According to RotoWire, the Miami Heat statistically have the highest potential to be the “dirtiest” team in the NBA due to various factors, including player suspensions and games missed due to those suspensions.
As per their analysis, this is how the teams are ranked in the league.
1. Miami Heat
2. Brooklyn Nets
3. Memphis Grizzlies
4. Houston Rockets
5. Philadelphia 76ers
6. Detroit Pistons
7. Golden State Warriors
8. Phoenix Suns
9. Milwaukee Bucks
10. Charlotte Hornets
11. Orlando Magic
12. Washington Wizards
13. Atlanta Hawks
14. Minnesota Timberwolves
15. New Orleans Pelicans
16. Toronto Raptors
17. Cleveland Cavaliers
18. Sacramento Kings
19. Los Angeles Lakers
20. Oklahoma City Thunder
21. Los Angeles Clippers
22. Dallas Mavericks
23. New York Knicks
24. Boston Celtics
25. Utah Jazz
26. Denver Nuggets
27. Chicago Bulls
28. Indiana Pacers
29. Portland Trail Blazers
30. San Antonio Spurs
Surprisingly, they are at the top of this list despite being far behind teams like the Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers in terms of fines. While the Heat have been fined only $941,414, both the Nets and 76ers have fine totals exceeding $15 million each.
That might be mainly due to the issues of Kyrie Irving and Ben Simmons, where both players were fined significantly for intentionally missing games during their time with the Nets and 76ers. But let’s focus on the Heat and why they might be at the top of this list.
The Miami Heat have had 15 player suspensions over the last decade, which has resulted in 43 games missed due to them. Over the past decade, players like Jimmy Butler and Dion Waiters have missed a significant number of games due to franchise-imposed suspensions for their conduct.
Just last season, Butler was suspended twice (for seven and two games, respectively) for his conduct that led to his trade to the Warriors. Terry Rozier was suspended for one game due to his involvement in the altercation between Tyler Herro and Amen Thompson. Dion Waiters received multiple suspensions when he was with the Heat in 2018-19 due to his conduct as well.
While some may argue that in some instances their players are in the wrong place at the wrong time, mostly it shows a pattern of holding players accountable for their conduct within the franchise. Pat Riley seems to have maintained a strict ship where he does not hold back in holding players accountable for their professional conduct. But whether this makes them ‘dirty’ as a franchise is a separate question altogether.
Teams like the Golden State Warriors (487 fines) and Houston Rockets (481 fines) lead the league in fines gathered over the last decade. So, whether the player suspensions deserve the highest weightage as they seem to have in this analysis is the key question of contention here.
On the other end of this list are the San Antonio Spurs, who have only 155 fines and two player suspensions over the last decade. Some may interpret this as how Gregg Popovich created a culture of discipline in San Antonio, but you could say Pat Riley has been trying to do the same, but has faced a much more difficult set of players over the years.
Hence, this analysis does seem a little flawed and open to interpretation. What do you think? Are the Miami Heat the “dirtiest” NBA team? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
