Ira Winderman: From playoffs to retirement to Hall, a most memorable 2023 for Heat
When it comes to year-ending moments such as this, the NBA calendar makes it difficult to encapsulate the most meaningful of the year with its October-to-June scheduling. So breaking down the Best of Miami Heat 2023 can wind up being a tale of two seasons.
That said, before we turn to 2024 and its next set of twists and turns, reflections on 10 memorable 2023 chapters for what Pat Riley has built and Erik Spoelsrta has guided.
1. Game 7 vs. Boston Celtics, Eastern Conference finals: The context is what makes this stand out above all other 2023 moments, a case of rising from the lowest of lows.
First, the backstory: The Heat not only jumped to a surprising 3-0 series lead against the heavily favored Celtics, but two nights before this Game 7 at TD Garden, the Heat had lost at the buzzer at home on a stunning putback basket by Boston guard Derrick White.
Utterly deflated and poised to become the first team ever to blow a 3-0 lead in an NBA playoff series, the Heat instead became the first No. 8 seed to make the NBA Finals in 24 years, behind a brilliant 26-point performance from Caleb Martin and 28 points from series MVP Jimmy Butler.
2. Games 4, 5 vs. Milwaukee Bucks, Eastern Conference first round: It is difficult not to group these two together considering the commonality of Butler brilliance.
In Game 4 at Kaseya Center, the Heat were down 14 points before Butler ripped the heart from the top-seeded Bucks on the way to a 119-114 victory in a career-best 56-point performance, a playoff total bettered only by Elgin Baylor, Michael Jordan and Donovan Mitchell.
But Butler wasn’t done yet, coming back in Game 5 in Milwaukee to score at the regulation buzzer and forge a tie from a 16-point fourth-quarter, in a 42-point performance in a 128-126 series-ending victory.
3. Play-in game vs. Chicago Bulls: Somewhat forgotten along the unexpected path to the NBA Finals was the escape act on April 14 at Kaseya Center, when the Heat trailed the Bulls by 10 in the second half and by one with 2:17 remaining.
With Butler and Max Strus stepping up, each scoring 31, the Heat rallied for a 102-91 victory in the win-or-go-home game that gave them the eighth and final playoff seed in the East.
4. Udonis Haslem retires: With the 94-89 loss to the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, the 20-season career of Heat captain Udonis Haslem came to a close.
It is a career celebrated throughout 2022-23, including the presentation of a rocking chair by teammate and protege Bam Adebayo before Haslem’s final regular-season game, an emotional 123-110 home victory over the Orlando Magic on April 9, when Haslem was featured in a 24-point performance.
5. Dwyane Wade enshrined: Dwyane Wade became the first Miami Heat draft pick to enter in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, when he was enshrined in Springfield, Mass., on Aug. 12.
The enshrinement came as part of a star-studded class that also included Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Pau Gasol and Gregg Popovich.
6. Game 6 vs. New York Knicks, Eastern Conference semifinals: Having lost Game 5 of the best-of-seven series, the Heat fell behind by 14 early and appeared positioned for having to instead win a Game 7 of the series at Madison Square Garden.
Instead, the theme of playoff rallies continued, overcoming a 42-point performance from Jalen Brunson by limiting New York to 4-of-15 shooting in the fourth quarter.
7. Jaime Jaquez Jr. drafted: The move for UCLA forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. with the No. 18 pick on June 22 at the NBA draft was met largely with indifference, little expectation for such a mid-round selection to add to a team coming off the NBA Finals.
Instead, with all due respect to the likes of Tyler Herro and Adebayo, Jaquez has proven to arguably stand as the most-polished Heat draft pick over the past decade, a game changer for the 2023-24 roster.
8. Kevin Love added on buyout market: In the wake of the annual rumors at the trade deadline that instead saw long-time target Kevin Durant go to the Phoenix Suns, the Heat regroup by adding Kevin Love from the Cleveland Cavaliers on the buyout market.
Love not only went on to solidify the power rotation during the 2023 playoff run, but this season is providing balance to a surprisingly stout second unit.
The move came with the added context that because of the Heat’s position over the luxury-tax apron, the Heat are ineligible under the new collective-bargaining agreement to make a similar buyout acquisition this season.
9. Free-throw perfection: The Heat set an NBA record for shooting from the line in a 112-111 Jan. 10 victory over the Oklahoma City, in a game where each of those shots mattered, a game the Heat lacked Adebayo and Herro.
Butler finished 23 of 23 from the line, closing out the scoring with a free throw with 12.9 seconds remaining as part of a three-point play.
10. Continued growth: The start of the 2023-24 season came with a continued revival by Duncan Robinson, a clapback step forward by Herro in the wake of trade rumors, and further advancement in the offensive game of Adebayo.
Despite an uneven start amid a road-intensive, injury-marred open to the schedule, optimism is restored in the wake of an offseason when the pursuit of Damian Lillard was short circuited by the Portland Trail Blazers’ trade of the All-Star guard to the Bucks.
IN THE LANE
WAITING GAME: The waiting game continues for former Heat guard Gabe Vincent with the Los Angeles Lakers, with Wednesday’s arthroscopic knee surgery that will have him out at least eight weeks the latest setback for the offseason free-agent acquisition. “But on the flip side of that,” coach Darvin Ham said, “we’re pleased that now it’s going to be a huge light at the end of the tunnel, in terms of him getting his stuff cleaned up. We’ll check on him, nurse him back to health and get ready for a big contribution once he’s cleared.” Vincent left the Heat for a three-year, $33 million contact in the offseason. He missed the Lakers’ loss to the Heat on Jan. 6 at Kaseya Center and now also will miss the Heat’s Thursday game against the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena, having made just five appearances this season. “The fact that we can go ahead and get it alleviated and put it behind us, it’s great for him, great for us,” Ham said. The Heat had offered Vincent a four-year, $34 million contract to return.
STILL GOING: By contrast, the Heat continue to receive steady contributions from 37-year-old point guard Kyle Lowry. That, Philadelphia 76ers coach Nick Nurse said this past week, should come as no surprise, having coached Lowry with the Toronto Raptors. “When the ball goes up, man, deep down inside, he just competes,” Nurse said before the Christmas night game against the Heat at Kaseya Center. “I can’t tell you the amount of times that we talked about, ‘We’re going to take you out here. We’re going to play you this amount of minutes.’ ” Never worked, Nurse said. “And when the ball went up and the game got tough and we needed him out there, he wanted to be out there,” Nurse continued. “He’d crash right through all those plans and keep on playing and keep making plays.” Lowry is completing the final season of the three-year, $85 million contract signed when he left the Raptors in the 2021 offseason.
RESPECT GIVEN: For as much as former Heat captain Udonis Haslem railed on his recent podcast against ongoing Heat disrespect from Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, the two former Boston Celtics had nothing but praise for Heat rookie guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. during their recent Showtime Basketball podcast, putting him in the class of fellow rookies Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren. “I like that young kid,” Garnett said. “Listen, we keep talking about Wemby and Chet. This kid down in Miami is making a difference.” said Pierce, “Jaime is making a name for himself, no doubt.” Garnett said with Jaquez having played four seasons at UCLA, “He looks like he’s played in the league for three, four years already. Very seasoned. I’m talking about big shots, knows time and score, his technique.”
THE NEXT STEP: Having first drawn NBA notice in summer league with the Heat and then having polished his game further with the Heat’s G League affiliate, undrafted USC rookie Drew Peterson made his NBA debut last week … with the Boston Celtics. Poached from the Sioux Falls Skyforce by the Celtics, the 6-foot-9 3-point-shooting forward made his lone shot in a cameo in Boston’s 37-point victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. Of getting his NBA shot, Peterson told the Boston Globe, “I think where I fit in is just my IQ, my shooting and just being able to do a little bit of everything out there. Make strides, adding weight and being able to really physically battle out there is a big thing for me.”
NUMBER
5. Rookies with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in a Christmas Day game, which the Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. did on Monday night against the 76ers, with his 31 and 10. The others were Patrick Ewing (32, 11 in 1985), Walt Bellamy (35, 18 in 1961), Oscar Robertson (32, 15 in 1960) and Wilt Chamberlain (45, 34 in 1959).