Davion Mitchell 'Not Surprised' About the Miami Heat's Defensive Struggles

Part of the Miami Heat's slow start to the 2026-27 NBA season has not been living up to the defensive standard President Pat Riley has established within the franchise throughout its history.

In five of seven games, opponents have scored at least 125 points, three of which came in losses.

Following the Heat's 138-117 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena, Davion Mitchell is "not surprised" by the early defensive struggles to start the season.

"If you don't want to play defense as a team, you can't do it by yourself," the starting point guard said. "We need to have a better sense of urgency, be intentional about our game plan, and stick to it."

The Heat have several prolific individual defenders, including 10-time All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who won Defensive Player of the Year in the 2019-20 season, and three-time All-Star Bam Adebayo, who has been a consistent top-10 candidate for the award. Even Mitchell, who is one of the league's most prolific defensive guards.

For a roster with the oldest average age (29.5), there needs to be a stronger approach to each game, especially defensively. In the Lakers matchup, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves are going to score, but allowing explosive performances from Walker Kessler (15 points and 15 rebounds) and Sandro Mamukelashvili (13 points on 50 percent shooting) is where the lapses show.

The Heat's paint defense has steadily dropped and currently ranks 14th, allowing an average of 46 points in the middle through seven games. Despite having elite rim protectors in Antetokounmpo and Adebayo, it's not translating to consistent stops. That should play to the Heat's strength rather than decline this early in the season.

It helped the Lakers carve out a path to victory, dominating the paint by a wide margin, 60-38. While stopping that has been a problem, the perimeter defense hasn't held up either. Opponents are making 41 percent of shots from behind the arc on average against the Heat this season thus far, which ranks the second-worst in the league.

Combining both means getting stops have been a consistent issue.

The Heat currently have the fourth-worst defensive rating in the league, only behind the Sacramento Kings, Chicago Bulls, and Phoenix Suns.

Offense is fluid and slumps are going to happen. Defense is an aspect of basketball that can be controlled. If the Heat need motivation to show greater effort on that side of the court, it could end up being a long season. What initially appeared to be a championship contender might become one of the league's biggest disappointments if that's not fixed.

It's still early in the season and the Heat will have more opportunities before concerns start to legitimately rise.

More Miami Heat News:

- "Miami Heat Enhance Dwyane Wade's Statue Two Years Since the Unveil"

- "Bam Adebayo: 'I Never Wanted to be Captain'"

- "Miami Heat's First Season Win Comes on Adebayo's Record-Breaking Night"