The Miami HEAT fell to the Atlanta Hawks 114-103 Friday night at Philips Arena. Mario Chalmers led the way for the HEAT with 23 points and 11 assists.
Impact Performance of the Night: Mario Chalmers had a fantastic game in the absence of Dwyane Wade. He channeled his inner Wade on Friday night, as he created off the drive for his teammates and moved well without the ball. Chalmers hit some timely shots and recorded his third career double-double. In all, Chalmers scored 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting and dished out 11 assists.
The Deciding Run: The Hawks went on a 9-2 run to go up 104-85 about midway through the fourth quarter. The HEAT continued to fight behind the gutsy play from Luol Deng, but it unfortunately wasn’t enough. Deng finished the contest with 19 points and four rebounds.
Earlier, the HEAT went on a 16-6 run to climb back in the game and cut the Hawks’ lead to 52-48 with just over two minutes to go in the first half. Shawne Williams hit some timely shots during the run and Chris Bosh also remained aggressive.
Play of the Game: With 7:11 left in the second quarter, Mario Chalmers received the ball from Shabazz Napier on the right elbow. Chalmers drove in and threw up a lob for Udonis Haslem, who finished the jam to cut the Hawks’ lead to 46-37.
Another great play came at the beginning of the third quarter. Norris Cole threw up a perfect lob for Chris Bosh from the top of the three-point line that caught everyone off guard. Bosh saw it a little late, but still finished the jam to cut Atlanta’s lead to 62-54 with 11:30 left in the third quarter.
Efficiency Rating: Offensive Efficiency: 109.6; Defensive Efficiency: 119.8
Trend to Watch: Although Miami lost, it displayed great ball movement against Atlanta. The HEAT had 27 assists on 35 made field goals on Friday night. Usually 25 or more assists results in a win for the HEAT, but this was one of those strange nights where that wasn’t the case. After Miami struggled a bit on the offensive end against the Pacers on Wednesday, it was great to see the ball movement that led to wins earlier this season. That will need to continue moving forward.
The Takeaway: With some key contributors out for the HEAT, it was encouraging to see some guys step up. Miami was very balanced against the Hawks, as four players scored in double-figures. Outside of Chalmers, none were as impressive as Shawne Williams. Williams poured in 21 points on an extremely efficient 5-of-6 shooting from downtown. Chalmers consistently got Williams the ball in his comfort zones and made things easy.
It’s unfortunate that the HEAT couldn’t leave Atlanta with the victory, but these kinds of nights from role players can be confidence-boosters for the rest of the season. Look for the HEAT to put it all together against the Bucks on Sunday night.
Notes: Dwyane Wade (hamstring) and Josh McRoberts (severe blister) sat out.