Five Stars: Heat get Knicksed

Five Stars is a series where I break down the raw stats (using the GameScore metric as defined by www.basketball-reference.com) and rank every player to appear in Miami's most recent game. The first number next to a players name is that GameScore. The second number is a pro-rated statistic I made up to show how a player did on a scale of 100, where a 100 means a GS of 30 in exactly 36 minutes played.

First Star

Carmelo Anthony (NYK) 25.3 (82.91)

Anthony started at small forward for New York and scored a team-high 25 points on a crisp nine-for-12 shooting performance. The 13-season veteran missed his only three-pointer, and made seven-of-eight foul shots, also chipping in with five boards, four assists, and two steals. His plus-19 rating was the highest in the game.

We're still trying to find our identity. These past three games we've shown something. And it wasn't just me. - Anthony

Second Star

Chris Bosh (MIA) 19.2 (67.53)

Bosh, also in his 13th season, led Miami's starters with an even plus-minus rating, with a game high 28 points on 12-of-22 shooting. The starting power forward connected on one of his four three pointers (one of only two for the Heat) and three-of-four from the line, with five rebounds, two assists, and one blocked shot in 34:07

Third Star

Robin Lopez (NYK) 16.5 (57.36)

Lopez, now in his eighth year and starting at center for the Knicks, played 34:31 and matched Anthony's nine-for-12 night from the field. He made his only foul shot and posted a plus-18 rating, with four rebounds, two blocks and one assist.

Fourth Star

Dwyane Wade (MIA) 12.4 (48.79)

Wade, like most players, it seems, is also in his 13th season. He sunk eight-of-16 shots and both of his free throws for 18 total points. In 30:30, Miami's starting shooting guard also had six assists, six rebounds (three on each end of the court) and a minus-5 rating.

They didn't have an explosive offensive night. It was just very efficient. - Wade

Fifth Star

Derrick Williams (NYK) 12.1 (82.83)

Williams, in his fifth NBA season, came off the bench at power forward for the Knicks in relief of 7'3" Kristaps Porzingis. In just 17:32, he matched Carmelo's per-minute productivity by shooting five-of-eight from the field, one-of-two from deep, and two-for-two from the line, along with eight rebounds and a steal. Despite his 13 points (which ranked third on the Knicks), he would up with a team-low minus-7 rating for the full game.

The Rest

*Tyler Johnson (MIA) 9.7 (54.19)

Johnson played 21:29 off the bench for the Heat at point guard and shooting guard, making four-of-four from two point distance and pitching in with three helpers, three defensive boards, and a steal.

Jose Calderon (NYK) 8.9  (30.82)

*Langston Galloway (NYK) 7.7 (63.94)

In 14:27 off the bench for the Knicks, Galloway scored five points with three rebounds, two assists and a steal.

Kristaps Porzingis (NYK) 7.3 (28.37)

Hassan Whiteside (MIA) 6.0 (25.33)

My knee was bothering me, but I still went out there and rebounded. - Whiteside

Goran Dragic (MIA) 4.6 (16.39)

Gerald Green (MIA) 4.3 (19.64)

Luol Deng (MIA) 4.3 (16.24)

Arron Afflalo (NYK) 3.5 (10.40)

Lance Thomas (NYK) 1.3 (8.49)

Jerian Grant (NYK) 0.9 (13.67)

Justise Winslow (MIA) 0.5 (2.79)

Kyle O'Quinn (NYK) -1.1 (-28.21)

Beno Udrih (MIA) -2.1 (-20.54)

Five Stars Standings

Player	TP
Chris Bosh	167
Dwyane Wade	134
Hassan Whiteside	113
Goran Dragic	56
Luol Deng	30
Tyler Johnson	29
Gerald Green	25
Beno Udrih	5
Justise Winslow	5
Josh McRoberts	4

It was Miami's fourth loss in four chances at winning a fourth straight game. They've won three straight now on four occasions this season, but hope springs eternal. They'll go on to play 14 of their next 16 games on the road, starting with Goran Dragic's old outfit, the Phoenix Suns. Tipoff is set for 9:30 on Friday night, so be here for the GameThread.