Azam2023

Azam Masood

The 2023-2024 schedule is hot off the presses. Gear up for the upcoming NBA season by checking out all 82 of our games plus preseason right here. As always, we’ll highlight some of the juiciest matchups of the year and tell you what to keep an eye on. We’ll also focus on a few matchups taking place during the new NBA In-Season Tournament and the implications behind Miami’s upcoming battles in the newly formed East Group B. Let’s dive in:

1. Back in Boston for the First Road Game of the YearThe HEAT stamped their ticket to the NBA Finals last season by throttling the Boston Celtics at the TD Garden, winning a Game 7 on the road for the first time in franchise history. With these two clubs having met one another in the Eastern Conference Finals three times in the past four years, it is safe to say the HEAT and the Celtics are the class of the East and are poised to cross paths in their respective runs to the Finals yet again.

The HEAT will face off against Boston on October 27th in a nationally televised matchup, and this iteration of Boston will look a bit different than the club Miami faced just months prior. Gone is longtime starting point guard Marcus Smart, and in comes 7’3” former All-Star Kristaps Porzingis. Boston will boast one of the tallest frontlines (and possibly one of the tallest starting lineups in the league) next season, and Porzingis offers the Cs another capable 20+ point scorer to run offense through. With Smart (a former Defensive Player of the Year) gone however, the Celtics are hoping Malcolm Brogdan, the reigning Sixth Man of the Year award winner, can fill in his role as a starter in the backcourt.

2. HEAT Kick Off In-Season Tournament Against New-Look WizardsThe HEAT’s debut Group Play match of the In-Season Tournament will be against the Washington Wizards on Friday, November 3rd. The Wizards have overhauled their roster, losing leading scorers Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis, but adding scoring-oriented Jordan Poole and well-rounded point guard Tyus Jones to form their new backcourt while retaining the ascendant Kyle Kuzma in the frontcourt.

3. Wembanyama vs BamThe HEAT will get to meet 7’4” rookie phenom Victor Wembanyama quite early in the season, traveling to San Antonio to face the Spurs on November 12th. The first overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft is widely expected to be a frontrunner for Rookie of the Year and with newly-inducted Hall-of-Fame coach Gregg Popovich mentoring the 19-year-old, it will be quite an opportunity to see where the big man’s game stands as he gets to challenge Adebayo, one of the most singularly talented defenders in the league who nonetheless will be giving up roughly seven inches in the matchup.

4. Black Friday Battle in Madison Square GardenThe HEAT will make their first sojourn to the Big Apple and face off against the New York Knicks on November 24th in a nationally televised game. If you remember, the HEAT took down the Knicks in six games during last year’s Eastern Conference Semifinals, the first time these two clubs met in the playoff since 2012.

Notably, this is an In-Season Tournament match as the Knicks and HEAT are both in East Group B, so the implications are a bit greater than your typical late-November game. The Knicks have brought back most of their roster, adding swingman Donte DiVincenzo in free agency. Miami will again hope that Bam Adebayo (18.7 PPG, 9.7 RPG against NY in the playoffs) is the best big man on the floor against the Knicks duo of Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson.

5. HEAT wrap up Group Play by Welcoming BucksThe HEAT will host Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks as they close out the Group Play stage of the In-Season Tournament on November 28th. Depending on how East Group B performs leading up to this matchup, this game could very well be the deciding factor in who gets to advance to the Knockout Round of the Tournament. Beyond In-Season Tournament implications, the Bucks will be looking to avenge their shocking first-round exit at the hands of the HEAT. Jimmy Butler averaged a HEAT-playoff series record 37.6 PPG against the Bucks in last season’s opening playoff round and will likely need to summon some more heroics to help Miami potentially advance in the new tournament.

6. Christmas in Miami: HEAT Face off Against 76ersThe Miami HEAT make their return to Christmas-Day hoops, squaring off against the Philadelphia 76ers at 8:00 PM. The HEAT have an all-time record of 11-2 on Christmas and are a perfect 8-0 during the tenure of HEAT head coach Erik Spoelstra. They look to continue gifting HEAT fans with Christmas joy and hope to leave a lump of coal in reigning league MVP Joel Embiid’s stocking. This will be the first time these two clubs have matched up on December 25th, with Miami having previously played Chicago (1997), Los Angeles (2004-2006; 2013), Cleveland (2007, 2014), New York (2009), Dallas (2011), and Oklahoma City (2012).

7 & 8. West Coast Trip Features Lakers, Suns ShowdownsThe HEAT begin their annual west coast road trip a few days after Christmas and will be on the road for five consecutive matchups. Sandwiched in the middle is a faceoff against the Los Angeles Lakers on January 3rd. The Lakers bolstered their depth by signing former HEAT guard Gabe Vincent in free agency and still feature one of the league’s fiercest duos in LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

After Los Angeles, it will be a short turnaround to face the new-look Phoenix Suns, who acquired former Wizards All-Star Bradley Beal in the offseason to give themselves a formidable trio of Beal, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant. It will also be Durant’s first time facing the HEAT since he joined the Phoenix Suns.

9. Leap Year Day Showdown in DenverMiami will attempt to avenge their NBA Finals loss when they return to the Ball Arena and face the defending champion Denver Nuggets on February 29th. While Miami has historically had a bit of a tough time playing in Denver, they managed to win Game 2 of the NBA Finals on Denver’s home floor, riding 17 made threes and a combined 42 points from Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.

Denver lost key bench player (and former University of Miami guard) Bruce Brown to free agency, but is otherwise bringing back their same starting lineup from a season ago and will continue to feature one of the league’s fiercest offenses behind the world-historic passing and scoring of current Finals MVP Nikola Jokic. Interestingly, Miami poached one of Denver’s own, Thomas Bryant, in free agency this past offseason. They will need all the size and skill they can muster in order to effectively match up against the Nuggets.

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The Road Back to the Finals: 9 Things to Watch with the Release of the 2023-24 Schedule

One thing we know for sure - The Miami HEAT are never giving less than 100% when the season starts no matter the composition of their roster. With that said, it’s time to get fired up for a new event established by the NBA that will take place during the 2023-2024 season and beyond. Known as the NBA In-Season Tournament, the competition will tip off on Friday, November 3rd, and culminate with a pair of semifinal games and, finally, a championship matchup at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on December 9th.

With the schedule now official, your Miami HEAT will play their first tournament game against the Washington Wizards at 8:00 P.M. at the Kaseya Center. Ticket information for that game, and all other home In-Season Tournament games, can be found here. The HEAT will also debut brand-new City Edition jerseys which will be worn throughout the tournament.

Now this doesn’t mean the regular season, playoffs, or NBA Finals are being removed or altered. NBA teams will still play 82 regular season games, and the top eight seeds will clinch playoff berths and compete for an NBA Championship, the league’s most coveted prize, in the traditional best-of-seven format.

Rather, this new tournament has been implemented to add additional excitement to the regular season by injecting a bit of international-style sports competition into the league and giving all 30 teams a real shot at some hardware. There’s also a cash prize for the top teams that manage to advance in the tournament as well as accolades for the top performers.

This tournament will also provide another potential trophy to win, with a format that throws in the insane variability of one-game samples for those who get past the Group Play games. Most teams will lose a seven-game series when facing a superior opponent, but the new Knockout Round introduces just enough chaos to make it so that it’s truly unclear who will get to hoist the NBA Cup in December. And really, none of this will be intrusive in a way that distracts from the season or diminishes the postseason. Here’s a breakdown of the format and rules:

Still confused? Think about it this way. During the first third of the year, the regular season games you’d normally watch will have a little bit more significance on Tuesdays and Fridays. The regular season will otherwise remain intact, but it’s going to feel a tad better to win those group-stage games. Fans at the Kaseya Center always bring the noise, but starting with these home Group Stage games, a playoff-type atmosphere will be needed to aid Miami’s tournament ambitions.

Besides, wouldn’t the NBA Cup look nice next to a trio of Larry O’Brien’s?

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The NBA Cup Chase: Get Excited, HEAT Nation!

Remember 2003? It was the era of iPods, American Idol, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and obscenely baggy suits. It was a unique time in sports too, both nationally and here in South Florida. Michael Jordan announced his third and final retirement from the NBA, the then-Florida Marlins won their second World Series, and the Miami Dolphins continued to navigate uncharted waters a couple seasons removed from the retirement of Dan Marino, who at that time held nearly every passing record in the NFL and still remained a prominent fixture of the community via his foundation work.

As for the Miami HEAT? They were facing something of a rebuild. After six consecutive playoff berths and numerous battles with those rival New York Knicks, a couple of lean years followed, with the team wrapping up a 25-57 campaign in 2002-03 and earning the 5th overall pick of the NBA Draft.

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you know the rest but bear with us for a second.

The HEAT have had a rich 36-season history with the great fortune of having Hall-of-Famers Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Gary Payton, Shaquille O’Neal, Chris Bosh, and Ray Allen all play significant parts of the team’s story (and it goes without saying that LeBron James joining this list is a formality only limited by the three-year waiting period after retirement to gain Hall-of-Fame eligibility). Since the turn of the millennium, the HEAT currently possess a tie for the best record in the Eastern Conference (regular season and playoffs) alongside the Boston Celtics, and have made the postseason 18 times.

But none of those aforementioned players started their respective journeys in Miami. On August 12th, 2023, that distinction will only be held by Dwyane Wade, who stands as the lodestar of this franchise’s inimitable tale.

The clip is still easy to find online, a fresh-faced 21-year-old Wade, infant son Zaire on his lap and dressed in what he once referred to as “enough fabric to clothe the entire country,” shaking then-NBA commissioner David Stern’s hand after being selected with the 5th pick in a draft that still stands as one of the greatest in NBA history. Wade would participate in Summer League and the first of many rigorous training camps, meeting and befriending an undrafted rookie named Udonis Haslem in the process and earning the starting point guard role.

Facing one of his heroes, Allen Iverson, to begin his professional career, Wade and company turned the growing pains of an 0-7 start into a 42-40 triumph, winning 17 of their last 21 games to catapult themselves into the Eastern Conference’s 4th seed. The HEAT, back in the playoffs, would put the ball in the rookie’s hands and he would deliver, sinking a game-winner against the New Orleans Hornets in his debut postseason appearance and helping to deliver the HEAT’s first playoff series win since 2000.

If there was enough space in this story, we could rattle each of Wade’s subsequent accomplishments season-by-season, but we’ll have to instead settle for a resume speedrun befitting of the Flash moniker Wade was bestowed with by Shaquille O’Neal. From 2003-2019 HEAT fans were witness to 25,420 points, 6,156 assists, 1,893 steals, and 1,055 blocked shots during his 15-season tenure with the HEAT when combining regular season and playoff statistics. Those statistics lead to 13 All-Star selections and eight All-NBA Team honors during his career. In addition, Wade was also a part of the legendary 2008 USA Men’s National Basketball Team, leading the club in scoring and winning a gold medal. Peruse the HEAT record books further and Wade will be on the list, if not solidly atop it.

And there’s no forgetting the NBA hardware hand-delivered by Dwyane. The franchise secured the first of its three NBA Championships on the shoulders of D-Wade, piercing through even the rosiest of expectations in 2006 and solidifying Wade as a Finals MVP (34.7 PPG in the Finals) and generational talent before even turning 25 years old. Later, a seismic partnership with LeBron James and Chris Bosh produced four consecutive Finals appearances and two additional titles that even the most hardened skeptics have little rebuttal for. The on-court heroics rarely ceased, but Wade also demonstrated uncommon selflessness, turning down even greater statistical glory in service of winning.

The story of Dwyane Wade and the Miami HEAT is a story of a fanbase who witnessed a singular player over the course of two decades transform this city and its sporting ambitions. A fanbase of children in 2003 now stands as adults with a scrapbook of sporting memories forged by Wade. Whether you were clanging pots and pans, celebrating until your voice went hoarse, or had the privilege of witnessing the #OneLastDance season with your children in 2019, just about everyone invested in this team and this sport has received that gift of pure elation that sports have the power to deliver onto us all, with Wade as the conduit.

As he enters the hallowed hoop hallways of Springfield in a few weeks, no amount of debate television or podcast soundbites can encapsulate the richness of this 20-year journey and its innumerable highs and lows. Dwyane Wade was a remarkable talent, yes, someone named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team alongside true giants of the game. But there’s an argument that he has even fewer peers when it comes to so thoroughly changing the fabric of a city through his on and off-the-court excellence, exemplified by his numerous philanthropic endeavors over these 20 years as much as his numerous game-winning baskets.

Dwyane Wade likely won’t be the last Hall-of-Famer to pass through Biscayne Blvd., but it’s hard to imagine any single athlete leaving a mark as indelible as Wade has on this city and organization. Joining his peers in Springfield is a well-deserved honor, but it only further solidifies what has long been known by this city:

Dwyane Wade, this will always be your house.

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Hall of Dwyane: 20 Years Later, the HEAT’s Very Own Enters Springfield

It’s well-worn territory at this stage to identify Miami as a spot where less heralded young players can nonetheless forge a path to a fruitful NBA career. Though you could trace the HEAT finding talent where other organizations didn’t back to the late 90s, 2015 was a fairly substantive year for the franchise in this regard. After four consecutive NBA Finals appearances from 2010 to 2014, the organization began forging a slightly different way forward. While still led by franchise stalwarts Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, a chunk of the roster surrounding them was suddenly a crop of young players who didn’t have to wait long to be thrown right into the fires of high-level NBA basketball.

One of those players was Josh Richardson, a 6’6” swingman who spent four seasons with the Tennessee Volunteers before being selected in the second round (40th overall) of the 2015 NBA Draft. Richardson played sparingly in the first half of his rookie year, but a now-famous story involving Erik Spoelstra and a December shooting drill ("No, no. We're shooting again. You've got to make 70.") was a catalyst for a post-All-Star break explosion from “Rook 2.”

Richardson wound up shooting 53.3% from beyond the arc and averaged 10.2 points after the All-Star break for a team that would secure the third seed in the East. Richardson would go on to play in all 14 postseason games that year, and averaged 27.6 minutes a game while defending players such as Kemba Walker, DeMar DeRozan, and even Kyle Lowry.

Three more seasons would follow, with J-Rich upping his minutes, scoring, rebounding, and assist averages in each subsequent year. But in the 2019 offseason, Richardson was the cornerstone of a trade package that brought Jimmy Butler to Miami. Richardson would go on to spend time in Philadelphia, Dallas, Boston, San Antonio, and New Orleans, but through those travels, the door to the HEAT was never fully shut.

“It almost happened a couple times in the past, but it never really worked out all the way,” remarked Richardson in his first comments since signing with the team. “So the HEAT was always kind of in my mind. But I think just the timing kind of worked out for everybody right now.”

Now 29 years old, J-Rich brings a skillset always in demand with his ability to defend multiple positions on the perimeter while functioning as a release-valve shooter on offense. Richardson already ranks 12th in franchise history in made three-pointers (419) and now has a chance to leapfrog into the top eight (surpassing one Dwyane Wade at 481 made threes) should he merely continue his career trends from outside. But on this iteration of the team, Richardson won't quite be expected to shoulder the same scoring load he did in the 2018-2019 season, and he is acutely aware he is playing with a very different Bam Adebayo than the player he remembers during his first stint.

“He’s been great,” Richardson said of Bam. “Just from the way he’s grown as a ball handler, to his confidence attacking through the whole game.” [His All-Star status] comes with a lot of responsibility and I think that he’s done a good job of shouldering that and being one of those guys for this HEAT team the last few years.”

Whether he lands a starting spot or comes off the bench, Richardson will be a core member of a perimeter rotation that is always yearning for two-way players. And unlike other new arrivals, the learning curve may not be as steep for someone who’s already been as seeped into the HEAT ethos as Richardson has.

“I’ll have a different role with Bam, Jimmy, and those guys who are the alphas,” Richardson said. “But I don’t have a problem with figuring out where I fit in, where I can best help the team win games.”

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Rook 2 Returns as a Vet: Josh Richardson Back in Miami

“This is Jamal Cain, man,” bellowed Bam Adebayo back in October of last year. “Realize who this is. This is Jamal Cain. He’s going to be in the league for a long time. This is my dawg, man.”

Adebayo’s ringing endorsement of his new rook came on the heels of Cain, then largely an unknown, producing a 15-point, 11-rebound line against the Brooklyn Nets on national TV. Granted, this was during the 2022 preseason, but Jamal had already hit one major milestone at that point in time by making it to the NBA and spending parts of his exhibition season guarding all-time scoring savants such as Kevin Durant.

Cain, a 6’7” forward out of Oakland, went undrafted before joining the HEAT program for his rookie season, inking a two-way contract after strong Summer League and preseason play. Cain would split time between Sioux Falls and the NBA, and in his 25 games with the Skyforce, Cain averaged 20.5 points and 8.5 rebounds while shooting 55.6% from the field and 36.2% from beyond the arc.

Cain also participated in 18 regular season games with the HEAT, setting career-best marks against the Orlando Magic on April 9th, scoring 18 points on 6-7 shooting and a perfect 4-4 from beyond the arc. In his abbreviated NBA run, Cain maintained similar efficiency, shooting 56.1% from the field and 35.0% from three in the pros.

“I was really encouraged by his improvement this year,” said head coach Erik Spoelstra. “He has great spirit about him. “Every single day he comes in with a smile on his face. He loves to work. He loves to compete.”

The competing hasn’t stopped for Cain, who’s now gone through his second tour of duty playing for the HEAT’s Summer League team. Through 5 games split between Sacramento and Las Vegas, Cain has averaged 15.5 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 51.5% from the field, 38.1% from beyond the arc, and 88.2% from the line.

Cain is a rangy athlete who can take off and run for easy baskets off opponent mishaps (1.3 steals per game in Sioux Falls) and has continued to showcase his explosive leaping ability in the past few weeks. But his time with the Skyforce also allowed Jamal to refine his abilities as a self-creator and perimeter shooter. Now, Summer League head coach Caron Butler is challenging the 24-year-old to develop his off-ball game.

“When he was in the G-League, he had the ball in his hand a lot, isolation stuff, a lot of dribbles,” noted coach Butler. “But here, one one-thousand, two one-thousand, getting off of it, playing off better players. He’s learned so much. And he understands where he needs to be from a spacing standpoint on the floor.”

With the ability to play either forward position, Cain fills a need for a group that has always found opportunities for tenacious rim rattlers and has an ample history of downsizing at the power forward position in service of versatility. Additionally, the consistent efficient shooting splits (with the caveat of small samples and multiple leagues, sure) during his brief professional career is an encouraging sign that Cain’s athleticism and range are indeed functional at the pro level.

But Cain recognizes his bones will be made on the defensive end if he wishes to have a fruitful NBA career. He’s focused on harnessing his abilities in order to be able to not only defend the league’s best, but execute in Miami’s demanding system, a cog flowing within the machinery of a unit adept at meshing and flowing in and out of identities to rattle opponents.

“I really want to hone in on the defensive end,” Cain said. “So I want to guard the best players. I want to use my quickness and athleticism to try to be a disruptor. And I want to work on my body and get stronger.”

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Jamal Cain: Explosive Sophomore Expands Game

In the grand scheme of an unforgettable HEAT season that culminated in an NBA Finals appearance, a mid-November matchup against the Washington Wizards may not be one of the first things anyone remembers. But this game was notable for a few reasons. Due to a variety of injuries, Miami had only eight players active and played only seven that night, starting a lineup of Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, Caleb Martin, Haywood Highsmith and Nikola Jović. The veteran Lowry aside, this was a unit with few NBA years under their belts.

And their bench? That would be both of their 2022-2023 two-way contract players, rookies Orlando Robinson and Jamal Cain.

Now Robinson was no stranger to the HEAT as he signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the team in July of 2022 and participated in the team’s Summer League program, but Robinson was waived by the HEAT in October before getting the call to rejoin on November 13th. Just five days later, Robinson was asked to play 32 minutes in his NBA debut and spend time defending 7’3” Kristaps Porzingis, a one-time All-Star, in a game that, of course, went into overtime. Robinson more than held his own, putting up 14 points on 6-10 shooting to go with 7 rebounds and a blocked shot.

There were a few warts, primarily that Robinson committed five fouls as he adjusted to the speed of the NBA for the first time, but all in all, it was as impressive a debut as any HEAT rookie has had in recent memory. Perhaps also of note, Robinson attempted a pair of three-point shots in his debut, including a corner attempt with 32 seconds left in regulation and Miami leading 104-101.

Had that shot gone in, Miami almost assuredly comes away with a victory. Instead, the HEAT ended up losing the game 107-106 in OT as the heavy minutes required of everyone available seemed to take its toll (69 first-half points; 37 points in the second half + OT). But nearly taking down a full-strength Wizards team with Lowry (who played nearly 51 minutes and posted his only triple-double of the season) and a slew of young and largely undrafted players was quintessential HEAT.

Robinson was waived two weeks later but brought back in December, this time for the balance of the season on a two-way deal, and continued to contribute in spot minutes for the HEAT as a backup center. In a December 26th matchup against the three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves, Robinson outplayed his matchup, scoring a season-best 15 points, snagging 9 boards (7 offensive) and dishing out 4 dimes to boot as the HEAT won 113-110.

"He's very steady. Everybody is coaching him, teaching him, screaming at him, yelling at him, directing him and everything in between,” said head coach Erik Spoelstra after the victory in December. “He's very stable. He can take the information, process it and apply it. He really works every single day to be able to produce and be ready for these moments."

In total, the 6’11” big man played in 31 regular season games as a rookie in the NBA and spent another 16 playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce, where he put up gaudy averages of 21.2 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game while shooting 53.7% from the floor.

Now prepping for year two, Robinson is currently participating in his second Summer League with the HEAT club. In his opening game against the Los Angeles Lakers in Sacramento, Robinson started and put up 13 points and 8 rebounds. But what stuck out most was that Robinson let it fly from the perimeter and hit 2-3 shots from beyond the arc. A few days later at the Las Vegas portion of Summer League, Robinson exploded for 36 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and a pair of blocked shots against the Boston Celtics. He did it both inside and out, shooting 13-22 from the field, 7-8 from the foul line, and a sizzling 3-4 from three.

After his NBA debut last year, Robinson would take only four other three-point attempts the rest of the season, missing all of them, so to see not only the improvement but the willingness to shoot has been a welcome sight.

“We’ve been talking a lot about Orlando’s spacing on the floor,” HEAT Summer League head coach Caron Butler said. “His assessment test has been off the charts, so you’re going to see him in different regions of the floor.”

While it might be a bit ambitious to project Orlando shooting from outside at high volume like his big man teammate Kevin Love next year, Robinson’s willingness to adapt and expand his game has not gone unnoticed by the coaching staff. Indeed, Robinson was offered a standard contract on July 1 and expects to compete for the backup center role moving forward.

“I started getting really excited because obviously, this is what I’ve been working toward all last year and my entire life,” Robinson said after learning of the deal.

Robinson has touted the hours of behind-the-scenes work he and the staff have worked towards, and he’s hopeful his second year in the NBA allows him to show off a more well-rounded game.

“I would say that my game has gotten better in the areas of playing off the ball,” Robinson said. “Now I’m more aware, I know where to go in certain situations, drives, kicks. Because before, I felt like I wasn’t really an off-the-ball player, I was more mainly on the ball. So just adding the off-the-ball part of my game to what I already have had kind of completed me in a sense.”