Lowe: Rival Teams Contemplate Miami Heat’s Surprising Path to the NBA Finals…

Lowe: Rival Teams Contemplate Miami Heat’s Surprising Path to the NBA Finals

As rival teams witnessed the Miami Heat’s ascent from the play-in tournament to the NBA Finals, many engaged in internal discussions centered around one question: What can we learn from this unexpected journey?

For some executives, the answer seemed to be very little. They viewed the Heat’s success as a combination of luck and a return to their usual form, considering their struggles with 3-point shooting throughout the season. The executives questioned whether the Heat would have advanced past the first round had Giannis Antetokounmpo not suffered a back injury in the opening game of their series against the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Heat managed to win most of that series by performing well in crunch time and capitalizing on multiple breakdowns from a veteran Bucks team that had won the championship just two years prior. Interestingly, Miami trailed by 50 points in the first three quarters but had an astounding +85 point differential in the fourth quarters and overtime.

Part of their success stemmed from their improved long-range shooting. After shooting a subpar 34% from beyond the arc during the regular season, ranking 27th in the league, the Heat elevated their shooting to 38% in the playoffs. Even during their one notable shooting slump in the Eastern Conference series, which occurred against the New York Knicks, they managed to time it well. In that series, they shot 31% on 3-pointers, but across their other three series, they shot an impressive 41%.

The Heat’s path to the Finals was fueled by their exceptional shooting, leading skeptics to question its replicability. They wondered how a strategy centered around “making significantly more 3-pointers than expected” could be sustained.
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