Should There Be Concerns About Miami Heat’s Three-Point Shooting Struggles?

Miguel Mike Medina | 2 Hours Ago

Nov 4, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra watches from the sideline against the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Miami Heat have shown they can shoot the 3-point ball.

When it goes in, they’re tough to beat. Despite the victory over the Philadelphia Sixers, they struggled from the three-point line.

The Heat made 13 of 44 (29 percent) from the arc.

Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson combined to shoot 4 of 20. Those are strange numbers coming from the best shooters on the team.

Josh Richardson (0-4), Alec Burks ( 1 of 6) and Kevin Love (1 of 3) also struggled.

“I think our guys understand that the symbiotic relationship matters,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We have way too many like ignitable game-changing three-point shooters not to take advantage of it. We really do. You even see that with Alec in the second quarter, who hasn’t played a handful of games, and all of a sudden, he can go on a run. Tyler can go on a run. Duncan can go on a run. All of the guys can go in a run. K-Love.” 

Spoelstra explains in detail that it’s more than just three-point shooting; getting to the rim and scoring inside are much more critical.

“It’s Jimmy getting to the rim,” Spoelstra said. “Bam creating actions and different guys at different times getting into the paint. We need both. So it’s not just one or the other.” 

The Heat have struggled to shoot from the perimeter in the last couple of games. They shot 37 percent against the Detroit Pistons. They also had difficulty from the arc in two games against the Indiana Pacers. 

Miguel Mike Medina is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at medinamiguelmike@gmail.com

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