The Miami Heat play the Cleveland Cavaliers for a second time in three days Friday at Rocket Center
The Miami Heat starting lineup was in place until just before the middle of the season.
That's when they were hit with a rash of injuries that included Norman Powell, Jaime Jaquez and Tyler Herro. With the team finally healthy, coach Erik Spoelstra has the lineup he expects to use the remainder of the season.
Here was the lineup for Wednesday's victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers:
Powell
Andrew Wiggins
Bam Adebayo
Herro
Davion Mitchell
Those were the everyday starters most envisioned when the season began.
“This is what I was getting to in January,” Spoelstra said after the Cavs victory. “It’s go time right now…. There really wasn’t a lot of thought to it. It’s just now we have finally everybody available. So we’re able to get to the normal plan. Sometimes you can’t necessarily get to what you want to do based on injuries.”
The Heat face the Cavaliers for a second time in three days. The same lineup is expected at jump ball. It should provide some continuity during their playoff push because Spoelstra has played musical chairs most of the season.
Powell, who scored 19 points Wednesday, seems excited about the possibility of things getting back to normal. The Heat have played much better when Powell, Herro and Adebayo are in the lineup together.
“We just got to continue to give ourselves up for one another on the team in that starting lineup,” Powell said. “Do the little things…The hustle plays, the second and third effort plays, cutting and moving offensively.”
The Heat need all the help they can get if they are to avoid the Play-In Tournament. Despite a 39-34 record, they are in the No. 10 spot in the Eastern Conference with only nine games remaining. The good news is they could still finish as high as No. 5 if they can catch the Atlanta Hawks, who are just two games ahead.
Here's a look at the bottom half of the standings:
5. Atlanta Hawks 41-32
6. Toronto Raptors 40-32
7. Philadelphia 76ers 40-33
8. Orlando Magic 39-34
9. Charlotte Hornets 39-34
10. Miami Heat 39-34
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Shandel Richardson is the publisher of HeatRoundtable. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com