Miami Heat vs San Antonio Spurs Prediction & Match Preview - October 8th, 2021 | NBA Preseason 2021-22
![The Miami Heat and the San Antonio Spurs will meet in a preseason game at the AT&T Center [Photo:All U Can Heat]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/10/9f65c-16336869467374-800.jpg?w=500)
The Miami Heat will be looking to extend their winning streak in the preseason as they face the San Antonio Spurs at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, TX. The two teams are seemingly going in the opposite direction based on recent results, so the preseason is finding out just where they are at this stage in their respective preparations.
The Miami Heat were handily making short work of the Houston Rockets in their last game. The score only got a little closer because Erik Spoelstra’s team was already in cruise control mode. If the past two games are any indication, this is already a Miami Heat team that is ready to take on all comers.
The San Antonio Spurs, on the other hand, are still groping for form, chemistry and roster construction. After beating the short-handed Utah Jazz in their opener, Gregg Popovich shuffled his roster and put on his experimental cap.
The result was a team that lacked rhythm and underlined the work that the Spurs needed to do to become a legitimate playoff hopeful.
Match Details
Fixture: Miami Heat vs San Antonio Spurs
Date and Time: Friday, October 8th; 8:30 PM ET (Saturday, October 9; 6:00 AM)
Venue: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
Miami Heat Preview
The Miami Heat appear to be on a mission. The quick exit in the 2021 NBA Playoffs probably left a bad taste in their mouths. The Heat are now raring to go and prove that they are worthy challengers of the best in the NBA.
Kyle Lowry looks like just what the doctor ordered for this Miami Heat team. With Lowry doing quarterback duties, the Heat seem to be invigorated and playing with fire. Eye tests show that the Heat are moving with purpose and aggressiveness while Lowry is directing plays.
Jimmy Butler had a quiet 9 points and 2 rebounds in his first preseason game. He only played 16 minutes and will likely be more assertive as he improves his conditioning.
Tyler keeps tearing up the preseason đź‘€ https://t.co/i1UvYn8u5t
While Butler is progressing as most veterans do, Tyler Herro is at a different speed. Last season was a forgettable one for him and he’s showing in no time that that year was a fluke. He has been spectacular for the Miami Heat in the preseason.
Key Player – Jimmy Butler
As good and influential as Kyle Lowry has been in the preseason, the Miami Heat are undoubtedly Jimmy Butler’s team. A somewhat slow start is not something the Heat organization is worried about. The team knows that when games really matter, Jimmy Buckets will always be the player they have come to know.
Jimmy Butler will be the Miami Heat’s main man until at least the 2025-26 season. Everyone knows how Butler operates, so Spoelstra and the management are making the team a reflection of the All-Star forward’s best traits.
This is a Miami Heat team heading into the 2021-22 season that is gritty, competitive and hard-nosed. Jimmy Butler epitomizes Miami Heat culture.
Miami Heat Predicted Lineup
G – Kyle Lowry | G – Tyler Herro | F – Jimmy Butler | F – PJ Tucker | C – Bam Adebayo
San Antonio Spurs Preview
In the upcoming 2021-22 NBA season, Gregg Popovich will be banking on the San Antonio Spurs youth movement to take more concrete steps in their development to be competitive in the West.
Minus LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan, the Spurs are without an All-Star for the first time in a very long while. It also means that someone who has not had the chance to carry a franchise will have the task of doing it this year.
The Spurs struggled mightily on both ends without Dejounte Murray and fell to the shorthanded Pistons.
The defense faltered and the shooting was pretty bad except for Bryn Forbes, but there was still a lot to like as San Antonio erased a 17-point deficit.
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The most probable candidates to blossom, even more, this year are Dejounte Murray and Derrick White. The San Antonio Spurs can only hope that they won’t be as injury-prone as they have been before. Both of these players will have to make marked improvements to their game to bring hope to the Silver and Black franchise. Otherwise, they could just be headed for the lottery.
The San Antonio Spurs have never been a good three-point shooting team, but if the trend this preseason continues, they may struggle even more. San Antonio needs the three-ball to go in as their roster is filled with rim rattlers like Lonnie Walker IV, Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson. It will be a long and probably disappointing season if they are mediocre behind the arc.
Key Player – Keldon Johnson
Dejounte Murray and Derrick White are perimeter-oriented players. The San Antonio Spurs will badly need a different dimension to their attack. Last year, Keldon Johnson relied on drives to the basket and put backs to score. This season, he has improved his arsenal just a bit more.
The stint with the gold-medal-winning US Men’s Basketball Team at the Tokyo Olympics has given Keldon Johnson valuable lessons. One of those lessons is a more varied attack the way Kevin Durant, Khris Middleton and Devin Booker showcased in the tournament. Those lessons should be carried over this year as he plays for the San Antonio Spurs.
Johnson is now displaying a change in speed, hesitations and shiftiness when inside the paint. Previously, he would just bulldoze his way to the rim. Johnson’s development could take time as the post is no longer where the game is played.
But if he can consistently get baskets down low, the San Antonio Spurs are going to cause some headaches in the West.
San Antonio Spurs Predicted Lineup
G – Dejounte Murray | G – Derrick White | F – Doug McDermott | F – Keldon Johnson | C – Jakob Poeltl
Heat vs Spurs Match Prediction
The Miami Heat is like a well-tuned machine right now. Erik Spoelstra and his wards have proven in their preseason games that they are for real. These guys are on a mission.
The San Antonio Spurs will most likely experiment again. It’s very unlikely that they are going to be a serious challenge to this Miami Heat buzzsaw. That being said, it’s the preseason and anything can happen, especially since the San Antonio Spurs are on their home floor.
The Miami Heat goes undefeated for the third straight game, handing the San Antonio Spurs valuable lessons on how much progress they need to make to be considered a threat for a playoff spot in the West.
Where to watch Heat vs Spurs
The Bally Sports Sun shows the live matchup between the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs. The NBA League Pass will air the said game across the United States.