Erik Spoelstra Dances Around Question About Jazz Tanking After Miami-Utah Matchup

After an illustrious career that spans decades, Erik Spoelstra has seen it all. Including NBA teams that don’t appear to have winning as their top priority.

The phenomenon of tanking has gained more buzz in recent years, and on Monday, Spoelstra had a close encounter as his Miami Heat took on the Utah Jazz. Heading into the fourth quarter, the Heat had cut down a halftime deficit of nine to just three. That’s when the Jazz decided that the services of Lauri Markkanen, Jusuf Nurkic, and the recently acquired Jaren Jackson Jr. would no longer be required for the rest of the game.

In the post-game media session, Spoelstra was asked to comment on the fourth quarter sans the three Jazz starters. Rather than making a comment on the apparent tanking, the Heat mentor opted to give Utah their props. 

“I know how it looks,” Spoelstra told reporters. “The team that they played through the first three quarters is vastly different than the team we played in Salt Lake [back on January 24]. They presented some different challenges with the size in terms of our driving and attacking game, our rebounding. And then in the fourth quarter, it just became a game.”

Plot twist: That game was ultimately won by the Jazz, who held on to secure the 115-111 victory. Were the Jazz thrilled with that victory? No one knows for sure.

Here’s something that can be said with 99.9% certainty: The Heat do not have the makings of a team that would resort to tanking. The thought of losing games on purpose just doesn’t jive with the competitive DNA of team president Pat Riley, whose resume includes championship runs with the 80s “Showtime” Lakers and multiple Heat squads that featured Dwyane Wade. 

Year in and year out, the Heat front office has executed trades and free agent signings to build a roster that fits with the so-called “Heat Culture,” essentially a reflection of Riley’s tough-nosed, fundamentally sound identity through the years. It’s ironic, then, that a Heat squad constructed by Riley and coached by Spoelstra dropped a game to a team that wasn’t as concerned with winning that night.