With the postseason quickly emerging on the horizon, the Miami Heat are attempting to find a new gear. However, inconsistencies continue to hamstring the Heat’s chances of building some momentum, much to Erik Spoelstra’s chagrin.

“We lost our competitive spirit there in the second half,” Spoelstra said after the Heat fell to the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday, March 15. “Enough has been said in the locker room, but we have a certain standard of how we expect to play and compete. We did not meet that standard tonight. When we meet that standard, it doesn’t mean that we’re going to win, obviously, we’re struggling to figure out how to win games, but you know, last night (vs. the Boston Celtics), we met a standard from a competitive standpoint tonight, tonight we did not.”

Tumultuous — that’s the best way of describing the Heat’s season to date. Jimmy Butler‘s trade request derailed the season before it began, picking up steam. As such, Spoelstra’s roster is still gelling with Andrew Wiggins, who has the unenviable task of trying to fil the void left behind by Butler.

Miami is currently 9th in the Eastern Conference. They will likely need to navigate the play-in tournament in order to compete in the postseason. Building momentum now would be an encouraging sign. Unfortunately, the Heat look destined to stutter their way into the offseason.

Heat’s Andrew Wiggins Is Remaining Confident

During his postgame news conference following the Heat’s loss on March 15, Wiggins opted to remain confident in his team’s ability to figure things out in the coming weeks.

“I mean, it’s still good spirits, good vibes around the team,” Wiggins said. “You know, we all want the same thing, you know, which is to win, to see something positive in the outcome of these games. So as long as we keep the good vibes, keep that will to try to go there and stay competitive and win games, I feel like we’ll be alright.”

If Wiggins himself can find a similar level of production to what we saw from him during the Golden State Warriors run to a 2022 NBA championship, he will have a big role to play moving forward. Of course, Spoelstra also needs Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro operating at their best too, especially if Miami wants to get out of the play-in tournament and potentially the first round.

Adebayo Believes Wiggins Can Make an Impact

When speaking to reporters during a March 11 media availability, Adebayo shared his belief that Wiggins can become an integral part of the Heat’s rotation.

“The more he gets comfortable, the more you see how gifted he really is,” Adebayo said. “We know what type of talent is. I mean, watching him in ones right now, it’s like, he’s got game. He’s got all the tools to be a successful player. I feel like once he really gets comfortable here, he’ll get back to the All Star Andrew.”

Acclimating to a new situation takes time. Learning a team’s offensive and defensive principles, so that they’re second nature, is also an ongoing process. Unfortunately for Heat fans, it may not be until next season that we begin seeing the best of Wiggins. Still, he’s talented and athletic enough to make an impact when required, but it’s unlikely that will be enough to move the needle in the playoffs.

Adam Taylor is a basketball reporter covering the Boston Celtics and Phoenix Suns for Heavy. He has also written for CelticsBlog, USA Today, Yardbarker and FanSided. Adam has a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from Open University. More about Adam Taylor