Teams rarely reveal their identity and strengths during the NBA Preseason. The 82-game regular season will typically tell a different story. The Miami Heat may not have to wait much longer to address some of their weaknesses, though. After four games in the NBA Preseason, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bam Adebayo, and Coach Erik Spoelstra’s squad have proven they can soothe worries about three-point shooting. Even an acclaimed analyst seems to agree.
Heat led by Antetokounmpo soothes three-point worries in NBA Preseason
At first glance, the Heat’s roster construction seems to be focused on getting to the paint. Typically, that means high offensive rebound percentages, two-point efficiency, and even an uptick in free-throw rate. All of this comes in the territory of having both Bam Adebayo and Giannis Antetokounmpo on the same squad. A big worry entering the 82-game regular season was their three-point shooting and possible lack of offensive variance. However, all of that seems to be a non-issue during the NBA Preseason.
Coach Erik Spoelstra and the Heat have played four NBA Preseason games. They won against the Toronto Raptors, New Orleans Pelicans, and Brooklyn Nets. Their average margin of victory in these three games was 16.7 points. Even in their sole loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Heat still looked decent, falling by only a single point.
But did they really soothe all the three-point shooting worries? Ben Golliver of ESPN seems to think so.
“Antetokounmpo pummeled the New Orleans Pelicans in a recent exhibition, blasting through a crowded paint for punishing dunks, racing ahead in transition to aid Miami’s preferred up-tempo approach and making the proper reads after drawing multiple defenders… Offseason concerns about Miami’s 3-point shooting acumen haven’t really materialized in the preseason, though it’s fair to question whether the Heat have enough talent beyond Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo to keep pace with the East’s best,” the NBA analyst declared.
The numbers also back up the claim that the Heat are doing better from the perimeter. 12 players Coach Spoelstra used during the NBA preseason shot 40% or better from three. These are Bam Adebayo (40%), Bobby Portis (40%), Tim Hardaway Jr. (41.2%), Davion Mitchell (42.9%), Myron Gardner (46.7%), Simone Fontecchio (47.1%), Vladislav Goldin (50%), Andrew Wiggins (50%), Bez Mbeng (60%), Ian Schieffelin (60%), and J’Vonne Hadley (100%).
Giannis Antetokounmpo gave Heat fans a show in his first preseason game in Miami. 18 PTS, 4 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 8/13 FG in just 18 MIN vs Pelicans https://t.co/0nJcWpPWbi
— Basketball Performances (@NBAPerformances) October 9, 2026
The Heat made it rain, hitting 62 three-pointers during this four-game span. Hopefully, they maintain this composure from outside such that Antetokounmpo either has a free lane to the basket or an easy bail-out pass for a high-quality three-pointer. Obviously, this is still just the NBA Preseason, but it seems like Coach Spoelstra has run the perfect schemes to soothe these worries right away.
