Dimes from Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo are money for the Miami Heat offense

The Miami Heat have been enjoying one of their best offensive seasons in some time.

The biggest reason behind it has been a knack for sharing the wealth.

Tyler Herro s scoring leap has rightly received rave reviews this season, but his playmaking has been a leading theme for the Heat remaining one of the leagues most pass-happy offenses while being on pace for their first top-10 offense since 2019-20, Jimmy Butler s first season in South Florida.

Advertisement Entering Wednesday, Miami has the NBA s 10th-highest assist rate (65.9) on the season and is sixth among all teams in that category since Nov.

18 (68.1).

Whether creating clean looks underneath the rim or finding open teammates in the corner, Herro has masterfully used newfound attention from opposing defenses to make life easier for his teammates.

There are many areas to credit Herro, who was recently named Eastern Conference Player of the Week, for further growing into one of the NBAs most unique offensive hubs.

Hes averaging career-highs in drives (12.9 per game, shooting 56.8 percent on them), potential assists (9.5) and points created via assist (12.9).

Already known as one of the leagues most potent shooters, Boy Wonder is also shooting a career-high on 3s (41.3 percent), but its been really fun to watch defenses react to every move the sixth-year veteran makes when hes dominating the ball.

In a nine-point win against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Dec.

8, Herro had four opponents eyeing him as Dru Smith cut to the basket before his teammate threaded a fine needle.

Herro finished with game-highs in points (34) and assists (seven).

Though Mondays loss against the Detroit Pistons was another tough defeat, Herro and Butler teamed up quite well for a few buckets.

Here, as Miami trailed early, Herro used his dribble to distract Detroits defense as Butler roamed around to give his teammate a safety valve.

It helped Butler notch one of his game-high 12 trips to the free-throw line.

When asked about what has helped his confidence in leading Miamis offense, Herro kept his answer humble and simple, but his actions have spoken far louder throughout the season anyway.

The game slowing down a little bit, he said on Saturday.

More experience and then being more comfortable on the ball, making the right plays just trying to make the right play over and over again.

Advertisement For Spoelstra, hes credited Herros growth to strides taken in the last two or three years, including the latters Game 2 performance against the eventual-champion Boston Celtics last postseason, when Herro had 14 dimes, one shy of tying Dwyane Wades team postseason record for a single game (15 in 2005).

More importantly, though, Herros growth has only made spreading the ball a more infectious endeavor for the Heat, who rightly continue trusting Bam Adebayo as one of the leagues most versatile bigs.

The three-time All-Star is averaging 6.8 assists in his last nine games, during which hes notched two triple-doubles as Miami has enjoyed six wins in that span.

His efficiency had a slow start to the season, but that has never undermined Spoelstras trust in his big man, especially given his two-way impact.

Adebayos five career All-Defensive selections always make it easy for him to keep on the floor; his shooting touch worried Heat fans early on, though some of that can be attributed to his new role as a 3-point shooter playing farther from the rim.

Otherwise, the team remains confident in trusting Adebayo with the ball, whether hes going to hoist up a shot or set up a teammate for a score.

Adebayos knack for surveying the court and making a quick, strong pass helps teammates like Haywood Highsmith move without the ball as defenses sometimes stall.

Here is an example from Miamis win over the Phoenix Suns earlier this season.

Were just getting each other open shots.

I feel like thats the biggest thing making the right play, making the right read.

And also, we understand were in a great flow.

If it aint broke, dont break it.

Kevin Love has been a steady veteran presence for Miamis locker room and observes how well the team shares the ball, whether when enjoying Herros growth as the on-ball maestro or enjoying Adebayo remaining one of the most trusted playmaking bigs this side of Nikola Jokic and Domantas Sabonis .

When hes playing, Love remains one of the leagues most fun passers, given his knack for touchdowns, such as the one he enjoyed tossing to Butler against Detroit.

Despite losing another close one against the Pistons, the Heat remain confident in their offense keeping them afloat.

No different than playing sound defense, effectively passing the ball begins with trusting one another, communicating well and ensuring the main thing remains the main thing.

Those are invaluable pillars of Heat Culture defense, so its fun to see it apply to the team lighting up the scoreboard.

Advertisement Miamis offense will be tested on Friday, when the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder (20-5) come to town.

While it wouldve been nice to have notched a win in Detroit, the team must move on and be confident in one another, which centers on trusting Herro and Adebayo to continue setting the table for everyone else to comfortably eat.

I think Bam has unlocked a lot as well, Love said.

Getting five, seven, 10 assists on certain nights, getting really close to triple-doubles.

And maybe his scoring is down, but I think his effectiveness for what he does, and the gravity he pulls for our team, is huge, as well as, no matter who it is, doing that hit-ahead pass whether its a 20-, 30-foot pass seeing what we have in transition and playing fast, keeping teams on their heels.

So, I think that opens up things for us.

(Top photo: Rich Storry / Getty Images ).

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