#miami-heat

#miami-heat

Parting ways with one of, if not the, best 3-point shooters in team history won't bode well for the Heat this season, especially considering they didn't do much to proactively replace him this offseason. Even though Robinson is not exactly lighting it up during his preseason stint with the Detroit Pistons, the Heat knows exactly the type of threat that he can be from deep.

Whether it's their 127-119 combined record or their middling 0.7 NET Rating over the last three combined seasons, the Miami Heat are in a state of mediocrity. They lost Duncan Robinson to the Detroit Pistons this offseason. But they added Simone Fontecchio, Norman Powell and re-signed guard Davion Mitchell. Refreshed and revived, the Heat aim to make noise in what's considered a wide-open East heading into the 2025-26 season.

Miami fell to 0-5 in the preseason after a road loss to the Atlanta Hawks in their fifth preseason game. With eight likely rotation players available for the Heat, Miami left much to be desired on both ends of the floor. To make matters even worse, the Hawks didn't even play the majority of their featured players, with Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Onyeka Okongwu, and Zaccharie Risacher all sitting out.

The Miami Heat are certainly playing faster and with greater pace, but the results simply have not been there. Despite ranking 8th in pace in the NBA through four preseason games, the Heat's offense is still struggling mightily. At this point, there's a chance this slight adjustment to the offense simply won't have the impact that the coaching staff had hoped.

If the preseason is any indication, the Miami Heat's offense will be one of the worst we've ever seen finishing at the basket. So, uh, here's hoping preseason is not, in fact, an indication of everything that's to come. Miami is currently shooting 56 percent at the rim. That isn't just bad. It's putrid. The NBA's average finishing rate at the hoop so far is 66.2 percent. This puts the Heat more than 10 points below it. Only the Los Angeles Lakers are faring worse.

The fact that the Miami Heat continue to have more questions than answers about the long-term future of their roster is something that fans should no longer stand for. If the team is not careful, the once-proud franchise is going to quickly spiral into one of the most irrelevant ones in the Eastern Conference. There was once a time when any Heat fan would be more than willing to blindly trust the front office.

Duncan Robinson is already making waves after making his debut for the Detroit Pistons, as he seems like a great fit on the wing. In many ways, the Miami Heat could already be regretting their move to cut ties with him this past offseason. Making his preseason debut with the Pistons, Robinson showcased exactly what made him a fan favorite in Miami. Playing around the established stars in Detroit, Robinson finished with 10 points, five rebounds, and two assists on 2-6 shooting from 3-point range.