- Flashbacks of the dark kind from the pre-season opener. October 5th 2010 marked the first time the new look Miami Heat took the stage together, only to be blemished by a Dwyane Wade injury (hamstring) 3 minutes into the game. Miami went on to win 105-89 in a balanced assault from LeBron James (18 pts - 4 ast), Chris Bosh (20 pts – 6 rebs), and Mario Chalmers (10 pts – 7 ast). Yes, the same Chalmers. It was pre-season.
- Highlights from the historic opener brimming with confidence and power. Detroit played scared from the start, overwhelmed by the hype and adrenaline of the game. It feels the killer instinct has faded as of late, given the lack of "fun" and teams’ refusal to cave in to the hype. Winning, like Marvin Gaye tunes, could quickly change the mood.
- The Detroit Pistons are coming off a 79-90 loss to the Magic last night, victims of the South Florida "Double Trouble" Tour. We could look the other way and pretend a game against a powerhouse the night before a visit to Miami doesn’t "soften" up the opponent but the physical and mental drain from two consecutive contenders has to be a taxing endeavor. Unless you believe there is no need to plan for the Heat and read Beating the Heat For Dummies.
- Tracy McGrady recently voiced his opinion on the James-Wade duo: "When they’re both on the court together, they’re terrible" but took a turn the next day saying "They are still going to be a helluva team. They are going to find ways to make it work". Not sure which one he's set on, but it's come a-ways from "I'm jealous as s**t".
- Given the lack of towering big men, Chris Bosh should find himself focused on the boards and easy points. Wade will have his hands full in the marathon that is chasing Rip and Ben Gordon around screens and curls. LeBron faces the two Pterodactyls in doppelgangers Tayshaun Prince and Austin Daye. But in essence, unless the Heat have an abhorrent game and the Pistons tool set puzzle clicks in, Miami should not find it difficult to emerge victorious. Now about the Cleveland-Hopkins airport security......
| Home | Away | ||
| Miami | Detroit | ||
| Heat | Pistons | ||
| 10-8 | Record | 6-12 | |
| (8th of 30) 109.2 | Off Rtg | 104.8 (23rd of 30) | |
| (6th of 30) 102.5 | Def Rtg | 10.1 (24th of 30) | |
| (20th of 30) 91.6 | Pace | 9.2 (28th of 30) | |
| Likely Starters | |||
| Carlos Arroyo | PG | Rodney Stuckey | |
| Dwyane Wade | SG | Richard "Rip" Hamilton | |
| Lebron James | SF | Tayshaun Prince | |
| Chris Bosh | PF | Jason Maxiell | |
| Zydrunas Ilgauskas | C | Ben Wallace | |
| Eddie House | 6th | C. Villanueva / B. Gordon | |
| American Airlines Arena | |||
| 7:30 PM EST | |||
| Sun Sports / 790 AM | |||
| Injury Report: | |||
| Heat: M. Miller (out 2-3 months), U. Haslem (out indefinitely) | |||
| Pistons: J. Jerebko (out 5-6 months), T. White (out indefinitely) | |||