Should Heat consider a lineup change after porous start?

"The Miami Heat, missing two of their best scorers, are in the midst of a two-game losing streak and hope to stave off the Los Angeles Clippers in the second night of a back-to-back on Monday. Currently at 3-3, the Heat enter the evening with the 10th-best offense and third-best defense. Miami's bench has been otherworldly, as has newly acquired Norman Powell in the three games he's played. Yet, as potent as the Heat offense has been, they're starting lineup has struggled to keep pace."

"Let's look at some of the numbers! Davion Mitchell-Pelle Larsson-Andrew Wiggins-Bam Adebayo-Kel'el Ware: -54.5 NET in 25 MIN Davion Mitchell-Norman Powell-Andrew Wiggins-Bam Adebayo-Kel'el Ware: -14.2 NET in 19 MIN Of 96 lineups with at least 15 minutes played, the first lineup has the NBA's worst NET Rating while the second has the 24th-worst. Better yet, in 47 minutes together, the Mitchell-Wiggins-Adebayo-Ware quartet has a minus-35.3 NET, the worst of any four-man combination in the NBA (min. 45 MIN)."

"Correlation doesn't equal causation, but Wiggins' questionable shot selection (despite his timely hustle plays, good defense) paired with Adebayo and Ware's clunky fit together hasn't quite helped matters. Mitchell hasn't posed much of a threat as a scorer despite generating myriad paint touches, either. On the other hand, messing with the bench unit could be a bad idea because of role allocation. They've looked remarkably jelled; switching that up this early in the season may not be the wisest move, no matter how poor the starters have been in this very small sample."

Miami is 3-3 and missing two of its top scorers while enduring a two-game losing streak. The team ranks 10th in offense and third in defense. Miami's bench has been otherworldly, and newly acquired Norman Powell has performed well across three games. The starting five has struggled significantly: the Mitchell–Pelle Larsson–Wiggins–Adebayo–Ware unit posts a -54.5 NET in 25 minutes while the Mitchell–Powell–Wiggins–Adebayo–Ware group is -14.2 NET in 19 minutes. Of 96 lineups with at least 15 minutes, the first is the NBA's worst NET Rating, and the Mitchell–Wiggins–Adebayo–Ware four-man combo is -35.3 NET in 47 minutes. Coaching must weigh preserving bench chemistry against fixing starter fit amid small-sample variance and pending player returns.

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