NBA
Miami Heat Opening Day Preview
The 2018-19 NBA season is officially underway with the Orlando Magic hosting the Miami Heat in their season opener. The Heat will head into this game with the 14-man roster everyone predicted, despite trade talks for Jimmy Butler. The Magic are looking to make some noise in the wide-open eastern conference this season. What better way for them to do that than starting with a win against their divisional rival.
Projected Team Starting Lineups
Orlando: D.J. Augustin, Evan Fournier, Jonathan Simmons, Aaron Gordon, Nikola Vucevic
Miami: Goran Goran Dragic, Rodney McGruder, Josh Richardson, Derrick Jones Jr., Hassan Whiteside
Injury Report
Magic: N/A
Heat: Dion Waiters (Out), Wayne Ellington (Probable), James Johnson (day-to-day), Justise Winslow (doubtful)
Heat Off-Season Changes and Expectations
For the third straight season, the intrastate rivals will get together for the season opener Wednesday night when the Heat visit the Magic in Orlando.
The Heat return with their core players after winning 44 games and being knocked out the first-round by the Philadelphia 76ers in last year’s playoffs. The Heat have yet to make a trade for Butler, but they did manage to bring back the face of their franchise 3x NBA champion Dwyane Wade. Wade ended last season by appearing in 21 games with the Heat.
Wade is returning to the Heat for his 16th and final season in the NBA. His Hall of Fame career began as the number 5 overall pick in the 2003 draft class and led to three championships for the Heat in 2006, 2012 and 2013.
Core Intact
The Heat shined defensively last season led by Josh Richardson. Richardson led the team in steals (121) and second in blocked shots (75) behind Hassan Whiteside. He was the only player in the league to finish with at least 12 steals and 75 blocks. Miami was placed fourth in points allowed (102.9) and seventh in defensive rating (107.3).
Offensively, the Heat were led by Goran Dragic (17.3 ppg) last year. Dragic was among nine players to average double figures last season when the Heat ranked 23rd by averaging 103.4 points per game and 22nd with an offensive rating of 106.8. Dragic and Richardson will not be joined by James Johnson, Dion Waiters tonight. Not to mention Wayne Ellington and Justice Winslow are also listed as doubtful.
Johnson is recovering from an off-season sports hernia surgery. While Waiters has not played since January due to left ankle surgery, December seems to be the timetable for his return to action. Winslow is dealing with hamstring tightness that has become worse as of recent days. Ellington is still dealing with a sore left ankle that also kept him from participating in pre-season. Even with injuries, the Heat are not concerned about continuity based on past experiences.
“Our guys have logged a lot of game minutes together,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. “It just feels different. Even when we’ve had a couple of guys out, we’ve been able to move much quicker with this group than we have certainly the last couple of years and that’s what happens with real continuity when you have guys that have played seasons together.”
Magic Changes and Expectations
The Magic bring back most of the same roster and are hoping for fewer injuries. Aaron Gordon, Evan Fournier and Nikola Vucevic were named tri-captains on Tuesday. “It means a lot,” Vucevic told reporters. “It’s a responsibility that I am proud to have.” But last season they missed a combined 78 games.
The Magic were 6-18 without Gordon (17.6 ppg) last season. They were 5-20 without Fournier, who averaged a team-best 17.8 points per game. Vucevic (16.5 ppg) added three-point shooting to his offense last season, but the Magic were 8-17 when he did not play. So, it’s clear the Magic need their key 3 players.
Magical Start This Season?
The Magic started hot last year winning 8 of 12 games, but injuries derailed a promising start. The Magic finished with a horrific 25-57 record in Frank Vogel’s second season with the team. They have not won more than 35 games since the 2011-12 season. Coaching changes has become common recently for Orlando. Steve Clifford is the team’s fifth coach since 2012.
“We’re ready and it’s going to be a tough home stretch here,” Gordon said. “These first 10 games are going to be very telling of how much momentum we can build, how far we’ve come and how much further we need to go. But we’re ready for this.”
The Magic are hoping to get some help from its last two first-round picks Jonathan Isaac and rookie Mohamed Bamba. Isaac was limited to 27 games last season due to ankle issues while Bamba appeared in three preseason games while also dealing with a wrist contusion.
Predictions
With the limitations of depth due to injuries on the Heat Bench, it would take a heroic effort from Wade coming off the bench to pull out the victory. I believe the Heat will get winded from so many minutes being played. The Magic have home-court advantage along with more depth on the bench for tonight’s matchup. Neither team will break 100 tonight, but the final score will be 93-82 Magic. The Heat will have issues with their conditioning tonight and overall cause the offense to struggle.
Game Info
When: Wednesday, October 17 at 7:00 p.m. ET (Pre-game coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. ET)
Where: Amway Center in Orlando, FL
TV: Fox Sports Sun (Stream it Live on the FOX Sports App)
Win Probability: According the FiveThirtyEight the Heat have a 48% chance to win.
Photo Credit
Rashed Metu via Flickr
