The Miami HEAT host the Indiana Pacers Wednesday night at AmericanAirlines Arena. Get your tickets now! The HEAT defeated the Pacers 101-93 in their last meeting on February 22. Tip-off is set for 7:00 PM. Television coverage on FOX Sports Sun begins at 6:30 PM. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.
1: What was most encouraging about Miami ending its losing streak and beating Washington on Monday night?
Couper Moorhead: The two stories of the night were Miami's hot shooting (they shot 30-of-49 on what were tracked as contested shots) and Erik Spoelstra surprising everyone by playing James Johnson at center for the majority of the fourth quarter. The shots come and go, especially the tough shots, but new lineups always have the potential for a long-term impact. The Wizards certainly had difficulty adjusting to Miami's unique look, first losing the lead in leaving Jason Smith on the floor to defend the pick-and-roll running Johnson, then being forced to play a lineup that the team had yet to use all year. You can only surprise teams once with a new lineup, but there was certainly more spacing on the floor with all five players on the arc, and Goran Dragic was as aggressive as he's been over the past two week. We'll have to see more of that lineup to get a real feel for whether its something Spoelstra can really lean on in high-leverage moments, but what's important today is that it helped earn a win and opened up a new possibility.
Joe Beguiristain: While you can easily go with Goran Dragic here, who put on a show with a HEAT career-high 34 points on 14-of-23 shooting, the most encouraging thing was how Miami helped him out on the offensive end. Five other players scored in double-figures, with no one as impactful as James Johnson. The 29-year-old simply went off in the fourth quarter and ran point-center for a majority of the period. His ability to attack off the dribble and set up his teammates took some pressure off Dragic, and that certainly paid dividends down the stretch.
As a whole, Miami moved the ball pretty well (especially early on) and tallied 25 assists on the evening. Like I discussed in our last preview, when the team is whipping the ball from side to side and receiving contributions from multiple guys, it is certainly tough to beat. Case in point: the HEAT are 3-1 in the four games they have totaled 25 or more assists this season. The lone loss came against the Bulls on December 10, but Miami nearly came away with the win. Needless to say, a recipe for success has been found.
2: How is this Pacers roster different from last year and how has the first quarter of the season gone for them?
Couper: The Pacers had a fascinating offseason, first trading long-time point guard George Hill to Utah in a deal that eventually brought them guard Jeff Teague from Atlanta, then bringing in Thaddeus Young via another trade to help round out what was supposed to be a new up-tempo lineup. And that tempo has certainly been there, as the Pacers are averaging just over 100 possessions a game, 10th in the league, which stands in stark contrast to the slow-down units Miami used to face every year in the playoffs. The offensive efficiency hasn't quite caught up, as the Pacers are hovering right around 15th in the league, though that includes Paul George missing seven games due to injury. Look a little closer and Indiana's offense has been plenty healthy with either George or Myles Turner on the floor. This might be a team that's a little better than it's 13-12 record indicates.
Joe: The Pacers made a bunch of moves in the offseason, with the two biggest ones shaking up the starting lineup for new head coach Nate McMillan. After spending his entire seven-year career with the Hawks, Jeff Teague was traded to Indiana in a three-team deal. In addition to Teague, the Pacers also brought in Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson, with the former starting in place of Ian Mahinmi, who signed with the Wizards.
As you'd expect with all these moves, things have been a little up and down for Indiana. At the current moment though, the team has won three of four and is over .500 for the first time since opening night. While Teague and Young are important, a lot of Indiana's recent success has to do with Paul George. Since returning from ankle and back injuries on December 4, the 26-year-old is averaging 23.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game on 46.6 percent shooting in his last six. When both he and Myles Turner are playing at a high level, the Pacers are tough to combat. That said, things should get even better once Teague and Young gain more familiarity with their teammates.3: Where might each team find a matchup advantage?
Couper: If Justise Winslow can play, and he did go through his first full practice on Tuesday, that gives Miami a player they can stick on George for most of the evening. If he can't play, Miami could again be undersized at that position unless Spoelstra uses James Johnson on George, which could then create another mismatch for Thaddeus Young. So stay tuned on the injury front.
The center matchup should be a fascinating one. Hassan Whiteside has the size advantage on Myles Turner but Turner has still been quite strong defensively and has a perimeter jumper that could pull Whiteside away from the rim. It should be a fun battle within the game.
Joe: No matter the circumstances, George is always a tough cover. As a result, Miami will likely throw a few guys his way, including Rodney McGruder. Over the past week or so, McGruder has made things tough on some of the league's best scorers in Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James. We'll see how it all pans out this time around.
On Miami's end, Hassan Whiteside certainly has a size advantage on Turner. As such, the 7-footer should be able to muscle his way inside on the offensive end after struggling a bit against Marcin Gortat on Monday. Of course, the flip side of that is Whiteside will also have to go out and defend Turner on the perimeter. In fact, Turner is shooting 45-of-89 (50.6 percent) from mid-range this season. It'll definitely be a challenge for Whiteside, but he should be up to the task on Wednesday night.
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