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Injuries to Chris Bosh, Tyler Johnson, Beno Udrih, Hassan Whiteside, and now Luol Deng, have thrown a roadblock into the Miami Heat's chances of their plan of a showdown with Cleveland Cavaliers next week. However that has not been the reason for their struggles during the post season and one simple solution from Leicester City's improbable championship could be the answer.
"But when Leicester City did have the ball they made it count."
Time and again whenever the Heat had the ball, they squandered opportunities to score. One particular number stands out: of all the eight teams in the semi-finals, per 100 possessions, the Miami Heat are the ONLY one with more turnovers than assists.
| Team | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | AST | TOV | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Antonio Spurs | 40.9 | 89.0 | 46.0 | 7.0 | 17.8 | 39.4 | 21.7 | 10.4 | 8.9 | 104.1 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 36.8 | 86.9 | 42.4 | 13.3 | 31.2 | 42.8 | 20.5 | 12.2 | 6.4 | 107.3 |
| Golden State Warriors | 41.9 | 87.8 | 47.7 | 12.5 | 30.5 | 41.0 | 24.8 | 12.5 | 6.7 | 116.0 |
| Toronto Raptors | 36.6 | 84.9 | 43.2 | 6.1 | 19.1 | 31.9 | 15.7 | 13.2 | 9.6 | 96.3 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 41.7 | 90.5 | 46.1 | 20.3 | 40.1 | 50.7 | 27.2 | 14.0 | 8.4 | 118.2 |
| Atlanta Hawks | 38.3 | 86.5 | 44.3 | 12.5 | 33.5 | 37.3 | 23.9 | 14.6 | 7.2 | 105.9 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder | 38.7 | 85.4 | 45.3 | 7.5 | 24.0 | 31.4 | 20.1 | 15.4 | 6.7 | 105.9 |
| Miami Heat | 37.1 | 83.4 | 44.5 | 5.0 | 16.4 | 30.4 | 13.3 | 16.2 | 8.1 | 97.5 |
For every 100 times the Heat had the ball, they:
- had the least shots at the basket
- attempted the least 3-point tries
- made the least amount of 3-point baskets
- had the lowest 3-point conversion rate
- recorded the lowest amount of assists leading to scores
- turned over the basketball the most
- gave up the most steals to their adversary
For whatever reason the Heat came up empty with the ball in their hands, without even a field goal attempt, more than any other team in this round. The only team to sweep this round, the Cavaliers, were the most productive when they had the ball: getting 90 shots off per 100 possessions.
A more disturbing fact was, for every 100 times the Heat had the ball, they lost it over a staggering 16 times -- it was stolen from them 10 times, while 6 came from self-inflicted wounds. In other words, they are fortunate to be down only 3 games to 2 considering how charitable they are in handing the ball to the Raptors.
Whether the style of play is small-ball, large-ball or in-between, not making every possession count costs them dearly in not being able to crack 100 points in regulation time.
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