Miami Heat youngster Nikola Jovic was far from stellar in the team’s close loss to the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. He played just over 10 minutes and finished with as many turnovers (five) as he did points, rebounds and assists combined. It was his first performance after falling out of the rotation in the previous game.
After Jovic’s subpar showing, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra admitted that the 22-year-old needs to “put in some work,” but he also didn’t sound all too worried about the forward. He said the former first-round pick will “get there.”
“Look he needs to get in better rhythm,” Spoelstra said. “He needs to put in some work. But he’ll be just fine.
“He’ll get there. He’ll get in a better rhythm.”
Perhaps if Jovic fared even just a bit better on Saturday, the Heat would still be riding a lengthy winning streak. They lost by only three, and the defeat marked the end of a six-game winning streak for them that lasted for much of the second half of this month.
Jovic has started some games for the Heat in the past — 38 in the 2023-24 season and 57 in total during his tenure — but he’s functioned primarily in a bench role this season. Of the 15 games he’s played in, he’s come off the bench in all but one of them.
On a Heat team that’s full of players who have played above expectations so far, Jovic has underperformed. He’s converting a career-low 40.0 percent of his shots from the field, and the last time he scored double digits in points was back on Nov. 8 versus the Portland Trail Blazers. Plus, in the 2025-26 campaign, he’s turning the ball over a career-high 2.0 times per game.
But Jovic will have a chance to redeem himself in the next game on the Heat’s schedule, assuming he gets some minutes. Miami is set to take on the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday, and hopefully, he can be a positive contributor in a win for the Heat in that game.