Devin Booker just can’t stop scoring. Once again he exploded for 44 points last night in Orlando, however his teammates didn’t follow suit and the Suns fell 113-98 for their 2nd consecutive loss. That means Phoenix will be playing on a 2nd night of a back-to-back tonight, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing considering they are 5-2 SU in this scenario. They already beat Miami earlier this season 113-97 back in the beginning of January, Grayson Allen was the high point man with 31. Rebounding could be a problem in this game as center Jusuf Nurkic is questionable to play with a thumb injury. This being their 2nd game in 2 nights, there’s also a chance that one of the big 3 players gets rested, if that happens to be Durant the Suns will have very little size on the inside. They’ve faired okay against Miami when playing in South Beach, covering the spread in their last 5 visits.
Miami’s nightmare run continued with yet another loss over the weekend, as they fell at Madison Square Garden to the Knicks 125-109. They’ve now lost 6 games in a row and after Orlando’s win last night they’re now tied for the first position in their division. Bettors have also been upset with the Heat during this win streak as they’ve failed to cover in each of those 6 games, posting a Net Rating of -17.9 points. If there is one positive we can take away from the Knicks game, it’s the fact that Jimmy Butler finally woke up from his mid-season nap and scored 28 points. Newly acquired guard Terry Rozier is still adjusting to life with his new teammates, he posted a new Miami Heat high with 10 points on Saturday. Arguably the best game he’s played this season was against Phoenix, when he dropped 42 points on them as a member of the Charlotte Hornets.
