The Miami HEAT face the Cleveland Cavaliers Tuesday night at Quicken Loans
Arena. The HEAT defeated the Cavaliers 124-121 in OT in their last meeting on
April 10. 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 stuck out to you the most about Miami’s victory in Chicago?
Couper Moorhead: Well, there was a somewhat slow first quarter in which the HEAT
scored seven points that we’ll just go ahead and never mention again. Beyond
that, however, Sunday was notable because for the third straight game Miami’s
primary bench unit of Wayne Ellington, Tyler Johnson, James Johnson and Kelly
Olynyk plus a starter had a major impact on a win. That group, with Goran
Dragic, was so good Sunday that Erik Spoelstra ran with them for the fourth
quarter as a Bulls runs was held off.
It wasn’t always the most glamorous of talking points but Miami’s bench was
always one of the most important parts of last season’s second-half turnaround.
The makeup of that group is a little different with Olynyk instead of Willie
Reed but as long as they defend consistently and continue to generate and put up
good looks from three, they’ll be a major luxury for this HEAT roster.
Joe Beguiristain: Miami’s overall ball movement and offensive execution in the
fourth quarter really stood out to me. While the team didn’t have an insane
amount of assists like it did against Minnesota, there were a handful of
possessions where the ball was moving from side-to-side in order to get the best
possible shot. As such, Wayne Ellington took advantage once again and nailed
five treys on the afternoon.
With things getting close in the fourth quarter, Goran Dragic (who won Eastern
Conference Player of the Week on Monday) and James Johnson combined for 25 of
the HEAT’s 36 points in the period. Johnson attacked the basket supremely well,
while Dragic mixed things up and nailed a dagger three with 49.8 seconds left to
play.
Over Miami’s three-game winning streak, six players are shooting 50 percent or
better from the field. That’s all due to the team’s improved ball movement.
2: With the changes to their roster, how have the Cavaliers been playing this
season?
Couper: The most obvious change Cleveland made was trading Kyrie Irving to
Boston in exchange for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder and Brooklyn’s upcoming
first-round draft pick. So far, Thomas has been sidelined with a hip injury and
only Crowder has played. Cleveland also added Derrick Rose, currently not with
the team, Jeff Green and most notably Dwyane Wade in the middle of training
camp. Wade started the first few games of the season but has since been playing
mostly off the bench.
The Cavs suffered a four-game losing streak earlier in the season which left
them at 3-5 at one point, but they’re on an eight-game winning streak. They’ve
dealt with a variety of injuries and the ensuing lineup changes, but their
winning streak has coincided with a defense trending toward the upper third of
the league after a tough start. It wasn’t the smoothest opening to the season,
but the Cavaliers appear to be back on their usual track.
Joe: While the Cavaliers got off to a slow start during the first two weeks of
the season, they’ve turned things around in a big way recently and have won
eight straight. And with LeBron James leading the charge, would you expect
anything different?
Even with Kyrie Irving out of the equation, Cleveland is still one of the best
offenses in the league. Although James is the main reason for that (he was just
four assists shy from his second-straight triple-double on Monday), Dwyane Wade
has upped his production off the bench during the team’s winning streak. In
fact, the 35-year-old has averaged 12.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists per
game over that time span with a little more playing time due to Derrick Rose’s
absence.
With the Cavaliers also improving on the defensive end of late, they’re looking
like a well-oiled machine at the moment. If that trend continues, there’s no
reason to believe they won’t be one of the top two seeds in the Eastern
Conference once the regular season is over.
3: What matchup do you think the HEAT can attack Tuesday night?
Couper: It depends. Iman Shumpert returned to Cleveland’s lineup Monday night
against the 76ers, but he came off the bench. If he returns to the starting
lineup on Tuesday, he’ll be a fairly big defender for Goran Dragic to navigate.
Should Shumpert not start, however, the Cavs are likely to start Jose Calderon –
a matchup Dragic should be able to pursue.
Whoever starts as the nominal point guard – we all know the primary ballhandler
is going to be James, especially in the absence of Thomas – Tristan Thompson is
also out which means Love will start out against Hassan Whiteside. That’s such a
size advantage for Whiteside that they could go after the post, but even though
Love is a better defender than he’s often given credit for it will still be a
challenge to contain Dragic if Miami’s spacing is on point. Of course the HEAT
have to defend Love on the perimeter on the other end, with Jae Crowder spacing
the floor as well.
Joe: I think the HEAT can find some success with Hassan Whiteside going up
against Kevin Love and Channing Frye. Since Love and Frye aren’t that strong on
the defensive end, Whiteside should be able to roll to the rim and get some of
his usual dunks. As long as the 7-footer remains ready for the catch in the post
and stays active throughout, it could be a big night for him.
Another matchup I’m intrigued to see is Tyler Johnson versus Wade. Wade
witnessed Johnson’s ascension first-hand before going to Chicago in the summer
of 2016. It’ll be cool to see the two go head-to-head at certain points like
they probably did numerous times in practice as teammates.
Highlights:
April 10 – Cavaliers at HEAT
March 6 – HEAT at Cavaliers
Game Notes:
Efficiencies (Rank):
Player: Goran Dragic
Player: Wayne Ellington
Player: James Johnson
Player: Tyler Johnson
Player: Kelly Olynyk
Player: Hassan Whiteside
Media Content: http://www.nba.com/heat/preview-miacle-171128
Media Keywords: NBA, Sports, Miami Heat, Goran Dragic, Wayne Ellington, James
Johnson, Tyler Johnson, Kelly Olynyk, Hassan Whiteside, Erik Spoelstra, Miami
Heat
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Taxonomy: Game Preview
Story Link: http://www.nba.com/heat/preview-miacle-171128
