The new NBA season is right around the corner. To help get ready for the 2024-25 NBA season, we’re looking at three questions each NBA team could face next season.
Here, we have the Miami Heat, who will undoubtedly want to bounce back from their first-round exit in the 2024 playoffs.
Do they have enough depth?
Miami hasn’t been very active this summer. Its only addition in free agency has been Alec Burks despite losing Caleb Martin, Patty Mills and Orlando Robinson.
The Heat’s depth has been a question for the past two years. The franchise continues to lose consistent role players and has often looked to replace them from within or by trying to unearth another star.
Erik Spoelstra’s challenge will be finding ways to keep the Heat competitive despite having a weaker roster than two years ago when the team marched into the NBA Finals. His star player is two years older, and his depth is thinner. Miami’s overall roster construction should be concerning to fans who crave a deep postseason run.
Will Terry Rozier thrive after an offseason with the team?
The Heat acquired Rozier at the Feb. 8 trade deadline to help fix their ball-handling and playmaking issues. Unfortunately, the veteran guard dealt with multiple injury problems, limiting his ability to find a rhythm on his new team and get used to Spoelstra’s system.
With a full summer under his belt, Rozier will undoubtedly hope to have a strong year with the Heat. His fit with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo should yield great results. Rozier is exceptional when attacking off the dribble and is adept at making the right read when defenses collapse on him. He’s also talented when creating his own shot and shooting off the catch. As such, his gravity and probing drives should open things up for his star-level teammates.
Rozier gives Miami a legitimate scoring threat at the guard position. If he can hold his own on defense and gel with Butler and Adebayo, Spoelstra will have a solid trio to build the rest of his roster around. If not, the Heat will struggle to break down opposing defenses in the half-court, just as they did last season.
Is Jimmy Butler still the No. 1 option?
Butler is 34-years-old. He has begun to take his foot off the gas during the regular season so that he can be at his best during the playoffs.
Sooner or later, Spoelstra must pivot to Adebayo being his primary offensive option. By running more of the offense through Adebayo, Butler taking things easy won’t be such a hit to the overall offensive system, and it will allow the Heat to become more fluid when moving the ball.
If Butler remains Miami’s first option on offense, Spoelstra must find a way to get him to buy into a full season of intense effort. The Heat must finish with a strong seeding if they’re going to have a chance of navigating the increasingly difficult Eastern Conference.
