NBA: Miami Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers - Preview
For the team featuring some of the most high-profile players in the league and tipped by many to win the NBA title this time around, the Miami Heat are struggling big time to put their act together on the court.
Time seems to be running out for the Heats coach Erik Spoelstra as they slumped to their third consecutive defeat against the Orlando Magic to go 8-7 in the season. Miami are desperate to stop the downward slide and they couldn’t
have asked for an easier opponent than the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 76ers (3-12) have not got out of the blocks so far this season. Philadelphia, the lowest placed team in the Eastern Conference, is 1-8 for the season on the road, their only win coming against the Milwaukee Timberwolves on
Nov. 19.
The lacklustre results, however, do not give a clear picture about the talent and skill at the disposal of the 76ers. They possess a bevy of multi talented players like Elton Brand, Andre Iguodala and Lou Williams. The problem
is that the latter two haven’t yet started clicking in the season. Only Elton Brand has delivered the goods thus far as he is leading the team with 16.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals and 1.2 blocks.
Brand returns in the game against Miami after serving a one-match ban for a flagrant foul in a 116-114 overtime loss in Washington and is most definitely a big boost for the struggling outfit as they don’t seem to have an offensive
strategy without him in the plans.
"It's tough for us to come down and throw the ball in the post and calm the game down because we don't have a post presence without him," Philadelphia coach Doug Collins said, admitting the overdependence of his team
on Elton Brand.
Andre Iguodala, though, has picked his game somewhat, averaging 20.0 points, 9.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists in 47.5 minutes in the last two games.
As for Lou Williams, the struggle continues. Over the past eight games, he averages only 7.8 points on a 23.6% shooting and could make only one of eleven against the Toronto Raptors in the last game, giving a lot to worry about
to an already under-pressure coach.
"Lou is just not shooting well," Collins said. "He's in one of those ruts and we need him to make shots because he's an integral part of our team coming off the bench."
Miami, on the other hand, are facing troubles of their own. The team management is fast realizing that it is not only enough to bring the big guns of the league together in one unit but they also need to devise a strategy to gel
their performances together for one common goal - winning - an entity which is avoiding the Heats on quite a regular basis now.
The ‘Big Three’ trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh has all put in decent performances but the superstars have not quite been able to ‘connect’ their talents, a prospect which can make any defence freeze its steps,
which is playing on the minds of the players themselves.
LeBron aka King James echoed his frustration after the humiliating loss to archrivals Orlando on Wednesday night.
"If we had the answer right now, we wouldn't be sitting at one game over .500," he said. "We're a few games out of first. We're a few games out of eighth."
The match will be the second of the series this season with the Heats trouncing the 76ers 97-87 in the previous encounter. Last season, Miami also made a clean sweep of the four match series and they lead Philadelphia 25-19 in
games played in Miami. The 76ers, however, have a 50-39 advantage in all time matches against the Sunshine State team.
Verdict
On paper, Miami definitely look a stronger team as they do against all their opponents. However, it is on the court where they have got to put all the pieces of the puzzle together if they are to have a cakewalk against the beleaguered
Philadelphia 76ers.
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