The Golden State Warriors have fallen to 6-15 since their 12-3 start to the season, losing 98-114 at the Chase Center to the Miami Heat. The Heat are without Jimmy Butler’s services as the star was suspended for this clash amidst his trade request from the franchise.
The Heat won this through a collective effort, led by Nikola Jovic’s 20 points (8-17 FG) and six rebounds off the bench. Bam Adebayo put up 19 points (9-14 FG) and nine rebounds while Jaime Jaquez Jr. had 18 points (7-12 FG) and five rebounds in the win. Tyler Herro struggled with 14 points (4-14 FG) and eight rebounds. Duncan Robinson (12 PTS, 4-6 3P) and Alec Burks (11 PTS, 3-6 FG) also played well.
The Warriors struggled to produce outside of Stephen Curry, who had 31 points (11-22 FG) and seven rebounds. Draymond Green had a near triple-double with seven points (3-9 FG), 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. Trayce Jackson-Davis had 19 points (9-12 FG) and seven rebounds while Buddy Hield had 11 points (4-12 FG), eight rebounds, and five assists off the bench. No other Warrior scored in double-figures.
This was a rough loss for Golden State, and here are some major takeaways from it.
Couldn’t Keep Up Offensively
The Warriors didn’t have a hope of keeping up with the Miami Heat in what was a dreadful offensive night for the team as a whole. Despite Curry going 11-22 from the field and 8-17 from three, the team as a whole went 40-98 from the field (40.8 FG%) and 14-50 from three (28.0 3P%).
If you remove Curry’s production, the Warriors role-players went 29-76 from the field and a dreadful 6-33 from three. There was no hope of keeping up offensively, especially when the Heat had the exact opposite night as a squad.
The Heat are missing top-end talent like Jimmy Butler, but tonight it was a rotational masterclass. Six players scored in double-digits as season-leading scorer Tyler Herro had a tough night (14 PTS, 4-14 FG). They all stepped up to share the load, with the Heat going 43-91 from the field (47.3 FG%) and 16-40 from three (40.0 3P%).
It wasn’t a red-hot shooting night for the Heat but it was an extremely competent offensive performance in the face of a team that seems incapable of replicating that themselves.
Warriors Don’t Have Enough Talent
Every single Warriors loss seems to reaffirm the fanbase’s belief the team desperately needs to add star talent next to Stephen Curry. They have a collection of young players and future draft picks but have obstinately not moved them to become a win-now franchise despite missing the Playoffs last season.
Jonathan Kuminga’s recent injury has shone a big light on the Warriors’ lack of a high-production co-star for Curry. Kuminga is their second-leading scorer this season despite not even being a solidified starter, showing how dire the situation is without him on the court.
Andrew Wiggins (9 PTS) and Buddy Hield (11 PTS) are woefully inconsistent while Draymond Green (7 PTS) has never been a scoring threat in his career. The offseason signing of Kyle Anderson (5 PTS) has completely flopped, and young stars such as Moses Moody (3 PTS) and Brandin Podziemski (DNP) simply haven’t taken the leap. All of this without even addressing their weak center rotation with Trayce Jackson-Davis (19 PTS) and Kevon Looney (DNP).
They need to make a major trade to give Curry a reason to play at such a high level after openly admitting the team has a poor roster and that his career is in its twilight.
Heat Don’t Need To Rush Trading Jimmy Butler
The Heat are a team that’s built well as a unit to be competitive even without Jimmy Butler. He has been in and out of the lineup this season with poor production, which led to his suspension as the Heat believe they can stay good without him. This was proof of that, as they played agenda-free basketball to create a well-paced offensive performance with stifling defense to execute this win.
It’s foolish to say the Heat are better without Butler, but they can still be good without him. This is a golden opportunity to flip Butler’s $48.7 million into more productive players who will be willing to play hard for them in the short term to boost their competitive chances this season. They don’t need to acquiesce to Butler’s wishes despite him ruling out teams as potential destinations.
The Heat played an attractive style of basketball with plenty of movement on and off-ball, something they’ve always done around Butler as a hub. But with Butler’s recent removal from the lineup, they’re embracing a more unpredictable style of offense that relies on almost everyone.
They need reinforcements to challenge the best teams in the NBA, but they don’t need to overreact on moving Butler for a deal that wouldn’t be optimal for their winning chances this season.
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