Miami Heat Already Setting Poor Tone With Multiple Preseason Losses

By Jared Doyle @outofboundsjay on October 14, 2014

Much can be made about the NBA’s preseason in regards to a team’s future success. It is a time that teams coalesce and develop bonds that will hopefully transcend into the regular season, leading to multiple wins and eventually playoff success. This has been an important preseason for the Miami Heat organization, largely due to the acquisition of so many new players in the offseason, and the loss of one major one as well.

There have been initial struggles out of the gate for the Heat, as they currently have a 0-3 record in the preseason, and have struggled to gain any real fluency on offense. Key players like Chris Bosh, Luol Deng and Dwyane Wade have had their moments, but by and large, this has been a huge adjustment period for the new-look Heat roster, and the lack of fluency is extremely noticeable. The offensive and defensive playbook has to be changed to suit the skill sets of this new roster, and that is something Coach Erik Spoelstra is still working towards. This is one of the reasons the Heat have yet to win a preseason game.

What matters most is what you do in the playoffs (and multiple preseason losses won’t affect a team’s seeding), but one has to wonder how consecutive losses like this won’t affect the psyche of the Heat as a team. The starting lineup may be missing it’s key power forward in Josh McRoberts, but so far, numerous other players have struggled to get it going, especially off the bench (which is where this team needs the most support).

The Heat could notch their first preseason win tonight against the Atlanta Hawks, or they could end up losing a fourth consecutive game, likely leading to more self-doubt and angst heading into what could be a very tumultuous season. These preseason games are setting the tone for the upcoming season, and the Heat haven’t set themselves up for success so far.

Jared Doyle is a Miami Heat writer for www.RantSports.com.

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