Last Sunday after the loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, new Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was hard on himself after another inefficient shooting night where he made seven of his 17 attempts. He would even say to the media after the game that “I can't hit a jump shot,” but he thought to get out of the rut was to shoot his way out of it, which is what he did Tuesday when the Heat beat the Orlando Magic, 121-95.
Rozier finished the game with 18 points off of making seven of his 12 shot attempts while also recording seven assists and collecting six rebounds. He said to ClutchPoints after Miami's win that he is his “biggest critic” and that the most important aspect for him is to win, which is what led to hardship on himself.
“I’m getting there. I’m my biggest critic, but I know things are going to turn. So that's the beauty of it,” Rozier said. “I’m human, it is part of basketball. But most important thing like I said, we're looking at the wins and loss columns. I want to win. That's the most important thing.”
Rozier talks about Miami playing to their identity
The win over the Magic for the Heat was a breath of fresh air as it was one of the more complete games the team has played in a while as they allowed under 100 points while scoring just over 120. Rozier said after the win that they played to their identity.
“That’s kind of the identity of our team, just trying to find the best shot,” Rozier said. “We got a lot of guys that can create for themselves and create for others and we just playing well with each other. So we just keep keep looking to do that.”
There was no doubt that Rozier had to get acclimated to the style that the Heat play as his usage with the Charlotte Hornets was not going to translate right from the jump. However, he said that Miami is “super connected” and with the amount of talent the team has and that they are going to “be tough to beat.”
“I mean, it's great. We're just playing winning basketball. Super connected,” Rozier said. “You know, we got a lot of talented players are playing hard and we're gonna be tough to beat.”
Jimmy Butler talks about Rozier's role with the Heat
One of the main leaders of the team in star Jimmy Butler has been very complimentary towards Rozier in what he can do with the team to get them over the hump. One of the more important traits to realize for Butler is that the former Hornet shouldn't worry too much on “making sure that everybody” gets the ball and that the 33-year old will handle it and find him the opportunities.
“He's straight. We knew that. We always tell him to come in and be himself,” Butler said to the media about Rozier. “Don't worry about making sure that everybody else got the ball. I'll make sure everyone else has the ball including him. Be aggressive, throw the ball in and out the basket as often as you can and that’s gonna be his role that will help us win.”
While it was an impressive win for the Heat as they take the regular season series win over the Magic, there is little time to rest as they prepare for the tail-end of the back-to-back on Wednesday where they face a 10-win San Antonio Spurs team. However, Rozier said to ClutchPoints that it is “tough to win” on any given night.
“It is tough to win every night so we're not looking at the wins or losses on that other team,” Rozier said. “You know, it's a job to do and we have to come out on top.”
Miami is 27-24 on the season which puts them seventh in the Eastern Conference. The game Wednesday against San Antonio is the third contest in their current four-game home stand which concludes Sunday afternoon against the Boston Celtics.