Heat coach Erik Spoelstra responded to Andrew Wiggins’ early-season slump by replacing him in the starting lineup with Pelle Larsson for Sunday’s game at Sacramento, Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald writes in a subscriber-only story. It marked the first change of the season to a starting five that had been outscored by 8.9 points per 100 possessions in its 103 minutes together, and Spoelstra believed it was time to shake things up.

“These are tough decisions. I really feel for Wiggs on this,” he said. “Pelle is giving us that ability to be a connector and also consistent energy and toughness that we think can complement that group.”

Larsson took advantage of the opportunity with 11 points, three rebounds and three assists in 22 minutes as Miami pulled out a six-point victory, although his playing time was limited by foul trouble. The new starting lineup outscored the Kings by 12 points in its 11 minutes on the court. Wiggins posted six points, three rebounds and one assist in 32 minutes in his first game as a reserve since coming to Miami in a 2025 trade. Chiang notes that he entered the night averaging career lows in points (8.6 per game), field-goal attempts (8.4), free-throw attempts (0.7), rebounds (3.1), assists (1.7), steals (0.6) and minutes (25.8).

“Wiggs was good in the second unit tonight,” Spoelstra said. “We’re at a point right now where it’s all hands on deck.”

There’s more on the Heat:

• Ryan Conwell continues to expand his role with the bench unit at the expense of Tim Hardaway Jr., Chiang adds. The rookie guard was in Spoelstra’s closing lineup on Sunday, while Hardaway, who was signed in free agency over the summer to provide outside shooting, went scoreless in seven minutes.
• Following the game, Giannis Antetokounmpo responded to critical comments that Doc Rivers, his former coach in Milwaukee, made recently on The Bill Simmons Podcast, relays Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “You have his number, right? You do. I know you do. You gotta go ask him why he thought that; that’s on him,” Antetokounmpo said. “That’s not on me. I gotta focus on my team and what I gotta do and how can I be better and how can I help the team. … Never let bitterness and pettiness get in front of your goals and dreams, man. For every athlete out there, never let that (happen). That’s insane, but you gotta go ask him why he said what he said. Not me.”
• Ramona Shelburne of ESPN takes an in-depth look at why the Heat have started so slowly amid high expectations after trading for Antetokounmpo this summer. A major reason has been issues on defense, with Miami ranking 25th in the league despite having several high-level defensive players. “Right now, we don’t trust one another,” Antetokounmpo said recently. “We don’t give that extra effort. We did it for two games, but we keep on having bad habits creep up in games.”