{"id":646979,"date":"2026-03-08T11:02:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-08T11:02:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/646979\/"},"modified":"2026-03-08T11:02:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-08T11:02:24","slug":"will-erik-spoelstra-eventually-open-with-miami-heat-scorers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/646979\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Erik Spoelstra eventually open with Miami Heat scorers?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Q: So how do you change the lineup\/rotation when Andrew Wiggins and Norman Powell return? \u2013 Bruce.<\/p>\n

A: Actually, that\u2019s two different questions \u2013 lineup and rotation. The starting lineup is about ego, and, for some, future contracts. So go ahead and start Norman Powell and Tyler Herro together (which is I\u2019m assuming why you ask), alongside Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins and Pelle Larsson. But Erik Spoelstra often has quickly cycled into his rotation, so that\u2019s when you can separate Herro and Powell and insert Davion Mitchell, who already has received his Heat payday with last summer\u2019s contract. The reality is most teams still are getting their legs in the opening minutes, with even large early leads fully holding up. So satisfy the players\u2019 egos at the outset, then get to what works best from a strategic standpoint. But, first, get healthy.<\/p>\n

Q: Ira, regarding your article on tanking<\/a> and how it could impact Miami\u2019s playoff run. Give us your solution to the tanking problem. How would you deal with it by discouraging teams not to tank? \u2013 Rodney.<\/p>\n

A: By providing incentive for teams to compete at the close of the season, when the playoff races are the focus of attention and when you can\u2019t afford, as a league, to have opponents in those games competing as if attempting to forfeit. In that regard, I\u2019m in favor of a cutoff point, say the 50-game mark, where the lottery order is set, and then teams in that subset of standings can improve that lottery position by their total of ensuing wins. The question then becomes what if one of those teams makes the playoffs? But baby steps here, for now. Better to have teams tank early, when the NBA is overshadowed by the NBA and college football\u2019s playoff, then to have the product with its worst look when the NBA moves to center stage in the public eye.<\/p>\n

Q: We don\u2019t even compete in the Charlotte game without Tyler Herro<\/a>. You Herro bashers can all go jump in a lake. \u2013 Ray, Deerfield Beach.<\/p>\n

A: It remains fascinating how Tyler Herro does not get the full respect deserved as an elite offensive player because of those who focus on the shortcomings. Yet this league is replete with scorers who aren\u2019t defenders. The reality is this: When you win, everyone is a fan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Q: So how do you change the lineup\/rotation when Andrew Wiggins and Norman Powell return? \u2013 Bruce. A:…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":646980,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3778],"tags":[3879,7,144,165,295,189,3880,3881,6,66],"class_list":{"0":"post-646979","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-miami-heat","8":"tag-ask-ira","9":"tag-basketball","10":"tag-heat","11":"tag-latest-headlines","12":"tag-miami","13":"tag-miami-heat","14":"tag-miami-heat-blog","15":"tag-miamiheat","16":"tag-nba","17":"tag-sports"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116193221728599032","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646979","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=646979"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646979\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/646980"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=646979"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=646979"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=646979"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}