The Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers meet Thursday in NBA action at the Wells Fargo Center. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
The Miami Heat are averaging 109.1 points on 45.8 percent shooting and allowing 109.8 points on 48.3 percent shooting. Jimmy Butler is averaging 22.9 points and 5.9 rebounds, while Bam Adebayo is averaging 20.7 points and 9.3 rebounds. Tyler Herro is the third double-digit scorer and Kyle Lowry is grabbing 4.1 rebounds. The Miami Heat are shooting 34.1 percent from beyond the arc and 83.4 percent from the free throw line. The Miami Heat are allowing 37 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 40.5 rebounds per game.
The Philadelphia 76ers are averaging 114.9 points on 48.6 percent shooting and allowing 110.5 points on 47.1 percent shooting. Joel Embiid is averaging 33.3 points and 4.2 assists, while James Harden is averaging 21.1 points and 10.8 assists. Tyrese Maxey is the third double-digit scorer and Tobias Harris is grabbing 5.7 rebounds. The Philadelphia 76ers are shooting 38.7 percent from beyond the arc and 83.7 percent from the free throw line. The Philadelphia 76ers are allowing 34.7 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 40.8 rebounds per game.
The Heat are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 road games and 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The 76ers are 24-11 ATS in their last 35 home games and 3-8 ATS in their last 11 Thursday games. The under is 4-1 in Heat last 5 road games. The under is 4-1 in 76ers last 5 overall. The under is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings.
This has become a rivalry lately so who knows how the Philadelphia 76ers will approach it, but they're also locked into the third seed, so there can't be that much motivation, and it wouldn't be surprising to see them sit some guys. The Miami Heat are playing for seeding and also trying to move out of the play-in tournament if possible. We're getting points with the team that has more to play for. I'll take a shot with the Heat.
