The shorthanded Hawks fired their coach yesterday.
GAME STORY
The Miami Heat (17-17) take on the Atlanta Hawks (14-20) again tonight at the AmericanAirlines Arena on the second game of a back-to-back set.
After overcoming an early fourth quarter deficit in the first game against the Hawks on Sunday, the Heat held on with a late 10-0 run to seal their sixth consecutive victory and fifth straight at home. Hawks management promptly fired head coach Lloyd Pierce yesterday, with assistant coach Nate McMillan installed as interim coach.
The NBA’s hottest team has an excellent chance to keep their NBA-best win streak alive, though we’ve seen the Heat fall victim to trap games many times before against a team with something to prove. Trae Young will be eager to showcase what he can really do on the court after a disappointing performance on Sunday in which he was largely a non-factor, shooting just 3-14 from the field and turning the ball over seven times, although he did contribute nine assists and eight rebounds.
More concerning for the Heat was the performance of Clint Capela and especially John Collins, with the two big men combining for 54 points and 24 rebounds. Helping matters was an eye-opening showing from Precious Achiuwa, who enjoyed one of his most impressive games so far in his rookie season with 14 points (4-5 FGs, 6-7 FTs), one block, one steal, one assist and seven rebounds in just 12 minutes off the bench.
The injury list so far remains the same, which means that Jimmy Butler will most likely sit out for the second consecutive game with a knee injury.
ODDS: FiveThirtyEight gives the Heat a 70% chance to win the game.
HEAT VS HAWKS: TUESDAY, MARCH 2 AT 7:30 PM.
INJURIES
MIAMI:
- Jimmy Butler: out (knee)
- Meyers Leonard: out for season (shoulder)
- Avery Bradley: out (calf)
- Gabe Vincent: day-to-day (knee)
ATLANTA:
- De’Andre Hunter: out (right knee)
- Kris Dunn: out (right ankle)
- Cameron Reddish: out (achilles)
- Bogdan Bogdanovic: out (knee)
LINEUPS
BROADCAST INFO
TV: FOX SPORTS SUN
RADIO: The Ticket 790AM & The HEAT Radio Network (Mike Inglis, Ruth Riley Hunter)
SPANISH RADIO: WAQI 710AM & The HEAT Spanish Radio Network (José Pañeda, Joe Pujala)
Come back to Hot Hot Hoops at game time to join our GameThread and chat about the game live with other Heat fans!
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