Rough shooting and ugly defense for Heat lead to loss in Portland

The Heat's road trip with late night tip-offs continued on Thursday night, as the Portland Trail Blazers stood on the other side.

Tyler Herro remained out as expected, but Kel'el Ware and Davion Mitchell were sidelined for the night as well. Norman Powell was questionable pregame, but ended up suiting up.

Heat rookie Kasparas Jakucionis got the start in the absence of Mitchell, along with the usual Powell, Andrew Wiggins, Pelle Larsson, and Bam Adebayo grouping.

This has almost felt like an every other game event, but the defense was extremely underwhelming tonight against this Portland group. It forced Miami to play from behind the entire night, eventually leading to an unfortunate loss.

But let's get into some game takeaways:

1. Off the dribble Adebayo.

Jan 22, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) shoots a jump shot during the first half against Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

As the Heat trailed by one at halftime, the team's offensive storyline of the first 24 minutes was Bam Adebayo. He remained in an offensive flow, dropping 17 points on 6 of 12 shooting. But it wasn't about the number of points, as much as it was the way he was getting them. He's been so heavily reliant on his three ball for big scoring nights, but that wasn't the case here. He was 6 for 7 from two, as he was doing most of his damage off the bounce. Donovan Clingan was playing off him as he was clearly worried about Adebayo's foot speed, combined with not wanting to foul him in that space. Adebayo was attacking well, working the short pull-up, and drawing fouls. Three elements of his game fans should want to see most.

2. Heat defense getting taste of their own medicine.

Jan 22, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) dunks the basketball during the first half against Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo (13) at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

It wasn't a pretty defensive start for Miami tonight. They gave up 38 points in the first quarter alone, as the Blazers were pretty much doing what they wanted in the half-court for long stretches. But funny enough, they were actually hurting Miami with their own style. Portland tried some early pick and roll with Clingan diving, as Adebayo broke up at least three passes to him to stall possessions. Portland shifted into a Heat-like style with less screening and more iso attacks. This Miami team can show flashes positionally, but they're not a defense made to be attacked one-on-one. Certain guys' defensive flaws were put on blast on those hard attacks, leading to some leakage on that end of the floor.

3. Where will the Heat find three point shooting?

Jan 22, 2026; Portland, Oregon, USA; Miami Heat forward Andrew Wiggins (22) shoots a jump shot during the first half against Portland Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant (9) at Moda Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

Along with the Heat's defensive lapses, the three point shooting was a top reason this team struggled tonight. With Tyler Herro sidelined, this group is extremely Norman Powell dependent to light it up from three and provide some extended spacing. He was ice cold from deep in this one, as the rest of the rotation followed suit aside from Simone Fontecchio's recent hot hand. But nights like this force you to take a step back and ask: where is the three point shooting expected to come from? The three point guards on this team are primarily open spot-up guys, in Mitchell, Jakucionis, and Smith. Jaquez and Nikola Jovic aren't providing much in that space. Wiggins has his moments, while Larsson isn't high enough volume. I bring all this up to say it takes multiple factors to pull together a big three point shooting night at the moment.