Heat at Hawks
The Miami Heat are back above .500 and see no reason to go back to being a team that hovers around the break-even point. The Heat will try to put some distance between themselves and .500 when they visit the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.
Miami squandered a pair of opportunities to move above .500 since Christmas but finally accomplished the feat by earning a win at Cleveland on Wednesday and knocking off the Washington Wizards 115-109 at home on Friday. "Let's just take off," Heat center Hassan Whiteside told reporters after being asked about moving above .500. "I think it's on defense. Defense is the key with us and that’s what's really going to get us there. We've got a lot of defenders and that's what's going to be the key for us." The Hawks are not quite at the same point on the competition curve and were swept on a three-game road trip, capped by a 144-112 loss at Milwaukee on Friday. "They're playing with an edge and we saw that tonight," Atlanta coach Lloyd Pierce told reporters of the Bucks. "We just didn't have it. That's part of growing pains and that's part of our growth, to understand that you have to go through these things. It's encouraging to see a group that had been through this come out and play with an edge."
TV: 6 p.m. ET, FS Sun (Miami), FS Southeast (Atlanta)
ABOUT THE HEAT (19-18): Miami won eight of its last 10 games and did the bulk of that damage with small forward Justise Winslow serving as the team's point guard. Winslow collected 13 points and 10 assists in Friday's triumph - his sixth straight game scoring in double figures. "I'm asking him to do a lot for this basketball team. There is a lot on his plate," coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters of Winslow. "He's playing a new position, trying to get us organized, trying to get us to our game, to our strengths and then find places where he can be aggressive. And then yes, of course, I'm still asking him to be near the top or at the top of our list on our defensive numbers and charts."
ABOUT THE HAWKS (11-27): Atlanta was never in the game on Friday after falling behind 43-14 at the end of the first quarter but continues to develop its young roster and placed seven scorers in double figures in the loss. Rookie point guard Trae Young collected 13 points and 10 assists for his fifth double-double in the last 12 games and third-year small forward DeAndre' Bembry scored a team-high 19 points off the bench while scoring in double figures for the third time in four games. Second-year power forward John Collins is one of 17 NBA players averaging a double-double at 18.5 points and 10.2 rebounds.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Hawks C Miles Plumlee (knee) sat out the last two games and is day-to-day.
2. Heat SG Dion Waiters (ankle) sat out Friday after making his season debut on Wednesday as the team eases him back into action.
3. Atlanta took each of the first two meetings this season, including a 123-118 home win on Nov. 3.