Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo recently expressed his frustration with always being in the play-in tournament. It seemed like a warning to his teammates, and possibly, also a well-intentioned appeal to coach Erik Spoelstra.
Although only time will tell if Adebayo's message works, the Heat recorded an impressive 115-105 win against the Houston Rockets on Saturday. Spoelstra made the right decision to employ a zone defense, making life difficult for the Rockets.
The Heat are 5-5 in their last assignment, improving to 32-29.
In a report by Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald, Spoelstra admitted he has a love-hate relationship with zone defense. However, he stressed that at the end of the day, it's all about effort, as cliché as it sounds.
"No matter what the plan is, I always go back to it. It's about being committed to doing the hard work," said the three-time champion coach.
"We were really driving down the field, taking away airfields, and struggling to challenge shots at the rim. In a lot of these losses over the last three months, we're just giving up shots at the rim and threes."
The 55-year-old Spoelstra is considered one of the most brilliant strategists in the NBA, and he knows his willingness to do less glamorous things on the field will set him apart from the competition.
The Heat held the Rockets to only 43% shooting from the field, including 9 of 36 from three-point territory. He also hit the Rockets inside, scoring 66 points in the paint.
Miami has been in the play-in tournament for the past three seasons, including advancing to the NBA Finals in 2023.
