Washington Wizards vs. Miami Heat Preview
Where: American Airlines Arena — Miami, Florida
When: Wednesday, April 12, 2017, 8:00 PM ET
Line: Washington Wizards vs. Miami Heat – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: SUN / CSMA
NBA News & Predictions
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Betting on the Washington Wizards (49-32)
The Wizards are already a lock for the fourth seed in the east, and they will look to finish off a magical first year under head coach Scott Brooks with 50 regular-season victories—a milestone that the franchise has failed to reach since the 1978-79 season, when they were still named the Bullets.
Bradley Beal’s big night steered his team to win No. 49 at the expense of the Pistons on Monday. He had a game-high 33 points on a highly-efficient 13-of-20 shooting, including a powerful dunk that sealed the deal for Washington and spoiled the Pistons’ final game at the Palace.
Markieff Morris had a solid game against Detroit, too, contributing 20 points, eight rebounds and a pair of treys. He’s averaging 17.0 points in his previous four contests.
John Wall (quad) and Otto Porter Jr. (back) both missed the Detroit game due to injury, and they will likely be held out again for precautionary purposes. Brooks might choose to rest Beal and Morris as well, considering that the Wizards aren’t exactly in a must-win situation.
Washington’s won three of its last four games (2-2 ATS).
Betting on the Miami Heat (40-41)
The Heat don’t fully control their destiny here. Besides needing to win, they also need to pray for a loss from either the Bulls or Pacers to make it to the postseason.
Beating Washington comes first for Miami, of course. The series between these two teams has been pretty lopsided, with Erik Spoelstra’s group winning all three meetings this season (3-0 ATS), including last Saturday’s 106-103 victory that was ultimately won by a late James Johnson basket.
Speaking of Johnson, he’s improved his numbers nicely since getting the start in the last four games, averaging 19.7 points to help the Heat win three games in that stretch. This recent individual success should force defenders to always stay on him, which in turn makes life easier for Hassan Whiteside and Goran Dragic.
Whiteside is posting 21.7 points, 15.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocks against the Wizards this season, while Dragic continues to lead the Heat in scoring with 20.2 points per outing.
Writer’s Prediction
Miami sweeps Washington, 105-98.
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