After falling behind 3-2 in the first round, the Miami Heat eventually crushed the Charlotte Hornets in Game 7.
Game 7
Typically, there has been a “good” and “bad” breakdown, but frankly everything went Miami’s way in Game 7. Frank Kaminsky and Kemba Walker combined for 21 points while converting on just 6-for-31 from the field. Meanwhile, Miami’s Goran Dragic broke out of his series-long slumber to post a throwback performance with 25 points on 11-of-17 from the field. Dragic hit two threes, held his own defensively, and was generally on fire for the entire contest. Hassan Whiteside dominated the paint on both ends. Luol Deng stayed scalding hot. Gerald Green got going. To add insult to injury, former Hornet Josh McRoberts, who has mostly been injured and/or awful during his two-year Heat tenure, was fairly effective as well.
Generally speaking, everyone who stepped on the court made a positive impact, including injured rookie Josh Richardson (shoulder) and sophomore Tyler Johnson, who returned to the floor for the first time since before his February shoulder surgery. Dwyane Wade was able to take a back seat too, saving his body in a casual 25-minute showing.
Looking Ahead
Toronto narrowly escaped round one for the first time since it became a seven-game series. Still, the Raptors’ duo of All-Stars struggled. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan need to play at a much higher level for Toronto to advance past Miami. It’s not that Indiana isn’t a good basketball team: newsflash, the Pacers are going to be dangerous sooner rather than later. It’s that Miami is a battle-tested beast with a future first ballot Hall-of-Famer and former Finals MVP leading the way. Dragic will have to play well, and it won’t be possible for him to mimic the job that George Hill did defensively on an ailing Lowry in round one. Similarly, Miami’s wings will be hard-pressed to stifle DeRozan to the same degree as Indy. The Heat possess a plethora of plus wing defenders, but none can match what George brings to the table.
Beating Buzz City was admirable, especially erasing that 3-2 series deficit—but it will quickly be forgotten and belittled if the Heat don’t beat Toronto. All due respect to the efforts of a coy Cody Zeller, aging Al Jefferson, and slow-moving Spencer Hawes, Hassan Whiteside will face much stiffer competition at center in round two. Jonas Valanciunas will attack Whiteside early and often. Bismack Biyombo is a much better rim protector than anyone on Charlotte’s roster. If Whiteside gets into foul trouble, Miami will get eaten on the inside and shoot a ton of free throws. Dragic and Wade need to be solid as the team’s primary playmakers via dribble penetration, but Whiteside is the single most important factor in this series.
Losing to the Raptors would re-raise the same questions about whether this core is capable of competing for the crown in future years, as Dragic, Wade, and Deng aren’t getting any younger and Chris Bosh has health concerns that are bigger and more important than basketball. Both of these squads will likely feel encouraged enough to re-sign everybody this summer if they reach the Eastern Conference Finals, but losing in round two would keep the cloud of doubt alive until Adrian Wojnarowski or Marc Stein break the news come July. One other thing to watch in this series will be the bench bout between second-round steals Richardson and Norman Powell, who have played key roles on each end of the court.
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