Tuesday night marks the halfway point of the (9-11) Miami Heat’s daunting five-game road trip across the US. This time, the Heat face the (12-9) Phoenix Suns as they desperately try to regain their mojo following a four-game losing streak.
Looking for some sort of progress, the Heat who have been terrible on defense will take on the Suns who have the 5th highest scoring offense in the league. The Suns do however give up over 103 PPG to their opponents. Miami has been reeling, most recently losing by 16 in Memphis, and by 24 in Milwaukee.
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Miami has swept their last eight games against the Suns, six of which were road victories. Unfortunately, for this meeting, the Heat enter at their absolute worst; for the first time in 27 years of the franchise’s history, Miami has allowed four consecutive opponents to shoot 54% or higher, with a combined total 55.9 percent from the field.
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The Heat will have to try and contain the Suns most lethal of positions, point guard. Phoenix almost has too many of them with Goran Dragic, Isaiah Thomas, Eric Bledsoe and seldom used rookie Tyler Ennis. The guard position is the most difficult for the Heat to contain so far this season, and they will have their hands full.
Fortunately for Miami, Phoenix doesn't offer any serious and consistent low post scoring. Miles Plumlee and Alex Len aren't going to be getting regular post ups. Markieff Morris is their biggest threat and he doesn't spend nearly as much time down here as he should. The Suns are 15th in the NBA in rebounds.
Expecting to win has been no easy feat for Heat fans these days. With injuries taking out a different player each week and a virus sweeping the locker room, victories have been scarce. In Sunday night’s embarrassing defeat, the Heat let the Memphis Grizzlies shoot 59% from the field with five players scoring in double digits. Jon Leuer led his team, putting up 20 points and 12 rebounds. Courtney Lee and Mike Conley added 17 and 18 points respectively, with the latter shooting a perfect 8-of-8 from the field.
Although the Heat couldn’t keep up with the red-hot Grizzlies, Dwyane Wade seemed to play the game relatively injury-free, as he scored 25 points to go along six assists. Josh McRoberts contributed 14 points and five assists, while Bosh added a measly 12 points.
This is certainly a game the Heat can win, especially knowing the Suns are coming off a loss last night on the road. The Heat need to find the energy and hustle to get this one done. Otherwise, they'll be staring at the real possibility of coming home empty on this road trip.
One of the biggest matchups to watch will be Wade vs Bledsoe. Bledsoe is coming off a triple double last night, and is a fast and explosive guard, much like what Wade used to be. How those two defend each other will be fascinating.
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