A tough run of losses for the Miami Heat came to a thankful end for the team against the Charlotte Hornets.
Confidence has been low on the Miami Heat in recent weeks, with the players admitting they were not enjoying their worst losing streak since 2008, and feeling a sense of shame.
The team lost 10 games in a row before defeating the Hornets, with Andrew Wiggins splashing 42 points, showing what he is capable of.
The losing streak has left Miami 10th in the Eastern Conference, having been overtaken by the Chicago Bulls.
The Miami Heat’s record during their losing streak has left the players intensely frustrated. There have been a lot of close games, which the Heat have failed to close, often giving up leads in the fourth quarter.
Heat legend Udonis Haslem spoke on NBA Today last week, and was not critical. He just pointed out this was a lesson for their leaders to learn through, and grow, an opportunity to improve.
A former team veteran and a bastion of the Heat Culture, Haslem was called out for accepting the drop in standards on the current team.
ESPN reporter Tim MacMahon mocked his comments on The Hoop Collective, using his latest approach as a sign of how the Heat have fallen.
He said: “The Heat have fallen so hard you have Udonis Haslem on NBA Today the other day, praising them for playing hard all 48 minutes.
“Like dude, the guy who was the enforcer of paragraph and the paint Heat Culture is passing out orange slices and participation ribbons on national TV after they lost their ‘I don’t know how many’ straight game.”
Plainly speaking, MacMahon has a point that the Miami Heat have let their standards drop. This is a talented team that should not be losing 10 straight games, in any circumstances. And this was not a message Haslem was ready to put out.
There are two All-Star level players in Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, the latter has been criticized for a dip in performance in 2024-25.
An opportunity to right some wrongs is fast approaching, with Miami set to face former player Jimmy Butler’s Warriors, with Adebayo promising he is up for the battle.
A win might not mean much in the great context of the season, but it would be more impressive than their solitary win in the last 11 games that came against Charlotte.
