What we learned from the Spurs loss to the Heat

Yesterday at 12:37 PM

No one could stop Bam Adebayo

The Spurs made a valiant effort without Victor Wembanyama but got beat at the horn by Bam Adebayo's game-winning shot. One of the biggest differences was that their offense was neutralized, scoring two baskets in the last five minutes. The team is now 4-4 in games decided by three points or fewer and 2-4 without Wemby.

The Heat may have been absent Jimmy Butler, but at this point they are better without him. One of the most encouraging signs was that the Spurs could hang in the game while being overmatched by the athleticism and length of Adebayo and rookie Kel'el Ware. The other was that the defense did a solid job of guarding without fouling, allowing just 17 free throw attempts, and holding the Heat to 5.5 percentage points below their average in 3-point shooting.

Although, the concerns were misfiring too many makeable opportunities and not being able to sustain the output of the first quarter. The Spurs shot 39 percent in the last three quarters.

Takeaways

• The half-court attack was miserable, scoring just 88.2 points per 100 plays, good enough for the 24th percentile of all games played this season, per Cleaning the Glass. Part of this was because the Heat's zone gave the Spurs problems by forcing bad shots and turnovers. Without Wemby, the team didn't have the matchup advantage who could shatter the zone in the middle. On Friday against the Bucks, such tactics were futile with him on the floor.
• Adebayo, who has played much better since Butler was banished, looked like an All-Star again against Charles Bassey. He was getting downhill and connecting on his jumpers. On top of that, the Heat didn't see resistance in the back line from a real shot blocker, which allowed them to score efficiently in the paint nonrestricted area and at mid-range.
• Wemby's absence freed minutes for the reserve bigs. Bassey's best work was recovering 15 rebounds, including seven on offense and making four shots at the rim. Sandro Mamukelashvili made three baskets in a row to give San Antonio a three-point lead late in the game. But Zach Collins was a dud, and Jeremy Sochan had trouble scoring against length.
• Keldon Johnson picked up where he left off the night before, scoring 17 points in the first half, mostly on trips to the line. But the Heat were ready for him in the second half, holding him to two points on 25 percent shooting.
• Castle didn't record the most eye-popping stats, but he stepped up as a playmaker, dishing six assists without the top target on the team. Furthermore, his pick-6 with under six minutes to go gave the Spurs a brief lead as both squads were head-to-head on the scoreboard for the quarter.
• Harrison Barnes spent most of his time off defense, bothering Ware, who had 25 points against the Spurs on Jan. 19. Ware only attempted two shots against him, making one in five-and-a-half minutes, per the NBA's tracking data.
• The most horrifying part of the film review for Coach Mitch Johnson and the team will probably be re-watching Terry Rozier spank them from long range. He had made 24 percent of his 3-point attempts from Dec. 1 to before the game. Johnson should take this opportunity to nip the latest trend - washed players balling out against the Spurs- after seeing what Rozier and Khris Middleton did to the team over back-to-back games.