3 things we've learned about the Miami Heat from their first two preseason games in 2021-22

Make it two wins out of two for the Miami Heat. A few nights after they convincingly beat the Atlanta Hawks 125-99 at the FTX Arena in Miami, the Heat won their second preseason game, beating the Houston Rockets 113-106, on the road on Thursday night.

Although the final score for the Rockets game looks close, the Heat led by as many as 21 points at the end of the third quarter before Houston managed to make the final score look respectable.

The Miami Heat are heading into the 2021-22 NBA season with a lot of excitement and anticipation about them. They made it to the 2020 NBA Finals, but had a disappointing first-round exit at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2021 NBA Playoffs. The Heat were swept aside in four games in that series.

But with the acquisition of Kyle Lowry, PJ Tucker and Markieff Morris, three players who have each been a part of the NBA title-winning team since 2019, the Heat look like a recharged outfit. They already have the veteran presence of Jimmy Butler in their locker room. There are a lot of young talents in the mix, including Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson. Two-time All-Star and 2018 NBA Most Improved Player winner Victor Oladipo is also expected to return from injury soon.

With all that talent at their disposal, the Miami Heat would be a dangerous opponent for any team in the league, something they have strongly hinted at in their opening two preseason games. With that context, we pick up three things Miami have clearly showcased in these first two outings before the 2021-22 NBA season begins:

#1 Kyle Lowry is proving to be the real deal for the Miami heat

Kyle Lowry (right) guards Cam Reddish of the Atlanta Hawks

Lowry was a great pickup in the offseason for the Heat. Lowry is a six-time All-Star, 2019 NBA champ with the Toronto Raptors and a very efficient two-way player. He is among the best at drawing charges in the league and shot nearly 40.0% from downtown last season for his former team, the Toronto Raptors.

Lowry has shown his chops in the two preseason games for the Miami Heat. Although he has played only a combined 33 minutes in both games, Lowry has dished out 17 assists cumulatively in the two appearances. Against the Rockets on Thursday night, Lowry was particularly devastating as he provided 10 assists while also making four steals.

That's precisely why the Heat added him to their roster. Last season, the Heat had Goran Dragic mostly coming off the bench, which meant that Jimmy Butler was doing the bulk of the ball-handling. With Lowry now playing as a starter, Butler will be relieved of a lot of the playmaking responsibilities and can concentrate more on his scoring game.

#2 Tyler Herro is walking the talk

Tyler Herro in action against the Atlanta Hawks

About 10 days ago, third-year Miami Heat player Tyler Herro said in an interview, “I’m ready for a bounce-back year. No question I feel like I had a lot of expectations coming into last season and some people are sleeping on me again. In that way, I am going to wake a lot of people up again like I did in the bubble in my first year.”

Herro’s remarks in the interview were in reference to his 2020-21 performance, which didn’t exactly skyrocket after a cracking rookie year.

Herro, however, has walked the talk in Miami’s first two preseason games. He has scored 50 points in total, shooting 64 percent from the field in Miami’s two wins. Herro scored 26 points on 9-of-12 field goal shooting versus Atlanta on October 5 and had 24 points on 7-for-13 shooting from the floor against Houston. Herro is also shooting an insane 64% combined from downtown in both games.

#3 Miami Heat will shoot more triples in the 2021-22 NBA season

Jimmy Butler attempts a jump shot

The Miami Heat attempted 36.2 three-point shots per game last season. In their two preseason games, they have jacked up 41 and 40 attempts from downtown, with Lowry only attempting four total attempts versus Atlanta and Houston as against his last year’s average of 7.2 three-point attempts per game.

The other indication that the team will end up shooting more from long range is that both Herro and Duncan Robinson have played well under 30 minutes in the preseason outings. Both sharpshooters averaged 30-plus minutes last season. The return of Oladipo too should see an increase in the Miami Heat’s total three-point shot attempts, all of which do not bode well for their opponents.