After a back-to-back-to-back 3-game slide to the Charlotte Hornets, the Miami HEAT were able to take games 6 and 7 and win the 1st round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs. In game 6 it was the veteran Dwyane Wade who refused to quit and basically put the team on his back late in the game to help seal the victory for the HEAT. Though Wade wasn’t quiet in game 7, there were some unexpected heroes that secured the HEAT’s advance to the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Luol Deng has made a tremendous impact throughout round 1. In fact, Dwyane Wade recognizes how important Deng has been since Chris Bosh’s season was cut short right after the All Star Break.
“The emergence of Luol Deng to salvage this season was the most important thing.”
No one is saying that Deng is replacing Bosh, but Deng’s presence and veteran leadership definitely gave the Heat the boost to finish the season 19-10 after the break. It’s no secret that his numbers increased after Bosh’s injury. Without his productivity, the HEAT probably wouldn’t have been in a 3 seed position going into the playoffs. Call it a coincidence, but Deng has also been the person to score the first basket in every game of round 1. His 31-point game 1 set the tone for his purpose to help this HEAT team advance to the 2nd round of the playoffs.
However, there’s another HEAT workhorse that hasn’t received much props in the past. Since trading for Goran Dragic, many critics and HEAT fans alike have questioned the validity of his roster spot. Dragic finished the regular season averaging 14 points and 6 assists, and many have been overly critical as to what his purpose was to the team. There was no better time for Dragic to prove his value to the HEAT organization than game 7 of the playoffs. To put it in perspective, Dragic had 25 points at the end of the 3rd quarter and didn’t need to play another minute of the game. His defense on Hornets star Kemba Walker held Walker to just 9 point on 3-16 shooting. The icing on the cake was when Dragic went up for a fast break dunk in the third quarter. Again Wade had nothing but praise for his teammate.
“We just love when Goran is aggressive. Today he was in the mindset where he was going to keep going & going.”
Neither Dragic nor Deng played in the 4th quarter. Instead their tough play on both sides of the ball throughout 3 quarters enabled bench players like Dorell Wright and the once though season lost Tyler Johnson to get some playing time should they be needed in round 2.
Yes, this is a new HEAT team, and though old school fans may not recognize so many names on the roster, it doesn’t mean that this isn’t a team capable of going deep into the NBA playoffs. Deng and Dragic has specifically helped propel the HEAT to round 2 of the playoffs and that much closer to the coveted NBA Finals. The emergence of the newer guys on the roster as active contributors to team’s success can finally hush the critics on Pat Riley’s roster moves.