Winderman’s view: Heat need more than this Wiggins for postseason success

NEW ORLEANS — Observations and other notes of interest from Friday night’s 153-104 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans:

– If the reason for going with the regulars Friday night was one last-ditch attempt at continuity, then when it comes to Andrew Wiggins, that remains an abstract.

– Back for a second game after missing six with a hamstring issue, Wiggins hardly looked playoff-ready.

– Again as little more than an ancillary element of the rotation.

– As he was in Wednesday night’s loss in Chicago.

– Hamstrings certainly can be tricky.

– And it’s not as if Wiggins didn’t leave Wednesday night with a stim pack on his right hamstring.

– So the question becomes whether Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro as lone leading men are enough.

– At the play-in level, they might be.

– But if Wednesday and Friday were a sign of what Wiggins will be in the postseason, a difficult path stands all the more challenging.

– This time it was a 1-of-8 first half, while the game was somewhat in the balance.

– He closed with 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting, including 0 for 5 on 3-pointers.

– As it is, the Heat now stand 6-10 in games when Wiggins, Herro and Adebayo have been available.

– For all the bonuses the Heat have realized with Davion Mitchell and even Kyle Anderson in the Jimmy Butler trade, this current mix only works if Wiggins works.

– As the clock winds down on a potentially expiring season.

– The Heat for the second consecutive game opened with Adebayo, Herro, Wiggins, Kel’el Ware and Alec Burks.

– With limited options, with just about every one of their known quantities inactive, the Pelicans opened with a lineup of Keion Brooks, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Kylor Kelley, Elfrid Payton and Jose Alvarado.

– Mitchell and Haywood Highsmith entered together first off the Heat bench.

– The appearance was the 300th of Mitchell’s career.

– With Duncan Robinson following.

– And Anderson making it nine deep.

– With Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Terry Rozier again out of the primary mix.

– Heat coach Erik Spoelstra before the game reiterated the opportunity to make something out of this season, then going ahead and playing his regulars.

– “We’re really looking forward to this opportunity as we head into these final two games and the play-in,” he said. “That’s a great opportunity for our team.”

– Herro went into the game saying if you’re going to play, you might as well play to win.

– “We’re still trying to play our style of basketball consistently, so I think these last two games can help us prepare for the play-in,” he said. “Obviously wanting to be healthy is important, I think just as important is to keep playing and pretty much keep rhythm and keep guys on the floor so we stay fresh.”

– Herro said it was important that he and Adebayo, as team leaders, made themselves available this season as much as possible.

– “Yeah, I mean that’s our job, to be out there playing, and be available for our team and for the organization,” he said. “Obviously we get paid to come out here and play, so we have to be out there and play.”

– Herro added., “That was one of my goals this season, of playing as many games as possible. So I’m happy to be available as much as I can.”

– Like many, Herro said the worst option is to play but play trying to avoid injury.

– “Play hard, play your minutes hard, try to win the game,” he said.

– Among those in action Friday for the Pelicans was former Heat two-way player Jamal Cain.

– “He’s a high-character young man,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said before the game. “No matter what has been thrown at him all season, he continues to come into the gym and he’s great with his teammates and staff. He’s a hard worker. And he’s another one of the guys that it’s good to see him getting some minutes here toward the end of the season.”

– Cain was up to a season-high 15 points by halftime,

– The game marked the latest in a season since their inaugural year that the Heat played a road game against a Western Conference opponent. In 1989, the Heat played their road finale against the Houston Rockets, but that was a season the Heat played in the West as part of their expansion agreement.

– Ware’s first defensive rebound gave him the single-highest season total by a Heat rookie, surpassing Rony Seikaly’s 345 in 1988-89.