Shorthanded Heat Respond with 24-point Win Over Hawks in Game 4
Things looked like they were swinging in Atlanta’s favor on Sunday evening leading up to their Game Four clash with the Miami Heat. Fresh off a thrilling one-point win in game three, the Hawks gave word that starting center Clint Capela would return to action for the first time this postseason just as the Heat announced their veteran point guard Kyle Lowry would be unavailable due to injury. The basketball gods were smiling on Atlanta, or so it appeared. Capela’s return was just about the only positive for the Hawks as Miami ran the home squad off the floor in a 110 to 86 rout.
Having dropped game three in disappointing fashion, Miami was bound to retool their approach and get back to basics. At times in that third game, it looked like players didn’t know their assignments, either over or under helping. But in Game Four, the Heat defensive unit moved like a finely tuned machine. Miami forced Atlanta into 15 turnovers and held the Hawks to their lowest point total of the series so far. One Hawk that appeared to feel the effects of a reignited Heat defense was Trae Young. Young, who just tallied back-to-back games with over 20 points, was held to only nine points on Sunday night.
Young shot three for 11 on the evening while not many other Hawks fared much better as the final buzzer sounded with only two Atlanta players in double figures. De’Andre Hunter led the team with 24 points while West Palm Beach, FL native, John Collins, added eleven. Miami’s defense was stifling as five players recorded at least one steal with Jimmy Butler leading the way, collecting four robberies. Atlanta never managed to score more than 26 in a quarter and was held to just 15 points in the second.
After being heavily criticized for missing what would have been a game winning shot, a lot of players would fold under the pressure. For Jimmy Butler, the hate only seems to make him stronger. The slasher dropped 36 points in as many minutes on Sunday night, giving him more than the Hawks top two scorers combined. Butler made 12 of his 21 shots from the field and was almost perfect from the foul line at 11 of 12. If Hawks defenders even gave him room to breathe, he was on his way to the rim for a bucket. Butler led the charge in the middle as the Heat dominated the paint, outscoring Atlanta 48-26 underneath.
Despite missing floor general Kyle Lowry, the Heat operated smoothly in Game Four as they coasted to a 3-1 series lead. Gabe Vincent got his first career playoff start at point guard and looked comfortable in some important moments. Vincent shot 50% from beyond the arc, with nine of his 11 points coming from three-point range. Victor Oladipo finally got some minutes after spending most of the regular season and all of the playoffs on the bench. Oladipo looked explosive as he pestered Hawks ball handlers and skied above bigs to grab acrobatic rebounds. He finished with a respectable six points, four assists, and eight rebounds, but this quiet stat line doesn’t tell the most important part of the story.
What heat fans should be most excited about is how naturally Oladipo fit into the Miami line up. It looked like he’d been a starter all season as he sliced through the defense and found open cutters in stride for easy opportunities. This after just two days ago “sources” reported that Butler didn’t want to play with Oladipo.
But if we’ve learned anything about Jimmy Butler rumors and “sources”, it’s that they’re about as reliable as Shaq at the free throw line. Miami looks like they are back on track after a game three stumble and should be eager to close out Atlanta back home at FTX Arena. With Kyle Lowry likely to return soon, how will the rotation play out for the guard-heavy Heat?
On Sunday we saw Coach Erik Spoelstra’s faith in Gabe Vincent and willingness to sacrifice offense for high quality defense and smart basketball. Rather than start Duncan Robinson or Tyler Herro, both potent offensive weapons, Spoelstra opted to tip-off with Vincent and Max Strus at the guard spots. Vincent and Strus have proven to be technically sound defenders and carry a little offensive fire power of their own when shooting from long range. Vincent also showed on Sunday he can be an effective primary ball handler, logging 27 minutes without a turnover.
Their increased playing time comes after a second rocky season from Robinson, who signed a massive 90-million-dollar deal after his breakout 2020 campaign that saw Miami reach the Finals. Robinson played only nine minutes in Game Four and will likely be the odd man out when Lowry returns. Whether bad technique or bad luck, he just finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time defensively too often.
This wouldn’t be quite so detrimental to the Heat if he were shooting as consistently as he used to, but his 3pt average has wavered over the past two seasons. Basketball is a game of matchups so don’t rule out seeing Duncan back in the starting line up at some point, especially if he is able to catch fire like he has before. For the most part though, it appears that Spoelstra will prioritize defense and being the more physical side in their matchups. Look for Vincent and Oladipo both to see more minutes as the postseason wears on.
Holding a 3-1 lead, Jimmy Butler and this Miami gang will look to put the final nail in Atlanta’s coffin and move on to the second round of the playoffs. Only 13 teams in NBA history have overcome that kind of series deficit, but still Miami needs to be careful. It would do them a lot of good to close up the shop for good on Tuesday night so they can rest and prepare for the next round. If they let Game Five slip away, they risk exhausting an already depleted line up and the possibility of a potentially embarrassing implosion.
Miami is steadied by veteran leadership though, under the guidance of Butler, Lowry, and de facto Mayor of Miami-Dade County, Udonis Haslem. Coach Spoelstra will count on his leaders to keep the team’s focus on taking care of business at home to close out the series. “Everybody is in my ear about staying aggressive,” Butler said, “Tonight was a good one. We've got another one we've got to get.” Tuesday night’s do-or-die matchup tips off at 7 p.m. EST at Miami’s FTX Arena.
