Erik Spoelstra Calls Out Heat's Lack of Inspiration After Loss to Hornets Drops Record to 0-3

The Miami Heat have dropped to 0-3 after a 115-110 road loss to the Charlotte Hornets, marking the first time they have lost their first three regular season games since the 2007-08 season.

After the game, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra spoke with reporters during his press conference and revealed he told his team that they "need inspiration."

"And ultimately what I told my team right now is that we need inspiration," Spoelstra said. "Those five guys inspired our team for 10 minutes of the game, and we need a lot more inspiration throughout the course of 48 minutes. It's a powerful thing when you can inspire your teammate to make an extraordinary effort, and we will. We'll get there."

Heat, Giannis were down by 20+ in each of their 3 losses

Miami was down 96-75 going into the fourth quarter but went on a 27-4 run to tie the game at 100. The lineup of Bam Adebayo, Tim Hardaway Jr., Davion Mitchell, Bobby Portis and Pelle Larsson got the job done, and they ultimately got a shoutout from Spoelstra afterward.

However, Miami dug too big of a hole for itself and couldn't take the lead despite tying the game at 100, 102 and 104 in the fourth before Charlotte grabbed the advantage for good.

Miami lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves 131-106 before falling to the Detroit Pistons 128-111. An opponent would have blown out Miami for the third straight time if not for the Heat's fourth quarter run. Miami's defense has been particularly disappointing, with the team allowing 124.6 points per game.

Expectations were higher with the arrival of 10-time All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo via trade from the Milwaukee Bucks. He's been the team's unquestioned top player so far, averaging 28.3 points per game.

Miami also added Bobby Portis, Klay Thompson and Tim Hardaway Jr., though it did lose important pieces in the Antetokounmpo trade (e.g. Tyler Herro, Kel'el Ware and Jaime Jaquez Jr.).

As for Spoelstra, he told reporters the team has to " find a way " and further noted players have to stop taking bad shots . He also wasn't pleased with how Antetokounmpo was officiated. Of note, Antetokounmpo got into foul trouble and ultimately fouled out in 25 minutes. Spoelstra did make it clear, though, that he wasn't making the game about the refs and blaming them for the loss.

Miami hopes to regroup shortly as the Dallas Mavericks will now arrive in town on Monday.