MIAMI – As the Miami Heat got dreadfully swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers, one aspect of the contest that was frustrating was another forgettable performance from rookie Kel’el Ware. While the rough outings from the Heat center are invaluable, as said by head coach Erik Spoelstra, he further explains the usage of Ware after the 55-point loss on Monday night.
Heat’s Kel’el Ware learning “fundamental lessons”
Ware would once again start the game as he’s been a mainstay for the majority of the second half of the season, but would only play the first two minutes and 43 seconds of the first quarter before being pulled from the contest. He would once again be attacked early on by veteran Cleveland center Jarrett Allen, who had 10 points in the opening period.
He wouldn’t return until the last 35 seconds of the third quarter, where the game was already well out of hand as Miami was down 46 points at 106-60. Spoelstra would express after the game that “these are fundamental lessons” that Ware is learning, saying it’s not an “indictment” on him, as he also explained the matchup against a seasoned player like Allen.
“It’s not necessarily an indictment on one player, these are fundamental lessons. The thing I like about Kel’el is he has a coachability to him. He has an ambition to him, you know, he’s going into a playoff series where, yes, he’s watched games, and he’s watched all the film, but he hasn’t like really been in something to really know.”
“Against a very experienced center, he’s been in 21 playoff games, or whatever, Allen, but like I said, he’s played 500 more games, but all these little lessons…all the little nuances that happened in the playoff series. It’s different than the regular season, and until you go through it, you don’t really understand. I wish this could have been more games, because I want more experience, more lessons, all that stuff.”
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Rough patches in playoffs for Heat’s Kel’el Ware are “invaluable”
The Heat’s young star in Ware has been very impressive for the team in his rookie season as he was the 15th overall pick coming out of Indiana University. Spoelstra spoke before the game and mentioned how the rough patches in the postseason are “invaluable.”
“When you get in a playoff series, you hear that cliche, ‘Every possession matters, every detail matters, every effort matters.’ This is invaluable,” Spoelstra said to ClutchPoints. “Just like the two play-in games were for him, he can see and he can feel how everything just goes to a different level. And there’s no way to get that experience unless you go through it.”
Ware had been averaging 18.3 minutes in the first-round series as his role on Miami will no doubt grow larger.
