Heat fans should be proud of their team even if they missed the NBA playoffs

Following a magical second half of the season, the Miami Heat fell short of the playoffs for the second time in three seasons. It’s the first time that has happened since the franchise drafted Dwyane Wade in 2003.

But no one could have imagined that elimination happening so late after the beginning of the season.

After starting 11-30 with just a .03 percent (point zero-three percent) chance of making the playoffs, the Heat rattled off a league-best 20 wins in 24 games, including a 13-game winning streak. They finished the season 41-41, tied with the Chicago Bulls for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.

It wasn’t good enough, though, as the Bulls won the season series, taking the East’s final playoff spot as a result. But the Heat finished with a better record than the Pistons, Knicks, and Hornets, three teams that were fixed in the playoff picture early on.

The Heat will have to console themselves with the knowledge that they pulled off the biggest in-season turnaround in NBA history. Had the Heat made the playoffs, it would have been the first time a team has done so after falling so far below .500 since the expansion in the late 1980s, according to the Miami Herald.

Wait, what? How?

How could a team so bad, so early pull a complete 180 and string together wins over the Warriors, over the Cavaliers (twice), and over the Rockets? How could they go on one of the longest winning streaks of the year? How could they make such an improbable run without a single All-Star on the roster?

As a team, that’s how.

It’s easy to point at the heads of the snake. Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside have been steady forces for Miami all season long. But something clicked midway through the year, something the Heat can be proud of and build on for next year.

The beginning of the season was a shooting travesty for a Heat team that ranked No. 26 in three-point percentage (33.8) and No. 22 in three-pointers made per game (8.2). But at the flip of a switch, that changed.

Since Jan. 17, Miami has singed opponents from downtown, shooting 39.1 percent as a team from distance, according to data from NBA.com. That’s tied for second-best in the league behind the Portland Trail Blazers and trails only the Sacramento Kings. In that same time frame, the Heat have made three more triples per game. Their average of 11.2 threes ranks sixth behind notable gunslinging squads like Denver, Boston, Golden State, Cleveland, and Houston.

The improvement wasn’t unique to three-point range but from the floor as a whole. Miami improved its overall field goal percentage from 43.9 percent — then ranked No. 25 in the league — to the eighth-best clip at 47 percent.

In all, the Heat became one of the most potent offensive teams, improving their offensive efficiency from the second-worst (100.6 points per 100 possessions) to the eighth best (109.6).

Miami has been one of the league’s best three-point shooting teams since mid-January, and it’s credited to coach Spoelstra’s practice drills, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Defenses collapse against the Heat for one of two reasons: Hassan Whiteside is in the post, or either Waiters or Dragic are driving to the paint. When that happens, Heat shooters float to the corner — an area Spoelstra has specifically marked in practice.

“We have great three-point shooters. They really work at it diligently,” Spoelstra said. “But we’re not just coming down, jacking threes off the dribble. We’re getting to something specific.”

It’s the reason why a guy like Luke Babbitt shot 46 percent from three since Jan. 17, the fifth-best clip in the league. Together, the Heat had four players shooting 40.9 percent or better from downtown since their turnaround began.

Any time a defense is anchored by a 7’0 rim protector like Whiteside, opponents are gonna have a tough time scoring at the rim.

But even with Whiteside’s steady presence, the Heat were able to improve. Miami went from a middle-of-the-road defensive team allowing 104.9 points per 100 possessions (then No. 13) to the third-best with a defensive rating of 103.2 since Jan. 17. While other teams tapered off, Miami got stronger defensively.

And while it’s a tribute to Whiteside’s vaunted defensive acumen, it’s also a testament to guys like Willie Reed and Okaro White, who stepped up off the Heat bench to become valuable contributors with the second unit.

Johnson is averaging career-highs across the board. He had his best season in points (12.8), rebounds (4.9), assists (3.6), and three-point percentage (.344). He attributed his success to a strength and conditioning training regimen that has helped him cut nearly 40 pounds since joining the team in free agency over the summer.

“I feel like that the more weight I lose, the more I unleash skills that I didn’t think I was capable of having or doing,” he said, according to The Palm Beach Post. “Just being able to do more things agility wise. I can move, cut through smaller spaces, and definitely give more effort out there in the game. I can go from 100 effort to 150 now.”

Dion Waiters has been absurdly good in the second half of the season. His highlights speak for themselves, but so do the numbers:

Dion Waiters before Jan. 17: 12.8 points, 3.8 assists, .367 field goal percentage, .308 three-point percentage, Heat record — 11-30

Dion Waiters since Jan. 17: 18.4 points, 4.8 assists, .467 field goal percentage, .445 three-point percentage, Heat record — 30-11

Not only has Waiters produced more in the latter stretch of the season, but he’s come up in crucial moments each time the Heat have leaned on him. Miami was 16-3 when Waiters played in the fourth quarter. That’s because his 48.5 percent fourth-quarter clip since Jan. 17 is the sixth-best in the NBA.

He even orchestrated a mammoth comeback against the Nets before sealing it with a dagger three.

If Waiters was healthy down the stretch, the Heat make the playoffs easily.

They will see $25 million come off the books as a result of Bosh’s condition, but the team must decide if it wants to re-sign Waiters, who will command a hefty pay raise after his remarkable season. Will they also re-sign James Johnson? If so, for how much?

And which marquee free agent can you put alongside the core of Dragic and Whiteside to ensure the well-oiled machine in Miami continues revving for the foreseeable future? You can bet that free agents noticed the Heat’s resilience and ability to rehabilitate the value of players like Waiters and Johnson.

The Heat showed they can scorch other teams when they lock-in and play ball. They’ve also got young guys to build with for the future.

Miami has Tyler Johnson inked for the next few years. Josh Richardson is a lockdown perimeter defender who rebounded from an unfortunate injury, and Justise Winslow will be back from an injury of his own.

Now, it’s a matter of adding fuel to the fire during the summer so they can avoid another slow start next season. But one thing’s for certain: never count the Miami Heat out.