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| Photo Credit: Miami Herald |
The 3rd-seeded Miami Heat will take on the 6th-seeded Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, starting Sunday, April 17th, at 5:30 pm in Miami, Florida.
The Heat (48-34) return to the playoffs after missing out
last season. The Hornets (48-34) earned the Charlotte franchise a playoff sport
for only the third time since 2005. Both of their other two visits resulted in
first-round exits. They will look to avoid a similar fate this year.
Miami enters the playoffs with multiple questions about the
roster. Chris Bosh has been out since mid-February with blood clotting issues.
He has been able to participate in basketball activities since March, but a
return to the lineup during the playoffs is still in doubt. If he is healthy
and manages log quality minutes, he adds an important threat to the lineup.
Without him, Miami has been getting by with mostly a 9- or 10-man lineup each night. Additionally, it will be interesting to see who gets the starting nod between Hassan Whiteside and Amar’e Stoudemire. Whiteside’s production is miles ahead of Stoudemire’s, but Whiteside’s numbers experienced a noticeable jump during February and March as a dynamic player off the bench. Whiteside started the last three games of the season as Stoudemire was inactive for two of them.
Without him, Miami has been getting by with mostly a 9- or 10-man lineup each night. Additionally, it will be interesting to see who gets the starting nod between Hassan Whiteside and Amar’e Stoudemire. Whiteside’s production is miles ahead of Stoudemire’s, but Whiteside’s numbers experienced a noticeable jump during February and March as a dynamic player off the bench. Whiteside started the last three games of the season as Stoudemire was inactive for two of them.
Among those seeing regular minutes is Joe Johnson, who Miami
signed on February 27 after he agreed to a buyout with the Brooklyn Nets and
cleared waivers. Since joining the Heat, Johnson has averaged over 13 points
per game while shooting over 51% from the field. The 7-time All-Star has added
even more experience and veteran leadership to a team that is chock-full of it.
With Dwyane Wade’s production is at some of its lowest levels across the board,
Johnson’s presence has been a necessary addition. Luol Deng and Goran Dragic
round out a starting five that knows how to put points up when needed.
Charlotte is a young team ready to show the Eastern
Conference what they can do. Led by Kemba Walker’s 21 points and 6 assists per
game, Nicolas Batum’s 15 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, Charlotte’s top two
producers are 25 and 27 years old, respectively. Cody Zeller and Al Jefferson
are a difficult youth/veteran tag team to match up against, and Marvin Williams’
3-point shooting stretches the floor and creates matchup problems. Charlotte
must utilize those advantages, and hope Walker can have his way with the Miami
backcourt, if they want to advance in the playoffs.
The winner of this series will face the winner of the
Toronto Raptors and Indiana Pacers in the second round. Miami and Charlotte
split the season series, 2-2.
Prediction: Miami in 6
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