Erik Spoelstra highlights the ‘glue’ that is Heat’s unsung hero

MIAMI – In the Miami Heat’s huge win over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night, 126-111, there were many impactful outings, but the one that arguably stood out the most was from Pelle Larsson. After the Heat guard came back from rehabbing his ankle, he would have a career night as head coach Erik Spoelstra doubled down on citing Larsson’s crucial role with the team.

In the victory over the Hawks, Larsson started while scoring a career-high 21 points while making nine of 13 shots from the field, three of four from three-point range, to go along with six rebounds, five assists, a steal, and playing effective defense. While he was exceptional in his return from an ankle sprain, which made him miss the last five games, Spoelstra explained to ClutchPoints how Larssom is the “glue” of the team.

“Yeah, I think it’s the comfort level with everybody in the locker room, you know, players and staff alike,” Spoelstra said of Larsson’s basketball compatibility before Saturday’s game against the Indiana Pacers. “He just does a lot of the intangibles. It’s probably a little bit easier for people to see that when he does score 21, but he literally doesn’t need to score to be the glue in whatever lineup that he plays in, that those intangibles, winning intangibles, you know, probably don’t get celebrated enough league-wide.”

Asked Erik Spoelstra about Pelle Larsson’s career-night on Friday and the comfort level he has to play a second-year player in a myriad of roles. Mentioned him as the “glue.”

“It’s the comfort level with everybody in the locker room, he does a lot of intangibles…” #HeatNation pic.twitter.com/OU00x0DRWz

— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) December 27, 2025

As Spoelstra mentioned, Larsson doesn’t need to be a high scorer to impact the game, having the traits that make him playable everywhere on the floor, whether it be in the starting lineup or off the bench.

Heat’s Erik Spoelstra gives insight into Pelle Larsson’s rehab sessions

As the Heat saw injury returns from Nikola Jovic and Larsson, the team continues to miss Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, with no doubt the pressure building up for the unit to keep the ship afloat. However, Larsson encompasses the determination needed to bring energy to the entire team, which Spoelstra got a first-hand view of during his rehab sessions, even to the point of the 24-year-old almost hurling.

“You should have seen his rehab sessions, whether it was on the bike initially, it was just all out,” Spoelstra said after the win over the Hawks, via Heat Central on X, formerly Twitter. “Almost a level of throwing up. I walked in on one of those sessions, and then also his court sessions. He just pushes the envelope. And so, he had the conditioning. It’s different than game conditioning. But he was able to handle those 29 minutes.”

Coach Spo with high praise for Pelle Larsson

"You see the glue intangibles he provides. Regardless of stats he does so many intangibles on both sides of the court. He cuts, he moves for you offensively. It helps all your better players. We we're missing a ton of that. Something… https://t.co/OY100cXuRd pic.twitter.com/oEBRiFvVvD

— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) December 27, 2025

There’s no denying the respect he has for the entire team, with even Miami’s leading scorer, Norman Powell, calling Larsson a “gamer.” Powell especially mentions how Larsson impacts the game on both sides of the floor.

“Man, he’s a gamer,” Powell said after scoring 25 points on Friday. “He’s a game changer just with his physicality, his energy, and effort on both sides of the floor. He kept plays alive, made it tough and difficult for every matchup that he was on, putting his face in the plays, getting fouls. We missed that about him.”

Norman Powell with high praise for Pelle Larsson

“He’s a gamer. Not only a gamer but a game changer. With his energy, effort on both sides of the floor… Putting his face in the plays, getting fouls, we missed that about him. He continues to make winning plays whenever he’s… https://t.co/0WxDwodSe6 pic.twitter.com/wTDIActJBB

— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) December 27, 2025

At any rate, Larsson looks to continue bringing a versatility to the Heat that’s needed in a stretch to enter in 2o26 on a positive note. With the team at 16-15, Miami looks to stack wins on Saturday against the Pacers and a key game on Monday night against the Denver Nuggets.

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