Heat vs. Knicks Takeaways: Karl-Anthony Towns Bullies Heat Into Second Loss

The Miami Heat (2-2) were handed their second loss of the season on Wednesday night against the New York Knicks (2-2), 116-107.

Here’s a look at four major takeaways from the matchup:

1. Miami’s lack of size showed up once again.

The Miami Heat got destroyed by Karl-Anthony Towns all night long. He finished with 44 points, 13 rebounds, and two assists on 68 percent shooting and 80 percent shooting from three-point range. It did not matter who coach Erik Spoelstra threw at him, as Bam Adebayo and Thomas Bryant couldn’t do anything to slow him down. With the absence of Kevin Love for the fourth straight game due to personal reasons, rookie Kel’el Ware looks like a more appealing option for the team to go to after every game.

2. It was another slow start and finish from Adebayo.

It’s clear through four games Adebayo is the fourth offensive option for the Heat on most nights. However, not making a noticeable effort on defense is unacceptable if these are the offensive performances the team is going to continue getting from him. His impact on defense in the first half was limited due to three early fouls, which caused him to sit most of the first half. There was little to no improvement in the second half from him on either end of the court. He finished with 11 points, three rebounds, and four assists on 42.9 percent shooting while missing both of his three-point attempts.

3. The Heat wasted a star performance from Tyler Herro.

Herro was the only consistent form of offense for the Heat. He finished with 34 points, five rebounds, and seven assists on 60 percent shooting and 61.5 percent from three-point range. His eight three-pointers kept the Heat within comeback range for most of the game. They needed someone else to step up, and no one did. Herro outscored both Adebayo and Jimmy Butler combined.

4. Terry Rozier’s fourth-quarter scoring was too late to make a difference.

Rozier had a terribly inefficient night leading into the fourth quarter. He was 1 of 9 from the field with just four points. He finished with 16 points, seven assists, and four rebounds on 35.7 percent shooting and 50 percent shooting from three-point range. His four three-pointers in the fourth helped, but the Heat could have used that earlier in the game to help put the Knicks out of reach while Jalen Brunson struggled in the first half.

Before tonight, Rozier was the leading scorer for the Heat with 19.5 points per game. He will look to get back on track in the next game against the Washington Wizards on Saturday.

Bryan Townes is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at btownesjr@gmail.com or on X @bryantownesjr11. Follow our coverage on Facebook.