Erik Spoelstra addresses starting Kel’el Ware over Nikola Jovic in the Grizzlies offense

As it is The Miami Heat had a big win against the Memphis Grizzlies Friday night, 146-114, to get their first win of the season, there was a certain lineup change that fans have been waiting for that could lead to a performance. With The Heat are up by nearly 40 points at halftimeit was a historic night for the head coach Erik Spoelstra spoke at the beginning Kel’el Ware instead of Nikola Jovic.

That was the question throughout training camp and the preseason, as fans wondered who would start next door Bam Adebayo and headline Miami’s frontcourt. In the first loss to the Orlando Magic, Spoelstra went with Jovic, but switched to Ware on Friday night, leading to a big win.

Of course, Miami’s offense looked good in both games, playing at a much faster pace, which has been a key goal of the team all season. In the preseason, Spoelstra started Jovic, but in the later exhibition games he went to Var due to injury.

However, Spoelstra would find that he did “rest” in Ware’s start in the opener, but the big man dealt with neck spasms and an ankle injury during the game.

“The last four days of the preseason, both of them were hurt,” Spoelstra said via the team’s YouTube page. “I’m talking about Kel’el and Nick (Jovic). They were minor injuries. But I didn’t know who was going to be available that first night. I was kind of leaning toward this starting lineup going into Game 1. And then Kel’el had a neck spasm. Then he had a minor ankle sprain, where he didn’t practice the day before the game.”

Heat, Erik Spoelstra on using Nikola Jovic, Kel’el Ware

While it is Heat captain Bam Adebayo does his best Stephen Curry impression in the three-to-start coverage, putting Ware at center gives Adebayo a chance to contribute more in the scoring department. Adebayo would score 18 of Miami’s first 25 points to finish with a game-high 24 points, while Ware had 19 points and nine rebounds.

However, Jović was a key player in the rotation with 20 points off the bench, along with six rebounds and four assists.

“This is a good way to get all three of those guys the minutes we need in Bam, Kel’el and Nick,” Spoelstra said. “But we’ll see. There might be certain games where it makes more sense to start Niko. In my opinion, it doesn’t matter. I know, it probably does for other people. But those guys will get minutes, and we need Kel’el and Niko to grow and take on more responsibilities as the season goes on.”

After the game, Jović would say that the “matchup” was the reason why he didn’t start, but he pointed out that he doesn’t mind where he plays. Fans will see how and if the starting lineup changes when the Heat take on the New York Knicks on Sunday.