Luol Deng went off against the Charlotte Hornets in Game 1.
Advertisement
A streaking Luol Deng, who started 6 of 6 from the field and scored 14 points in the opening quarter of the game, end with 31 points in a very productive National Basketball Association playoff debut with Miami to lead the Heat to a dominating 123-91 victory over the Charlotte Hornets in their series opener on Sunday. Deng did exactly that and took advantage of his defender as he finished with 31 points, seven rebounds in only 33 minutes.
“I mean, I haven’t been in the playoffs for two years but the excitment, the atmosphere was great”.
“Somehow, we’ve just got to win”, Celtics star Isaiah Thomas said. Steals: 7 (Whiteside 2, Deng, Dragic, Richardson, Weber, Winslow).
Deng was on fire against Charlotte, knocking down an assortment of jumpshots including four three pointers.
“It was the game we were playing all year, so I think we’ll be suited for it when it comes”, Wade said.
Clearly Miami isn’t the same team it was with James, but they still have more playoff experience than the Hornets, who have had only one player (Courtney Lee) who has played in an NBA Finals.
It is also worth noting that none of the Hornets starters recorded more than one assist. We all waited for the game to become a nail-biter. “Everyone is feeling the ball in what we are trying to do offensively”.
The Miami Heat and Charlotte Hornets will face off in Game 1 at 5:30 PM on Saturday. “I think that’s a big part of the reason why it didn’t go well [Sunday] night”.
Miami came out, to many people’s surprise, strong as it gets. The mark was set originally against the New Jersey Nets on May 10, 2006. “It’s about contribution of winning plays”. One of the subtle tweaks Spoelstra made during a two-day brainstorming session on a road trip to Chicago was insisting that the team hurry to half-court to allow ample time to cycle through the layers of its offense. Charlotte’s play in the paint plagued the Hornets all evening, as they were outscored there, 56-36, outrebounded there, 42-28, and lost the offensive rebounding battle, 14-7, leading to a 19-7 Heat advantage in second-chance points…
Miami came out in the second half and scored the first seven points to run the margin to 74-50.
“I explained to the guys that you’ve got to understand the mentality of the visiting team”, Haslem said.
“He’s the MVP. Take the MVP out of the lineup and there will be some tweaks and changes made, ” Bogut said.
That increased intensity was hard to find in the first weekend of action and the search for suspense continues heading into Game 2s in Atlanta and San Antonio on Tuesday night.
A disappointed Steve Clifford wasn’t shying away from his team’s poor performance, but insisted they would put Game 1 in the past with Game 2 three days away.
Kaminsky played 18 minutes and didn’t attempt a field goal.
Hornets F Nicolas Batum tested his sore left ankle in workouts before Game 1 to gauge his availability for the series opener.
Advertisement
Cody ZellerApr 13, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward center Cody Zeller (40) and Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic (9) tip off the game at Time Warner Cable Arena. Given the starting nod, he moved into open spaces expertly and hit nine of his 11 shots on his way toward 21 points. Names like Hassan Whiteside, Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic were mentioned often.
