Though it has always been a problem for the Miami Heat, random role players have consistently gone off against them this season.
For those new to the Heat community, you are about to learn something valuable. What is the RSHK?
What is Happening!?
Game after game, a new player is getting their season or career high in points against the Heat. As of April 29, there have been at least 14 players that have done just such.
Find the laundry list of players below. An asterisk denotes a later change their season/career high has changed after their game vs. the Heat.
- BKN G Landry Shamet: Career-high 30 points on 4/18/21
- MEM G Dillon Brooks: Season-high 28 points* on 4/6/21
- ORL G Terrence Ross: Season-high 31 points on 3/14/21
- ORL F Dwayne Bacon: Season-high 21 points on 3/11/21
- SAC F DaQuan Jeffries: Career-high 17 points* on 2/18/21
- GSW G Kent Bazemore: Season-high 26 points on 2/17/21
- LAC F Marcus Morris: Season-high 32 points on 2/15/21
- UTA F Georges Niang: Season-high 14 points* on 2/13/21
- NYK G Reggie Bullock: Season-high 21 points on 2/7/21
- WAS C Alex Len: Season-high 18 points* on 2/5/21
- CHA G Malik Monk: Career-high 36 points on 2/1/21
- DET G Wayne Ellington: Season-high 24 points* on 1/18/21
- PHI G Shake Milton: Season-high 31 points on 1/14/21
- WAS G Garrison Mathews: Season-high 22 points on 1/9/21
Dwayne Bacon becomes at least 11th random person in 2021 to post career or season scoring high (season in his case) against Heat. Curiously, no Achiuwa in second half. Heat hoping to hang on against Magic.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) March 12, 2021
The craziest part is this isn’t anything new to Heat fans. It has happened to the team so much that the community has made up an acronym for it: the RSHK.
The “RSHK”
The “RSHK” term isn’t known to many people outside of Heat Twitter, but it’s short for the term, “Random Scrub Heat Killer.” Its definition is just as simple as it sounds: a random scrub that kills the Heat.
There is no known source for the term’s creation, but its first appearance on Twitter is in June of 2012.
@AMas92 Random Scrub Heat Killer games are torture. It can't happen again…..I hope.
— John Diaz (@byJohnDiaz) June 5, 2012
For years, Miami has been getting beaten up by random role players. Everybody in the community knows it’s bound to happen, so much that Five Reasons Sports Network tends to tweet and ask Twitter who they think will be the RSHK of the game before it starts.
Who will be tonight’s RSHK?
— Five Reasons Sports Network (@5ReasonsSports) February 19, 2021
Should the RSHK be a Concern?
Sort of, but not too much.
If you are new to Heat Twitter, it could concern you. Fans that are familiar with the team and the RSHK know this isn’t an issue long-term. Random players just seem to play better against the Heat, and it is what it is. There could be a few factors that play into it, though.
The RSHK can be a product of the Heat selling out to stop the star. For example, the Heat held Steph Curry 8-25 from the field and 5-20 from downtown, yet they surrendered 26 points to Kent Bazemore.
This has happened more than once. The team held Kyrie Irving to 6-19 from the field but allowed Landry Shamet to have 30 points on 10/15 shooting.
Additionally, these players tend to pick up the slack when their star teammates are injured. Garrison Mathews‘ game had Beal and Westbrook ruled out, Morris’ game had Kawhi and PG13 in street clothes and Shamet’s game had Harden on the sidelines, and KD leaving early. It’s understandable that someone needs to score the ball when key players aren’t available.
The final angle is the Heat have players that just struggle to defend. Almost all of the players that have gone off against the team this year are coming off the bench, so that could be an explanation. Goran Dragic, Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and Kendrick Nunn are all below-average defenders and can be easily exposed.
“The Big 3” era used to get smacked by RSHKs all the time (ex: Danny Green and J.J. Barea). Come playoff time, that gets thrown out the window, as we saw during last year’s Finals run. Considering Miami’s record in the aforementioned 14 games is 8-6, it is still manageable.
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