As the Miami Heat continue their playoff push with just 19 games remaining, they are starting to slowly but surely hit their stride. Even with Norman Powell injured, too.
Miami is coming off of three straight wins, including winners of seven of their last 10 games. They just swept a 3-0 homestand and will now head on the road to hopefully keep things going against the Charlotte Hornets.
The Hornets are surging as one of the hottest teams in the league recently. They have emerged as a play-in team after a slow start to begin the year, trailing the Heat by just two games as the ninth seed and a 32-31 overall record. This Friday night and second leg of a back-to-back matchup for Miami will be significant on the Eastern Conference standings.
Charlotte is coming off a resounding win over the second seed Boston Celtics in their previous game and have also won seven of their last 10 like Miami. Led by the efforts of Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro and Kel’el Ware in Powell’s absence recently, the Heat are currently at five games above the .500 mark. Ware is coming off a historic performance last night where he became the first player in Heat history to record a 10-10-5-5 statline. He has been super impactful and playing with force on both ends after finally buying-in to his bench role under coach Erik Spoelstra.
Can Miami’s recent success be enough to hold off LaMelo Ball’s Hornets? Let us know in the comments!
Injury Report (at the time of this publishing):
Charlotte Hornets:
- Tidjane Salaun (calf) — OUT
- PJ Hall (g-league) — OUT
- Liam McNeeley (g-league) — OUT
- Antonio Reeves (g-league) — OUT
Miami Heat:
- NOT YET SUBMITTED.
Projected Starting 5 (subject to change):
Charlotte Hornets:
- LaMelo Ball, G
- Brandon Miller, G
- Kon Knueppel, F
- Miles Bridges, F
- Moussa Diabate, C
Miami Heat:
- Davion Mitchell, G
- Tyler Herro, G
- Pelle Larsson, F
- Andrew Wiggins, F
- Bam Adebayo, F/C
Broadcast Info:
- Tipoff: 7:00 PM EST
- TV: FanDuel Sports Network Sun (Eric Reid & John Crotty)
- Radio: AM 560 Sports WQAM & The HEAT Radio Network (Jason Jackson)
- Spanish Radio: WAQI 710 AM & The HEAT Spanish Radio Network (José Pañeda)
Come back to Hot Hot Hoops at game time to join our GameThread and chat about the game live with other Heat fans!
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- Heat star reinforces belief that Kel’el Ware will be ‘great’
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- Bam Adebayo receives one vote for coveted award
- Jaime Jaquez Jr. named finalist for Sixth Man of the Year award
- Heat will have 13th best lottery odds ahead of 2026 NBA Draft
tatum back that was fast achilles usually a year
Charlotte has become the hottest team in the league, having won six games in a row and 16 of their last 19 games overall. During that stretch, the Hornets have beaten teams such as the 76ers, Spurs, Rockets and Celtics. The team also had a 9 game winning streak from January 22 – February 7th. On January 21, 2026, Charlotte was in 12th place in the East at 16-28 (12 games under .500).They are now tied for 9th place with Atlanta, 2 games behind Miami and Orlando, 2.5 games behind Philadelphia and 3.5 games behind Toronto.
This game will be a great opportunity for Miami to demonstrate it finally has everyone on the same page. The players know their roles and are willing to step outside of their comfort zones to fill different roles, depending on the needs of the team. Herro seems to be fitting in nicely and understands he is not the center of the universe, the Heat has too many weapons to put all their eggs in one basket. With the team’s new and improved defense, Herro’s defensive shortcomings are not so evident.
Here’s how Charlotte ranks in several critical areas:
#1 Clutch FT%
#2 Corner 3’s
#2 3 point shots made
#3 3 point % of total points
#3 Free Throw %
#3 Second chance points
#4 Rebounds
#4 Catch & shoot points per game
With Powell, Fontecchio and Wiggins out, it will be necessary for several other players to step up. Rebounding, 3 point shooting, 3 point defense, 2nd chance point defense and minimizing fouls will be critical.
We should know more about where the team stands after todays’ game.
GO HEAT!
Heat could be in trouble here w/o Wiggins. Gardner is a good rebounder, wonder if he gets minutes.
Best 5 man lineup is Davion/Herro/Jaquez/Larsson/Bam, but they probably want Jaquez for bench scoring. Big test tonight for Ware on defense
Big opportunity for Jakucionas tonight also to show his two way ability
Wiggins out is a problem with Powell already sidelined.
Points in the paint per 100 possessions – Miami 52.1 (#4 in league), CHA 46.6 (#23)
Fast break points per 100 – Miami 17.3 (#5), CHA 13.2 (#25)
Second chance points per 100 – Miami 15.2 (#12), CHA 17.5 (#4)
3 point makes per 100 – Miami 12.9 (#17), CHA 16.4 (#1)
3PAr, number of shots that are from 3 – Miami 39.6% (#23), CHA 47.6% (#2)
CHA is the #4 offensive rebounding team in the league, they rebound 30.4% of their missed shots, and the #1 defensive rebounding team in the league (76.8%, tied with NYK). And they are the best volume 3PT shooting team in the league averaging 37.9% 3FG per game, only Denver and Milwaukee shoot better but on less volume
Great matchup between Miami #4 defense (allowing only 112.1 points per 100 possessions) vs CHA #4 offense (scoring 118.7 per 100)
Its time for statement win. A win tonight would do a job.
best heat team since jimmys finals team.