MIAMI _ This was the opposite of the traditional advice.
Going into Friday night's game against the New Orleans Pelicans, Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra very much wanted his players to sweat the small stuff amid his team's early-season struggles.
"Details," forward Josh Richardson said of the focus of the two-day break leading into the second of the four games on this homestand at AmericanAirlines Arena. "I think we're just focusing on the small stuff a lot. I think that's really breaking us down. We've just got to do a better job of locking in on the small stuff before we even start worrying about the big stuff."
Working with a limited margin for error amid the spate of injuries that on Friday night had Goran Dragic, Tyler Johnson, Dion Waiters and Derrick Jones Jr. sidelined, Spoelstra said extinguishing the errors has to be the focus.
"We have to keep on building on that until we build the necessary habits that are required to get the result that we want," he said. "And how long does that take? It takes however long is necessary, whatever is required. And that's as simple as that."
Spoelstra made clear that the quarter pole of an NBA season is no time for a pity party.
"Do it better," he said of the ongoing message. "Nobody's gonna feel sorry for us. I'm not feeling sorry for our group."
The frustrating part, Spoelstra said, is there have been just as many moments of clarity.
"I've seen some incredible decisiveness and aggressiveness and playing to our identity," he said. "It's a matter of sustaining it throughout the course of ups and downs and flow of an NBA game.
"Competition is going to say something about whatever your game plan is and you immediately have to get on to that next play and win the next possession no matter what happens. And that's probably where we've struggled arguably the most this season."
Spoelstra also said the concerns transcend individual blame.
"Look, everything is on the table," he said. "When we're losing, when things aren't going well, everything looks horrible."
