Heat’s Erik Spoelstra, Bam Adebayo envision Kel’el Ware’s upside after first start

MIAMI—Although it is The Miami Heat lost to the Portland Trail Blazers devastating Tuesday night, 116-107, the only bright spot came from rookie Kel’el Ware. The long-awaited duo The Heat’s first-round pick and Bam Adebayo is coming off a game in which they excelled against Spurs. Ware earned his first start of his NBA career, prompting reactions from the head coach Erik Spoelstra and his accomplice in crime.

In his first start, Ware posted a strong double-double, scoring 20 points on 8-of-17 shooting from the field and two-of-six from beyond the arc, along with a team-leading 15 rebounds. Spoelstra listed the positives he saw from the 20-year-old to ClutchPoint after the game, while mentioning his “upside down.”

“Rebounding, he did some really good things defensively at the rim,” Spoelstra said. “He will continue to recover.” You know, you know when to go, when not to go, when to block. You know, if the guy catches him in the paint, that stuff, it’ll be better. But you know, the upside is obviously very encouraging, and that’s why, you know, he’s in the starting lineup right now. Honestly, we just have to get him in there for more minutes, whether he’s been off the bench or starting, and that’s the easier way to make it happen.”

The Heat have Bam Adebayo on Kel’el Ware starting next to him

The duo of Ware and Adebayo was long-awaited since the former was drafted with the 15th overall pick in the last draft, moving the latter from the center position he held for most of his tenure in Miami. Spoelstra gave him extended minutes in the win over San Antonio that gave the team a whole new life, though the same didn’t happen Tuesday against Portland.

however, The Heat were without Tyler Hero for the first time this season and they’re still dealing with the Jimmy Butler drama, so it’s going to take some time for the lineup change to get 100 percent where they want it. Adebayo would share a level of surprise that Spoelstra started Ware next to him and what the rookie can bring to the team.

“I wasn’t surprised at all,” Adebayo said. “Spo is one of those guys, when he sees something going on, he just goes for it, and that’s what we’re going to do, figure it out.” No, he’s one of the young guys that really wants to absorb information and learn, so for us and I, you know, we’re just bringing him in and helping them understand because as you can see, he’s a talent for this league, and I feel like he’s going to be around for a long time.”

Heat’s Kel’el Ware at the start of his first NBA game

No doubt it was bittersweet for Ware as his first NBA start ended in a disappointing loss to the Trail Blazers, but Ware put moment in perspective.

“I mean, you know, I’ve been waiting my whole life to be able to start in an NBA game,” Ware told ClutchPoints. “But, you know, of course you always want to win, but really the only thing that matters is that you get the win.

Either way, the Heat are now 21-21, which puts them in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, as it remains to be seen if their team will look any different on January 23rd when they face the Milwaukee Bucks on the road.