The dream is dead, painfully obvious after a 108-91 drubbing last night by the Houston Rockets. The Miami Heat will not finish off the season undefeated.
Maybe going 82-0 wasn’t realistic but it winning the first three games was a promising start that ended with one Dwight Howard dunk after another, or with James Harden doing everything – playing defense! – to beat Miami. But life in the NBA doesn’t allow for too much idle introspection and the Heat (3-1) travel to Charlotte (1-3) to face a Hornets team that has yet to mesh this season.
The Heat played well through three quarters before being outmatched by the Rockets’ All-Star duo. Highlights included Chris Bosh‘s 21 points from everywhere on the floor, as well as Dwyane Wade‘s 19 points. Shawne Williams was solid, knocking down 3-of-4 from long-range and Luol Deng started off well (finishing with 11 points) but suffered a minor arm injury that limited his production for the second half; it will likely keep him out of tonight’s game. Norris Cole was limited by Houston’s Patrick Beverley, and went 0-4 in just 16 minutes. Justin Hamilton also added 9 points, all from 3-point range.
Charlotte was expected to build on last season’s playoffs appearance and continue growing into a possible contender. They lost Miami’s Josh McRoberts to free agency but added Marvin Williams and Lance Stephenson, producing a younger, potentially-dynamic lineup. Through four games, their biggest issue has been on the offensive end, where they only score 90.3 points per game. Al Jefferson is still their leading scorer, logging 18.5 points per game with his low-post wizardry but the addition of Stephenson has not paid off.
He’s Charlotte’s leading rebounder (9.3 per game) but barely scores (just over 6 PPG). He’s stopped attacking the rim, settling for perimeter shots while only shooting 27 percent from the field. He’s still athletic enough to draw fouls (much like Harden, although not as effectively). Will he remember past battles with Miami while he was a member of the Indiana Pacers and come out on fire?
Tuesday’s game against Houston was significant test, one Miami failed due to the overwhelming mismatch caused by Howard. The biggest difference is that Charlotte lacks the perimeter proficiency of the Rockets. Stephenson, Kemba Walker, Gerald Henderson or Michael Kidd-Gilchrist are not high-volume shooters (MKG might sit out tonight’s game, as he did on Tuesday versus the New York Knicks). But with both teams coming off games last night, it will be interesting to see who responds to the challenge. As divisional rivals, the win is a must for Miami to stay atop the Eastern Conference while the Hornets are looking for some stability to highlight to the home crowd.
Tonight’s game tips off at 7 p.m. from the Time-Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte.