As far as debuts go, in this one with the Miami Heat, Giannis Antetokounmpo was exceptional.
He set the record for most points during a debut in franchise history with 35 – a mark previously held by LeBron James.
He set the tone with a 21-point first half on a barrage of downhill drives and finishes at the rim, giving the Heat a legitimate Most Valuable Player candidate they haven’t had since James was on the roster. He played with pace and was practically impossible to guard in transition and in the paint, where he scored a game-high 24 points.
Yet – and it’s essential to point out here that it’s merely one game and that it was always going to take some time for this group to find its potential – the Heat will be in trouble if they cannot do these two things.
Miami bricked 3-pointer after 3-pointer on Wednesday, Oct. 21 in the 131-106 beating it caught in their much-anticipated season opener, which is concerning because this was precisely the weak spot the team was facing headed into the season. The Heat also got torched on defense, especially along the perimeter, which fed into the offensive struggles.
Miami traded away much of its young core and had to scramble during the offseason to add worthy shooters. And on a team with Antetokounmpo as its centerpiece, shooting is a non-negotiable. Antetokounmpo carries so much gravity when he has the ball in his hands, sucking defenders into the paint, which tends to leave players wide open in the perimeter. It’s why Antetokounmpo has averaged at least 5.4 assists per game each of the last 10 seasons.
Yet, Miami made only 8-of-33 attempts (24.2%) from 3-point range. Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, Nikola Jović, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Pelle Larsson – players expected to convert catch-and-shoot looks – combined to go 3-of-20 (15%).
“We didn’t get many good looks,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters after the game. “(Antetokounmpo) was a force of nature, for sure, doing what he does. But we didn’t look like us offensively.”
In fact, it was so bad for the Heat that Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who dropped 45 on Miami, actually made one more 3-pointer (nine total) than the entire Heat lineup.
Spoelstra went on to say that Miami did “uncharacteristic” things, but he was generous with the good looks comment. A lot of them were with plenty of space. The issue was that role players seemingly still don’t know how to play with Antetokounmpo, with many resorting to standing around, waiting for the ball to come to them.
Compounding the poor shooting was relative disinterest on defense. This is particularly uncharacteristic of Spoelstra and the Heat, who pride themselves on making everything difficult for opponents.
Minnesota shot 46.9% from the field, which is fine – Miami was actually more efficient at 48.1% – but the Timberwolves unloaded from deep, draining 21-of-50 attempts (42%). The edge of converted 3-pointers for the Timberwolves, 13, created a differential of 39 points. Very few teams, if any, will be able to win with that disparity.
The Heat under Spoelstra have usually had their defensive intensity feed offensive rhythm. Spoelstra’s teams do best when they get stops and force turnovers, so they can sprint out into transition. But when having to take the ball out time and time again, that momentum is totally neutralized.
The good news for Antetokounmpo and the Heat is that it’s merely one of 82 and that they now know what they cannot let happen against a team that shoots well.
For his part, Antetokounmpo chose to start the assessment from within, as he told reporters after the game, simply: “We have to trust what we’re doing.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves spoil Giannis' home debut with Heat