The second half of the season has started and the Heat look ready to make a playoff push. The eastern conference playoff picture may change quickly and if the Heat want to be in the mix they have to keep winning. After the NBA trade deadline several teams made roster changes, but the Heat stayed with what they had.
It was good for the Heat not to make a move before the trade deadline because the team is winning games. Everyone is playing their role and that is helping their chances of making the playoffs in a big way. The Heat came out of the break swinging and ready to win.
In their first game after the break they faced off against the Atlanta Hawks. The Heat would come away with a 108-90 win. In this game the Heat used their offensive firepower to top the Hawks.
The Heat shot 45.9% from 3-point range and had 6 players in double figures in scoring. The high scorer on the Heat was Tyler Johnson.
Coming off the bench Johnson had 23 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Johnson is the type of player that brings that kind of spark off the bench when the team needs it. Johnson was 3-4 from 3-point range and that was huge in this game.
The Heat played against the Indiana Pacers in their second game after the break and won 113-95. They stayed hot from 3-point range shooting 41.9%, and the Heat starters played well. Hassan Whiteside had a big game grabbing another double-double with 22 points and 17 rebounds.
Whiteside did a great job at the free throw line and has improved as a free throw shooter. He went 10-13 at the line and that was a big part in the Heat win.
Dion Waiters scored 22 points in the game. Goran Dragic scored 21 points in the game and the Heat rolled to that win.
In their last two wins before the all-star break the Heat held their opponents to under 100 points per game. These games were against the Nets and the Bucks.
The Bucks would only score 88, and the Nets scored 99. The Heat have been playing better defense and that has been leading to them outscoring their opponents and keeping them under 100 points.
The Heat have games that they must win because their upcoming schedule is going to get tough through the rest of the regular season. They will have to keep their offense running at 100% in order win these tough games on their schedule.
The Heat have 23 games left in the regular season and will need to win most of them to make the playoffs. They still have to catch up to the Detroit Pistons in order to capture the 8th spot in the playoffs.
The Heat are currently the 9th seed in the eastern conference and are only one game behind Pistons. If the Heat keep playing hard they may able to have the 8th seed by the end of this week.
They are putting pressure on Detroit and could take their spot in a hurry. The Heat are 3 games behind the Pacers and might be able to get to the 7th seed if they keep winning.