After dropping Game 5 in Toronto, Miami won Game 6 at home behind its best shooting performance of the series. Rookie Justice Winslow received the start at center, as coach Erik Spoelstra decided it was time for a change. Safe to say the move paid off.
Are the Heat gaining the title of league’s most unpredictable ball-club? Having come back from 3-2 down against Charlotte in the first round, will Miami do the same against Toronto and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the sixth time in Dwyane Wade’s career?
Game 5
In Game 5, dinged-up DeMar DeRozan was dominant, posting his best game of the playoffs (34 points on 11-for-22 from the field). Kyle Lowry came up clutch in the fourth quarter to finish with 25 points (9-25 FG, 4-9 3Pt, 3-4 FT), 10 rebounds, and six assists. Meanwhile, Miami barely shot 40 percent as a team, struggling to score during the first and third quarters. Luol Deng had a particularly rough night, managing just four points on 0-for-8 FG in 24 minutes before exiting with a bruised left wrist.
Game 6
Thankfully, Deng felt well enough to give it a go in Game 6. He was the team’s lowest scorer (two points on 1-5 FG), but he didn’t play 41 minutes for no reason. Deng’s one of the rare players who can positively impact a contest when he isn’t making much happen offensively. What he provides for this team is invaluable, and it should be no surprise if he leads Miami in minutes once again in Game 7.
In the backcourt, Goran Dragic scored a playoff career-high 30 points (12-21 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 4-4 FT) while Dwyane Wade was a menace defensively, taking over on both ends in the final quarter. Wade threw up some real garbage attempts early in the last stanza hunting for contact, but his showing of 22 points, six rebounds, five assists, three blocks, and two steals was spectacular despite going 8-for-21 from the field.
Throwing rookie Justice Winslow into the starting lineup might have seemed reckless or overdue depending on whom you asked pre-game. However, with a 6-10 wingspan, Winslow allowed Miami to continue switching immaculately defensively. Bismack Biyombo was also a non-factor on the offensive end. Biyombo finished with four points and one offensive rebound, though to be fair he had a clear put-back slam waived off erroneously for basket interference in the opening stanza. Toronto’s guards rarely looked for Biyombo as the roller, and it wasn’t until the final period that the Raptors ran enough pick-and-rolls with him to keep me satisfied. The center from the Congo has been playing at a very high level since Jonas Valanciunas and Hassan Whiteside went down, and it was starting to look like he would be the difference-maker in this series after dominating Game’s 4 and 5.
Inserting Winslow (who received a DNP-CD in Game 3) into the starting five afforded Miami increased spacing over Amar’e Stoudemire, who didn’t play at all in Game 6. Winslow isn’t a proven shooter by any stretch of the imagination, and Biyombo remained in the paint daring him to shoot. Those same shots from Winslow might not drop in Game 7, but every little bit of extra spacing helps this team so much since Wade and Dragic aren’t renowned three-point threats.
The bench was also outstanding on Friday. Josh Richardson was the full package, swatting shots, draining deep bombs, and exciting the crowd by hammering home a monster smash. You know a guy is starting to finally feel 100 percent when he starts picking guys up in the backcourt defensively, and Tyler Johnson did just that. Josh McRoberts also did some nice things (10 points, five rebounds). Time and time again, his man will think there’s no need to box him out. This is when McBob crashes the glass, surprising the sleeping opposition.
Looking Ahead
The ball is now in Toronto’s court. Lowry had his best game of the postseason in Game 6, scoring 36 points on 27 field-goal attempts while going 9-for-10 from the charity stripe. The league might anticipate better ratings for a Miami-Cleveland Eastern Conference Final, but the whistles should be fair for the Raptors in Air Canada Centre.
The Heat have made their move on the chess board that is a seven-game series, shifting their rook to D5. Will Biyombo be a bigger factor on the offensive glass and as a roll-man offensively for Toronto? How will the banged-up backcourt duo of DeRozan and Lowry fare in the biggest game of their respective careers? Does Dwane Casey make some changes to his rotation?
The recipe for Heat victory, the South beach blueprint if you will, is Dragic and Wade both performing at high levels. For Miami’s offense to avoid stalling out, everything revolves around that. If one is off, it makes it that much more difficult for the other, and the slippery slope continues. You better believe that Lowry will be going for the dragon’s throat in Game 7. The winner of this series is undoubtedly an underdog against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, but for either of teams, reaching the Eastern Conference Finals should be considered an accomplishment. The lights will be bright in Canada on Sunday. Will we finally get to watch a Wade versus James matchup in the playoffs? Will the Heat survive Game 7 in Jurassic Park?
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