NEW YORK — The on-again, off-again appears to have reached the point of no return based on the continued emergence of Kel’el Ware: The big lineup increasingly is the Miami Heat’s lineup.

While the Bam Adebayo-Ware pairing was a staple at the end of last season, it also was before the Heat added Norman Powell to the mix. That had Erik Spoelstra shuffling through options to open the season, including plenty of smaller-ball approaches.

Lately, in large part due to injuries, it has been back to big, even with the Heat uneven at times with the approach.

“I mean, it keeps teams off balance,” Adebayo said. “We’ve got to look at it in a positive way. We keep teams off-balance.”

The question is whether it also has the Heat off-balance, largely utilizing different defensive approaches when Ware is in and when he is out. For the most part, the preference has been Ware in drop coverage defensively, to better position his size closer to the rim. Otherwise, the Heat have been up and switching when Ware is out of games.

So is the toggle a strain, bouncing between schemes based on personnel?

“I don’t think it’s difficult,” Spoelstra said, with the Heat moving on to Sunday night’s game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden at the close of their three-game trip. “It’s required in this league. You have to have different coverages. Some of that will be based on personnel. Some of it will be based on that you have to show good teams, skilled teams, different looks. But we have to get better overall.

“It’s not about adjusting because he’s in a drop. I want to see those numbers when the pick and rolls are, when he’s involved, to be at a similar level when Bam is involved. That’s a tall task, I get it. But he’s getting better. We just have to continue to make those strides.”

In Friday night’s loss to the Boston Celtics at TD Garden, Spoelstra toggled even when Ware was in the game, with Ware defending the pick-and-roll in drop coverage nine times and switching nine times. In each case, the Celtics scored at a prolific 1.5 points per possession.

“They were just running different guys up into the pick and roll a lot of times. It was with Kel’el’s man,” Spoelstra said of the Celtics’ takeover in that game.

While Ware’s shot blocking can energize the defense, it is the routine, the mundane where Spoelstra wants to see the growth from the 21-year-old.

Ware said he accepts the challenge of being asked for more than simply swats.

“Whenever I do step out, I don’t feel it’s much of a problem,” he said. “It’s just getting more reps, game reps, with the switches, getting more used  to it.”

As for more time with the starters than reserves over the past week, Ware said that comfort zone already is there.

“I mean, it doesn’t really differ that much, I would say,” he said. “It’s just, I feel like my role is the same in both units, or any of the units. For me, it doesn’t make a difference.”

Adebayo event

Adebayo, through his Bam, Books & Brotherhood Foundation, is hosting his annual Christmas Toy Drive on Monday at Kaseya Center, a family-focused holiday event serving children and families throughout Miami.

The event is presented in collaboration with Trina’s Kids Foundation, bringing together volunteers, community partners, and pre-selected local families.

Hall candidates

Several players who had brief stints with the Heat are among the candidates announced for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026, including Penny Hardaway, Shawn Marion, Joe Johnson and Amar’e Stoudemire. Among the candidates in the women’s category is former Miami Sol and current Heat executive Ruth Riley Hunter.

The list of finalists will be announced Feb. 9, with the inductees announced April 4 at the NCAA Final Four.