There’s no telling what to expect when the circus called the Miami Heat roars into San Antonio on Saturday night for an inter-conference clash.
The Heat will face the Spurs to open a four-game road trip after a 126-106 loss at home to Cleveland on Wednesday. Terry Rozier scored 22 points off the bench for Miami, and Tyler Herro sank four 3-pointers to punctuate his 22-point performance, but neither player could not stop the Heat from losing for the sixth time in their past nine contests.
Bam Adebayo added 21 points in the setback, in which Miami never led and allowed the Cavaliers to shoot 54 percent from the floor. The Heat also lost the rebounding battle 47-35 and were outscored by 30 points in the paint.
“We’re a bigger front line, and this needs to be corrected,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the Heat’s rebounding issues. “There are no excuses now. We have to be a lot more physical and purposeful on the glass. It’s that important for us to finish possessions. We do collectively as a group have to get better at rebounding.”
Since Wednesday’s loss, it was revealed that Rozier has been a focus of a federal sports gambling probe regarding suspicious betting surrounding some of his statistics, although he hasn’t been accused of a crime or wrongdoing. The allegations stem from March 2023, when Rozier was a member of the Charlotte Hornets.
On Friday, Rozier told reporters, “On advice from counsel, I can’t answer any questions about that matter.”
Rozier is expected the play against the Spurs.
It’s all part of the whirlwind around the Heat, a situation that includes the indefinite suspension of star forward Jimmy Butler after he walked out of practice on Monday, his continuing demand to be traded, and Miami’s attempt to find some consistency.
Saturday’s game will be the second of a home back-to-back set for the Spurs, who snapped a two-game losing streak in impressive style on Friday, routing the Milwaukee Bucks 144-118.
Victor Wembanyama amassed 30 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Spurs, who led by 14 points heading into the fourth quarter and pulled away, reversing a recent trend that’s seen them run out of gas late in games.
“(Wembanyama) was great, matching the level of intensity and physicality and competitiveness he knew he was going to get from playing against (Milwaukee star) Giannis (Antetokounmpo),” Spurs acting coach Mitch Johnson said about Friday’s game. “He was expecting that kind of game, and he got it.”
Keldon Johnson added 24 points for San Antonio, which won for just the second time in its past seven outings. Stephon Castle hit for 20 points and Harrison Barnes 16.
The Spurs made a franchise record 24 3-pointers in the victory, accounting for half of their points.
“Some of that’s what they were giving us,” Johnson said of the 3-pointers. “Our passing was phenomenal just in terms of getting the ball to the right person on time and in the right place.”
–Field Level Media
