San Antonio Spurs vs Miami Heat: Heat is rolling, Spurs can put up many points

The NBA season keeps getting challenged as a mountain of COVID-19 cases and some injuries here and there are rendering various teams shorthanded. Still, somehow, the league has kept going on and on, thanks to relaxed quarantine rules and the provision to sign replacement players. Anyway, in this game Jimmy Butler led the Miami Heat to visit the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs are without DeJounte Murray, who is in the COVID-19 protocols. Miami Heat has won four in a row and has 22 wins overall along with 13 losses. The Spurs have 14 wins and 19 losses, winning three out of their last four games, losing the last game versus the Jazz without Murray. Can the Heat continue their winning or will Derrick White and co. pull through? For game and total prediction, go to “Expert Betting Tips”. For a quick look, hop over to “Notes”.

Heat’s vast talent: Jimmy Butler has done a great job since he has been back as he has given scoring, playmaking, and defense. Meanwhile, Tyler Herro has also given great production as the sixth player for the team. On the other hand, Duncan Robinson can also help out a long-range shooter while Caleb Martin and Gabe Vincent have also given decent returns as the two role players. Thus, Heat have all types of scorers, an off-the-ball threat in Robinson, two isolation options in Herro and Butler whereas Omer Yurtseven has given superb inside scoring using his varied skill set. Still, Lowry’s presence is missing as he is a huge factor on both ends of the floor and can help his team out in multiple areas. Meanwhile, PJ Tucker’s defensive edge is also required while Dewayne Dedmon and Bam Adebayo are also going to miss significant time. Still, Heat has done well with the second string units too.

Spurs without Murray: Dejounte Murray has led the Spurs in points per game, assists per game, rebounds per game, and steals per game. He is their ultimate wizard and his absence can certainly cause fluctuations and it could be felt when the team lost to the Jazz during their last game. Still, if White, Keldon Johnson, Mcdermott, Poeltl, Lonnie Walker IV, Devin Vassell, and Bryn Forbes, the team has a massive amount of shooting, playmaking, rebounding, and can mount up a more than decent unit. The Spurs have depth scoring-wise and Derrick White can run the offense as well as Murray. Yes, the team’s already fragile defense can take a further hit but even then, they can remain competitive.

Here are some quick-hitter related to the game.

• Heat has scored 119, 93, 115, 125, 90 in the last five games;
• Heat has given up 112, 83, 112, 96, 100 in the last five matches;
• Spurs have scored 104, 144, 138, 116, 114 in the last five games;
• Spurs have conceded 110, 109, 110, 92, 116 in the last five games;
• Spurs have won three out of their four games;
• Heat is on a four-game winning streak. Heat has won six out of seven games;
• Omer Yurtseven has grabbed 12-15 rebounds a game regularly these days;
• Derrick White notched 21 points and 8 assists in the last game;
• Tyler Herro scored 32 in the last game. He has usually figured in the 16-24 points range;
• Gabe Vincent has given 7 or more assists in two of three last games;
• Jakob Poeltl grabbed 13 rebounds in the last game. Jakob has grabbed 7-8 rebounds in most of the games;
• Heat’s injury list: PJ Tucker is questionable for the game. Max Strus, Udonis Haslem, Kyle Lowry are in COVID-19 protocols. Victor Oladipo, Bam Adebayo, and Dewayne Dedmon are out for the game;
• Spurs injury list: DeJounte Murray has been placed in the COVID-19 protocols. Zach Collins is out for the game;
• Delve into the injuries list before placing stakes.

Points Range: Heat has been playing both high and low scoring affairs lately, their last five games have totaled 231, 176, 227, 221, 190 in the last five games. Spurs have lodged 214, 253, 248, 212, 235 in the last five games. It means that the Spurs games have constantly figured in the 230+ points range. And this game surely has the potential of reaching 215-225 points. I think both teams can reach 110 or so but yes, do remember that Heat’s defense has improved. I think the total points range here is 220-235 points.

Prediction: Murray’s absence certainly hurts the Spurs on multiple ends and one could feel that in the loss versus the Jazz. I believe that the Spurs will score more than 104 here despite Buttler-lead Heat’s defense. In the meantime, the Heat can pitch in a substantial offense when Buttler, Herro, Robinson, and Vincent are healthy which means there can be around 107-115 points. In my opinion, the Heat will come through in this game 117:110.

• Team Totals: MIA Heat Over 107.5 for 1.86;
• Total Over 218.5 for 2.06;
• Win: Miami Heat for 2.40.