Dominating the offensive glass, Jaime Jaquez Jr conversation and more from Heat win

The Miami Heat were coming off their worst loss of the season heading into tonight, as they lost to a Jazz team at home on Monday night that was intentionally trying to lose the game.

To finish off their pre-All Star break schedule, the Heat went over to New Orleans to face the 14th seed in the Western Conference.

It was a busy injury report for Miami, as they were without four players that have spent time in the starting lineup for this team: Tyler Herro, Norman Powell, Andrew Wiggins, and Pelle Larsson.

After a tight first half, the Heat pulled away in the second half behind their youth, as Jaime Jaquez Jr got over 20 points, Kel'el Ware was active, Kasparas Jakucionis continued his rhythm, and much more. Things got sticky again late, but a Simone Fontecchio corner triple put it out of reach.

So let's discuss some takeaways tonight:

1. One thing that can elevate Jaime Jaquez Jr's game.

Feb 11, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Miami Heat guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. (11) brings the ball up court against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

With that list of guys out for the Heat, the role of Jaime Jaquez Jr definitely elevated tonight in this match-up. Jaquez was attacking often, getting out to a 14 point first half in pure downhill, two point make ways. His footwork flashes as he finds way to slow down after his spin to finish off glass. But there is one thing that continues to stand out as the next step of his game. When he was drafted to Miami, he got a lot of Jimmy Butler comps with his placements on the floor. Do you know what Butler would do, though? Mismatch hunt. When there are smaller defenders on the floor, he needs to actively seek that out, instead of just going at whoever is guarding him.

2. The offensive rebounding story.

Feb 11, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Miami Heat forward Myron Gardner (15) dribbles against New Orleans Pelicans center Derik Queen (22) during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Whenever the Miami Heat and offensive rebounds are brought up, it's usually because Miami is getting killed on second chance points due to an undersized lineup. But with guys out, Erik Spoelstra stayed with the Bam Adebayo-Kel'el Ware pairing. Ware was already at 12 total rebounds by the end of the third quarter, but the interesting part was 7 of those were offensive. He was active in that range, as Miami kept generating more opportunities off misses. The other guy who was big in that department was Myron Gardner. He just never stops running, but he was gobbling up boards and crashing the offensive glass often. Definitely the most noteworthy Heat stat tonight.

3. A noticeable change in Kasparas Jakucionis' game.

Feb 9, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat guard Kasparas Jakucionis (25) passes the basketball against the Utah Jazz during the first quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

This wasn't the six three night for Kasparas Jakucionis that occurred in his previous two games, lighting it up offensively. But he still showed consistent flashes of consistency, which matters more than anything. His jumper has always looked smooth, as his form and shooting motion has been clean since college. But there are definite adjustments he's made. The first one is slightly eliminating the dip off the catch, so he can catch high-keep high for a faster release. Yet the real element that has sped his shot up has been the footwork. He's really cleaned it up to limit unnecessary steps as he's relocating. Of course his confidence rising has made a major difference as well, but it's great to see it all coming together right now.