After two straight sub-40 percent shooting performances, can the Miami Heat rediscover its high-octane offense and maintain home-court advantage?
Game 3
Hassan Whiteside went for 13 points, 18 rebounds, and four blocks while Luol Deng hit his first five three-point attempts of the night to keep the game close during the first half. However, the Heat were blown out by the Hornets in the third quarter. With Nicolas Batum ailing, the Hornets opted to start Frank Kaminsky at the four while Al Jefferson took Cody Zeller’s spot at the five and Marvin Williams moved to the three. Williams and Kaminksy had easily their best showings of the series in this one. There was an obvious desperation for a franchise that had lost its previous 12 playoff games, and Miami managed to make only 34.2 percent of its field-goal attempts. Worse yet, they seemed to lay down and die instead of putting up a real fight.
Game 4
The Heat continued to get more or less the same perimeter looks that they have throughout the series—and as was the case in Game 3, Miami couldn’t convert on enough shots to steal a road win. Charlotte held Miami to 39.5 percent from the field while Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lin exploded for 55 points combined. After putting up 16 and 14-point quarters in Game 3, the Heat mustered up just 13 second quarter points during Game 4. Goran Dragic was obliterated by Walker, Dwyane Wade was kept in check by Courtney Lee, and the Hornets outhustled the Heat on both ends of the floor.
The Good
Miami still has home-court advantage, and Nicolas Batum is probably going to sit out at least one more game. The Heat have played decent defense, holding the Hornets below 100 points in three of the four games. Also, the same shots that they’ve missed these last two games will likely be available again in Game 5.
The Bad
Dating back to the regular season finale versus Boston (in which the Heat had five points in the third quarter and could’ve squandered the third seed), Miami has been suffering through recurring droughts. Wade, Dragic, and others could continue misfiring from the field, and Walker might slay the Dragon once again. That Miami was in position to potentially tie the game if they came up with a rebound, but instead gave up an offensive rebound to Courtney Lee speaks to a lack of urgency. Game 4 should have been treated as a must-win for the Heat, but the Hornets were inexcusably hungrier. I’m also concerned about Hassan Whiteside based on his post-game comments about the officiating. Is he ready to refocus his energy in a positive way for Game 5 and beyond, or is he just going to whine and make excuses? Without Chris Bosh, the Heat need him to stay out of foul trouble and lock it up.
Looking Ahead
Coming into the series, outside shooting was one of my main concerns regarding Miami. Through the first two games, that seemed laughable. However, Wade hasn’t hit a three since December, and Dragic regressed to the mean on the road. Miami was looking like legitimate contenders to meet Cleveland in the Eastern Conference Finals after the first two bouts, but are the aging four-some of Wade, Dragic, Deng, and Joe Johnson running out of firepower? As Charlotte packs the paint, will the Heat be able to make them pay?
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