ASK IRA: Do Heat need to return focus to regular-season success?

Q: It seems like the Heat think it’s OK to have a bad season as long as they make the playoffs. That was one thing during the Jimmy Butler years, given what he could do in the postseason. But it’s been four bad regular seasons in a row. This myopic playoff focus has allowed most of the East to pass them by. – John, Ocala.

A: No, the Heat are not OK with being a play-in team, as Erik Spoelstra and others verbalized both before and after the play-in loss. But sometimes you are not good enough, can’t get good enough, and have to have patience. As I wrote in my Sunday column, not only do the Heat look no better than a 2026-27 play-in team with their current mix, but even that could be a challenge. The Heat for too long has been running in place while others have raced past.

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Q: The refs should get fined for stuff like this – Kari.

A: This was in response for the NBA, after the fact, assessing LaMelo Ball at Flagrant 2 foul and $35,000 fine for his takedown of Bam Adebayo that went uncalled in Charlotte’s play-in victory over the Heat. And referees are privately sanctioned. That is why it was surprising to see Curtis Blair, the referee who was staring at the action when the Hornets’ Ball tripped the Heat’s Adebayo during Tuesday night’s game, working Saturday’s Knicks-Hawks playoff opener.

Q: Ira, so you go out and grade the players but this is what we have and where is the grade for front-office management of draft assets over the years for this team. You are the utmost coward of all writers, reporters or journalists or whatever the heck it is that you are. Your writing is disgusting and your lack of confronting this team front office head on is an enormous act of cowardly proportions. You ought to quit and do the same type of writing for the government of Cuba. – Jerry Miami.