Heat guard Avery Bradley made the most of his opportunity on Christmas Day, recording 12 points, four assists and two steals in the team’s first win of the season, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes.
This was Bradley’s first action with Miami, who signed him to a free-agent contract last month. His pesky defense was notably effective against Pelicans guard J.J. Redick, holding the veteran shooter to just 1-of-7 from the floor.
“It’s something that just sort of happened,” Bradley said. “But this league is a league where you have to always be prepared. We’re professional athletes, and part of being professional is always staying ready.
“I knew if I got my opportunity, I was going to make the most of it and go out there and play as hard as I can and leave everything on the floor. And that was my goal, to play that way and live with any mistakes that I make.”
Bradley’s career has been predicated on hard-nosed defense, especially against smaller guards, though many wonder how productive he can be offensively. Should he continue playing as he did on Christmas, the 30-year-old would have a legitimate shot at becoming a regular rotation piece for the defending Eastern champs.
There’s more from the Southeast Division tonight:
- Heat rookie Precious Achiuwa is already impressing coaches and teammates alike during his first month in the NBA, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes. Achiuwa finished with 11 points off the bench on Friday, but the 21-year-old fouled out in just 19 minutes off the bench. Still, the Heat are enamored by his skillset, maturity and intangibles, envisioning him as a potential long-term fit next to Bam Adebayo.
- Jimmy Butler exited Friday’s game early after experiencing stiffness with his injured ankle, Chiang writes in a separate article for the Miami Herald. Butler first sustained the injury against Orlando on Wednesday, attempting to play through it on Christmas. He managed to play 16 total minutes before exiting.
- Miami’s bench could be exceptionally special this season, Chiang opines, noting how deep the team is for a second consecutive season. While the starting lineup still isn’t finalized, the Heat currently have Goran Dragic, Avery Bradley, Kendrick Nunn, Andre Iguodala, Kelly Olynyk and others all coming off the bench. The team’s depth played a key role in its success last season and could prove to be effective once again this year.
He’s 21 not 23
Herro is not thriving at PG… he is not a PG. Spoelstra is making a mistake going to Bradley unless there is something wrong with Nunn (besides looking unhappy in his Bas.Ref. pic!). Nunn is better based on last year; maybe he is still moping from last playoffs.
PERs: Herro 5, Dragic 20, Bradley 17, Nunn only 8 minutes!
Achuiwa 19 at 21yo, has great posture, might be trying too hard is all. Tall guys often start high with fouling.
Bradley will definitely be a rotation guy. He’s a solid vet who plays both ways. He’s a solid teammate. Achiuwa is the steal of the draft. No way he should of dropped that low. IMO Celtics should of taken him. They did good by signing Thompson and Teague. Achiuwa is another Bam to me, a little bigger. Considering what Bam did to Celtics in playoffs. I thought for sure hey would take him. Heat were ahead of schedule last yr. This yr teams will be ready for them. To me their depth is their strength. Herro and Duncan are still going to get better. Even Nunn is getting better. Heat stay healthy this yr. They will challenge to go back to Finals. The east is a battle this yr.
Bucks, Nets, Heat, Celtics, Sixers in that order. It’s going to be a strong east team in Finals this year.
I recall arguing with you about Nunn in the playoffs. He is young and they have Dragic. But now is the time to get Nunn in there and build him up if the previous playoffs were tough on him. It is odd if Bradley needs that treatment with his experience. To even try Herro at PG is a reach. Like you said, something is going on here.
When it comes to the Heat, when you see a player doing well in his opportunities, but still not getting a chance or looking like he was demoted in his role on the team, as a Heat fan, I’ve learned to just trust the decision because we’ll see what the reason was later.
Recent example: People wondered why they were sitting Hassan Whiteside at the end of games looking to replace him with Bam. Nobody questions that anymore. We’ve had some other situations like this as the years have gone by – some minor and some bigger moves.
Well I wondered why they didn’t play him at time. Drajic was playing well. But Nunn wasn’t getting mins. Miami got there with depth. Depth is always a big to me.
I’d start Bradley at the 1 similar to what the Lakers did having him guard the oppositions point guards and running the offence more through Butler and Adebayo. Bradley is a solid defender and knock down catch and shoot player.
1. Bradley 2. Robinson 3. Butler 4. Leonard 5. Adebayo
With Dragic Herro Nunn Iggy Olynyk Precious and others off the wood. Dragic and Herro worked great together last year off the bench.