NBA\u2019s play-in tournament for the first time on four years.<\/p>\n
The Heat\u2019s win over the Grizzlies paired with the Orlando Magic\u2019s double-overtime loss to the Phoenix Suns on Saturday moved Miami past Orlando for seventh place in the Eastern Conference standings.<\/p>\n
After Saturday\u2019s win, the seventh-place Heat (31-27) is one-half game ahead of the eighth-place Magic (29-26).<\/p>\n
Advertisement<\/p>\n
With the sixth-place Philadelphia 76ers also losing to the Pelicans on Saturday, the Heat moved closer to the sixth spot it needs to reach to avoid the play-in tourney.<\/p>\n
The Heat is now just percentage points behind the sixth-place 76ers (30-26).<\/p>\n
The Heat needs to finish among the East\u2019s top six teams to qualify for the playoffs without needing to take part in the play-in tourney. Miami has 24 regular-season games left to play after Saturday\u2019s victory.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to get out of the play-in, so we\u2019re locked into it,\u201d Powell said. \u201cWe know what we need to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Heat has needed to qualify for the playoffs through the NBA\u2019s play-in tournament in each of the last three seasons.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Five takeaways from the Miami Heat\u2019s 136-120 win over the Memphis Grizzlies (21-34) on Saturday night at Kaseya…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":618476,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3795],"tags":[500,208,1179,7,2710,3522,491,9481,1265,294,144,178,10699,4959,496,2597,229,981,865,2870,293,177,4070,189,121,30690,6,478,558,10824,76,675,2248,207,472,1185,4884,1677,181,1176,1201,492,427,2130,1083],"class_list":{"0":"post-618475","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-memphis-grizzlies","8":"tag-andrew-wiggins","9":"tag-atlanta-hawks","10":"tag-bam-adebayo","11":"tag-basketball","12":"tag-brandon-clarke","13":"tag-cedric-coward","14":"tag-davion-mitchell","15":"tag-dru-smith","16":"tag-gg-jackson","17":"tag-grizzlies","18":"tag-heat","19":"tag-ja-morant","20":"tag-jahmir-young","21":"tag-jaime-jaquez-jr","22":"tag-jaren-jackson-jr","23":"tag-jaylen-wells","24":"tag-kasparas-jakucionis","25":"tag-kelel-ware","26":"tag-kentavious-caldwell-pope","27":"tag-kyle-anderson","28":"tag-memphis","29":"tag-memphis-grizzlies","30":"tag-memphisgrizzlies","31":"tag-miami-heat","32":"tag-milwaukee-bucks","33":"tag-myron-gardner","34":"tag-nba","35":"tag-new-orleans","36":"tag-norman-powell","37":"tag-olivier-maxence-prosper","38":"tag-orlando-magic","39":"tag-pelicans","40":"tag-pelle-larsson","41":"tag-philadelphia-76ers","42":"tag-phoenix-suns","43":"tag-santi-aldama","44":"tag-taylor-hendricks","45":"tag-terry-rozier","46":"tag-the-grizzlies","47":"tag-the-heat","48":"tag-ty-jerome","49":"tag-tyler-herro","50":"tag-utah-jazz","51":"tag-walter-clayton-jr","52":"tag-zach-edey"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=618475"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618475\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/618476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=618475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=618475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=618475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}