MIAMI — For years, Erik Spoelstra found the challenge a challenge. He preferred not to risk his timeouts, to save his coach’s challenges for deciding minutes, in case needed.
So vent? Sure. Stomp? At times the Heat coach might have been confused with Michael Flatley. But twirl that finger to signal a stoppage to review the preceding officiating effort? Not so much.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementLast season, in all of 2024-25, Spoelstra issued 18 coaches challenges. As a matter of perspective, the Oklahoma City Thunder, as in the NBA-champion Oklahoma City Thunder, issued 82.
Consider, 82 games in the regular season, with coaches allowed to issue up to two challenges a game if successful with their first. Then consider that while Spoelstra issued only those 18 challenges last season, the Utah Jazz were successful — just the ones they won — on 50. On the other side of the ledger, the Thunder lost 36 challenges, twice as many as Spoelstra issued overall
This season? Already 13 challenges by Spoelstra, putting him among the league leaders, with a 10-3 record of success.
So an itchy challenge finger?
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementTrying to play catch-up from previous seasons of moving on to the next play?
“Not necessarily,” Spoelstra said during a private moment after a recent practice. “I mean, I didn’t want to have as infrequent challenges as I had last year. But it hasn’t been intentional to do it as often as I have.”
Still, the itchy challenge finger has become noticeable to the point that he was asked about during a pregame media session last week.
“It’s really more about how the games have gone,” Spoelstra said, with the Heat returning home to face the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night at Kaseya Center at the start of a four-game homestand. “It wasn’t like a strategy that we had a staff retreat, so I have to do more challenges.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“A few of ’em I’ve just done because I’m just trying to take the officials up. I felt like there were certain incorrect calls that maybe if I’m wasting a challenge that it might get everybody to focus.”
He paused, smiled.
“Probably to no avail,” he added.
Among the most noticeable instances of ire was the recent road loss to the New York Knicks, when Spoelstra burned both of his challenges in the first half. On the first, he correctly challenged an out-of-bounds call, even though the Knicks otherwise would have had only three seconds left on the shot clock had they retained possession.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“It was more frustration, that those seemed like obvious calls, that I was trying to (get) more concentration,” he said of that night’s officiating crew. “So that was different than some of the other games.
“It was more just to bring awareness to how clear those calls seemed, from our vantage point. So I was just trying to snap some focus into the game.”
To come coaches, the addition of a second challenge has made it easier for officials to fall back on an additional means of clarification. But burn a challenge, and you also could be burning a needed timeout.
To Spoelstra, there remains a strategy beyond the occasional ire.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“Some of the other games, it’s swing points,” he said. “Ideally, I would still like to have one going toward the end of a game. But I’ll use these regular-season games to work through it and see what we might do.”
When the challenge rule first was introduced in 2019-20, it grew to a point where Spoelstra would joke that players constantly were twirling fingers, urging challenges, with former Heat guard Kyle Lowry among the prime protagonists.
Spoelstra said that has toned down.
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“I actually have not felt that from our players, that they’re trying to make me a puppeteer,” he said. “I’ve actually felt their frustration.”
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIn the NBA’s latest weekly breakdown of challenges, the overall success rate of challenges was 61.7% overturned calls. In the league’s breakdown, the success rate was 75.2% on out-of-bounds calls being overruled, 56% on foul calls being overruled by review and 50% on goaltending reviews.
Spoelstra’s 2026-25 challengesOct. 22 at Orlando: 3:01, 4th quarter, tied 115-115, challenge of foul. Unsuccessful.
Oct. 24 at Memphis: 6:21, 3rd quarter, ahead 94-62, challenge of foul. Unsuccessful.
Oct. 26 vs. Knicks: 9:29, 2nd quarter, behind 31-29, challenge of out of bounds. Successful.
Oct. 28 vs. Hornets: 8:27, 2nd quarter, ahead 50-44, challenge of foul. Successful.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOct. 30 at Spurs: 6:06, 1st quarter, ahead 18-16, challenge of foul. Unsuccessful.
Nov. 2 at Lakers: 7:53, 3rd quarter, behind 85-77, challenge of foul. Successful.
Nov. 5 at Nuggets: 5:53, 1st quarter, ahead 22-18, challenge of foul. Successful.
Nov. 7 vs. Hornets: 8:37, 3rd quarter, ahead 78-72, challenge of foul. Successful.
Nov. 8 vs. Trail Blazers: 44.8, 4th quarter, ahead 132-127, challenge of foul. Successful.
Nov. 10 vs. Cavaliers: 3:19, 3rd quarter, ahead 92-81, challenge of foul. Successful.
Nov. 12 vs. Cavaliers: 7:16, 3rd quarter, ahead 84-76, challenge of out of bounds. Successful.
Nov. 14 at Knicks: 9:01, 2nd quarter, behind 43-39, challenge out of bounds. Successful.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNov. 14 vs. Knicks: 5:03, 2nd quarter, ahead 55-51, challenge of foul. Successful.
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