Haywood Highsmith and Udonis Haslem played last night. Robinson didn’t.
The Miami Heat’s 120-116 win over the Boston Celtics undoubtedly stands as their biggest win of the season. Coming in Boston and complete with clutch shots from Jimmy Butler, it’s the type of win that eases the anxiety of the Heat fanbase.
Erik Spoelstra went 10 deep last night. Haywood Highsmith closed with Miami’s “core four” of Butler, Bam Adebayo, Kyle Lowry and Tyler Herro. Udonis Haslem even logged four minutes of playing time.
But someone making nearly $17 million this season didn’t get off the bench — Duncan Robinson.
In some ways, it appears we’re back where we were during the 2022 playoffs, when Spoelstra shelved Robinson, even when Miami struggled shooting 3s. And again last night, the Heat shot just 11-of-35 from 3-point range. Max Strus, who has leapfrogged Robinson in the rotation both this season and last, shot just 1-for-6 from 3 last night.
With Butler back, someone gets squeezed out of the rotation. Spoelstra apparently trusts Highsmith defensively, so Robinson becomes the odd man out.
A month ago, many fans questioned why Spoelstra played Highsmith over Jamal Cain. And Highsmith scored just two points in his 28 minutes last night. But his defensive impact was clear.
Haywood Highsmith’s defensive metrics:
– +5.1 Def Raptor (8th best amongst 100+min)
– +1.7 DEPM (92nd%ile)
– 79th%ile in matchup difficulty, per BBI
– 95th in def position versatility
– 87th in help def activity amongst rotation helpers
– 81st in passing lane def— John Jablonka (@JohnJablonka_) December 3, 2022
Good morning to Haywood Highsmith pic.twitter.com/my49bNWqQg
— Football Town Resident (@ChefTrillie_) December 3, 2022
Highsmith needs to improve his offensive game, but he’s proving to be a player who can play solid bench minutes for a team in the regular season. The Heat still need a trade to bolster their front-court, but Highsmith has done a respectable job lately.
Robinson can’t even get off the bench before Victor Oladipo has come back. Robinson may still have a role here and there when someone like Butler or Herro gets injured. But it appears that he’s firmly out of the rotation when the Heat are healthy.