 So, the Miami Heat have been one of the biggest surprises of the 2019-2020 NBA season. They're my team. This is the team that I expected to finish the fourth seed. But they're playing a lot better than I originally expected. So in this video we're going to break down from what happened after the LeBron Big Three era, how they got to this point and the stories in between. Then we're going to talk about the Miami Heat of this season and get into a little bit of the reasons why I believe they're playing so well. So with that said, if you enjoy these types of videos, be sure to smash that like button and let's see if we can reach a thousand likes for the next video. If you're new around here and you enjoy NBA content, be sure to hit that subscribe button and turn the notification button so you never miss an upload for NBA uploads every single week. If you want to follow me on Instagram, feel free, but with that said, let's get on to the video. The Miami Heat's 11-3 start is tied for the best 14-game start to a season in franchise history. The last time the Heat began a season at 11-3 was in the 2013-14 season, the final year of the Big Three era. I'm not comparing this team to that team because obviously there is no comparison. But what I will say is that this team is a different team, but it shows a lot of upside. It shows improvement and it shows a team. The Big Three era was a phase that was obviously incredible to watch, but this is a team. This is a team that I can see being a team for many, many years to come. Because we have a lot of young talent on this roster, so with that said, let's get into it. So we're going to rewind all the way back to the Big Three era. Well, the end of the Big Three era. LeBron James had just announced that he was joining the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second time and looking to bring Cleveland their first NBA championship. Which meant that it was Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosch who were still in Miami, which at that time they still could be a dynamic duo that could do pretty well in the Eastern Conference. Obviously by that time the Heat thought that they could win and compete, so they tried to acquire guys that could somehow feel the need of LeBron in terms of not the best player, but they needed a small forward. So they ended up getting Llewell Deng who at the time was okay, Danny Grainger who was a veteran small forward and they had a lineup of Mario Charmers, Dwayne Wade, Llewell Deng, Chris Bosch and they still had Udanis Haslund, Chris Anderson. In addition, they also gained Goran Dracic who ended up being an all-star point guard a few seasons later. So this team was looking okay. But as we all know, that didn't work out. Chris Bosch ended up having injuries and the rest of the team just couldn't really perform. They finished with a 37 and 45 record which was the NBA's 10th worst in the league. In fact, they didn't even make the playoffs after being Eastern Conference champions for four straight seasons. So by this time they looked to rebuild. They had acquired Hassan White's side through the D-League. He was a different type of player than he is now. He actually put in the effort. He would get multiple blocks every night. Some games he'd get 10, some games he'd get five. It was insane. His blocking season, the first year where he entered the Miami Heat roster, he just was a monster. And they also recognized that they needed to rebuild. So they went with a small forward and selected Justice Winslow with the 10th overall pick, which is a defensive minded player that they could develop with in the future. And other pieces started to emerge. Obviously it was Winslow's rookie season, but he actually played pretty well for a rookie. Wade and Whiteside played around 75 games for the year. Goran Dracic was comfortable on the offense. Chris Bosch played 53 games that season, but that was probably the end of his career. And Josh Richardson was also starting to emerge as well. A second round picked that the Miami Heat had got. And they compiled a 48 and 34 record, which saw them end up in the conference semi-finals, but in the end, they lost to the Toronto Raptors in a really close series. But then we know what happens from here. Dwayne Wade ended up leaving. He was still our best player. But by that stage, he went to Chicago. Chris Bosch was dealing with his blood clots. And for the next few seasons, it was a rebuilding stage for the Miami Heat, with their young core of Justice wins, though, Josh Richardson. And they had drafted BAM out of bio, who seemed like a promising young player. As we all know, the Miami Heat are not a rebuilding team. We rebuild with Pat Riley, like always contending rebuilding, which means that you have your young players, but you always acquire additions that can help fit your team to make the playoffs. Pat Riley was not going to rebuild by getting a top five, top 10 pick. He was going to try his hardest to make the playoffs every season, which is why that kind of hindered the Miami Heat over the next few seasons. They paid Hussar Whiteside a lot of money, in addition to some other players that probably weren't deserving of their contracts. Guys like James Johnson, Deon Wade, as Kelly O'Linick, and Josh McRoberts, they overpaid for these guys. But they needed them, so instead of rebuilding, he just rebuilds in a different way, tries to retain assets, overpays for players, but always tries to compete. And that's what they did. By the 2017-18 season, they finished the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. Dwayne Wade had returned after Histon in Cleveland and then his next year was the final year of his career. Now, that's basically the recap to what we get up to this season. Although I missed one thing. Right at the end of last season, the Miami Heat actually signed a guy with potential, a guy they saw fitting for the team. They signed Kendrick Nunn, on the last day of the 2018-19 NBA season. They signed into a multi-year contract and then through the draft, they ended up getting Tyler Hero with the 13th overall pick and they selected Bowl Bowl with the 44th pick. They ended up trading Bowl Bowl away, but Tyler Hero was a great pick up and Kendrick Nunn seemed to be an impressive signing. At least that's what the Miami Heat fans thought whilst watching pre-season and it's turned out well in the regular season too. Another addition though, was undrafted rookie Chris Silver who's also been a really good fit for the Miami Heat and we saw him in pre-season as well. They would acquire Jimmy Butler in a trade for Josh Richardson, giving them an all-star that they can build around. And that's what they have done. So now we're here. It's the 2019-2020 NBA season. The Miami Heat are currently 11 and three, sitting second in the Eastern Conference and on a five-game winning streak. They traded Hassan Whiteside to give Bam Adebo the starting role. They put Kendrick Nunn as their starting point guard even with Gore and Dragic still on the team and that has led to Miami actually having a six-man now for bench production. Gore and Dragic and Tyler Hero off the bench provide scoring which the Miami Heat never had in the past and what the Miami Heat also didn't have was three-point shooting. Now they have guys like Duncan Robinson who went for 30 points to the other game and has been a very solid player for the Miami Heat being the leading three-point shooter. They acquired Myers Leonard from Portland in the trade for Hassan Whiteside and Myers Leonard has the best three-point field goal percentage in the entire NBA. Kendrick Nunn we all know has been a contributor for the Miami Heat as the starting point guard even in his undrafted rookie season and he was already a proven scorer entering the team and his three-point percentage and long-range shooting have been superb. Tyler Hero we all know why he got drafted to the Miami Heat and his three-point shooting is amazing as well and they've still got guys like Kelly O'Linick who can stretch the floor, Gore and Dragic who's been on fire this season off the bench and as the six-man for the Miami Heat but what's most impressive about the Miami Heat is their defense. They ranked seventh in the league for opposition points per game and that is without Justice Wins though who is one of their better defenders. When he gets back alongside Jimmy Butler alongside Bam out of bio and even Kendrick Nunn has been pretty decent on defense as well it could be interesting to see if that affects the offensive game but to see if the defensive game can also rise even further. Bam out of bio has improved defensively. Jimmy Butler was already known as one of the best defenders in the NBA and that's why he's leading the league in steals per game and even a guy that nobody's been talking about but Chris Silver. He's a guy that the Miami Heat also got on their team. He's a rookie this season. He's coming off the bench for the Miami Heat and he kind of reminds me of a Udanis Haslam. He shows effort, shows hustle, shows heart and he's also another defensive minded player. He was a first team all SEC in 2018. SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Year in 2018 and SEC All-Defensive Team in 2018. So he's a defensive minded player even at his smaller frame of six foot eight but he is an undrafted player that the Miami Heat have also brought in to help play a role for their team. So in other words it's really just being their ability to space the floor and hit three point shot which they weren't able to do in the past. Their defense is really, really good but obviously there is room to improve. They're 13th in points per game, 21st in rebounds per game, 7th in assists per game, 6th in offensive points per game which is probably the most impressive point for me. That just shows that their defense is really good but their offensive game can still improve with them being ranked 13th in points per game. I have no doubt that this season Coach Bo will be contending for Coach of the Year. Pat Riley will keep building his team and try to bring in other assets either via trade or free agency. He's looking to win a championship as soon as possible. Jimmy Butler probably needs another star or all-star talent to help get them closer to that championship but for the way that the team is playing right now it's really, really exciting to watch and as a Heat fan I'm so happy to watch this team and if you're not a Heat fan it's pretty good for the NBA in general to see more competitiveness overall. What's most impressive to me personally is the fact that each individual player plays their role and there's no real standout even though Jimmy Butler is the all-star player on this team, there's no standout player each and every night. It could be one night Kendrick Nunn, the next night Jimmy Butler, the next night Tyler Hiro, then Goran Dragik, then Duncan Robinson, then Bam Adebayo. Like this is a complete roster which still has opportunities to trade for other pieces if they want to bring in other pieces towards the deadline they have the ability to. They've got guys like James Johnson, Justice Winslow, D.R. Waders, Derek Jones Jr. who haven't really played a lot. Justice Winslow's been injured, Derek Jones has been injured but James Johnson and D.R. Waders have realistically they've been suspended for the team whether it's been made public or not these guys are off the team for a reason. We know D.R. Waders is but James Johnson he hasn't been named suspended but I think we can all assume he has been. He's obviously still playing with the team but they're at times playing Udarnus over him which at this point that can say something. And Miami's young core of Kendrick Nunn, Tyler Hiro, Bam Adebayo, Justice Winslow and Duncan Robinson have all been performing. Nunn is averaging 17.3 points per game. Hiro's averaging 14 points per game. Bam's averaging 13.8 points per game with great defense and so was Justice Winslow and Duncan Robinson's averaging 11.2 but with great three point shooting. In addition to Miami here to have a few players that can be considered for accolades. Jimmy Butler can be considered for an all-star and as a defensive player of the year candidate. Kendrick Nunn and Tyler Hiro are in the rookie of the year race. Bam can be considered as a most improved player and Goron Jarcher can be considered as a sixth man of the year. So, there's a lot going for the Miami Heat team. It's gonna be interesting to see how they're playing against Philadelphia in the next game. Jimmy Butler's playing his old team. So let me know what you think about the Miami Heat. If you enjoyed this video, be sure to leave a like, subscribe if you're new. Hit the notification button, follow me on Instagram and it's been your morning Smith. I am out, peace.