The Miami Heat have implemented a radical offensive system that virtually eliminates pick-and-rolls and screens, putting the team on pace to shatter NBA records for fewest such plays per 100 possessions. Erik Spoelstra hired consultant Noah LaRoche to install a constraints-led approach, emphasizing constant cutting and transition over traditional game situations.
According to Second Spectrum, Miami is running just 15 pick-and-rolls per 100 possessions this season. The previous low was 39.3 for the 2018-19 Philadelphia 76ers. The Heat are also on pace to break records for fewest dribble handoffs and rank 26th in off-ball screens. Miami also leads the NBA in pace.
The transformation followed an embarrassing first-round playoff sweep of Cleveland last season. Spoelstra and All-Star center Bam Adebayo met over the offseason to develop the new strategy.
“It wasn’t like head coach-star player,” Spoelstra said. “It was colleagues saying, ‘Hey, we need to figure this out. We need to make some changes.’ None of us like to feel so ashamed. We have to evolve.”
Spoelstra introduced the system during training camp by completely banning fencing for the first three days. Setting any screen would count as revenue. Players also had to advance from the three-point line to the three-point line within four seconds or lose possession of the ball.
Norman Powell initially believed the restrictions were temporary conditioning exercises. On Day 3, when Spoelstra stopped a scrimmage after players attempted a dribble handoff, the team discovered the changes were permanent.
“We run pick-and-rolls for a reason,” Spoelstra told the team.
The Heat are 14-10 despite injuries to Tyler Herro and Adebayo. Miami’s offensive efficiency rose from 21st last season to 13th Sunday. The team is converting 18 percent of its possessions into transition opportunities, the second-highest rate in the NBA per Second Spectrum.
LaRoche previously consulted with the Memphis Grizzlies, who experimented with similar principles before returning to traditional approaches. Kenny Atkinson has integrated motion concepts while maintaining ball screens during his tenure with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“It allows one to anticipate, and that’s the mark of any expert,” LaRoche said. “It makes someone who is slow fast, and it makes someone who is fast even faster.”
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