(3) Miami Heat (48-34) vs. (6) Charlotte Hornets (48-34)
The post-LeBron James era is going pretty well for the Miami Heat. They have the third seed in the Eastern Conference and are in good position to reach the Eastern Conference Finals with Dwyane Wade still leading the way to go along with a solid supporting cast that includes Goran Dragic, Luol Deng, Joe Johnson, and Hassan Whiteside. As for the Charlotte Hornets, they are starting to get their own crew together composed of Kemba Walker, Al Jefferson, Nicolas Batum, and Jeremy Lin.
The biggest hurdle the Miami Heat have to overcome in this series is the absence of Chris Bosh, who along with Dwayne Wade has been averaging 19 points per game. Bosh has been dealing with blood clots in his leg and is without a timetable to return. With Bosh likely out for the series, the Heat will need Goran Dragic, Luol Deng, Joe Johnson, and Hassan Whiteside to step up. Whiteside will especially need to come up big since he plays down on the block. With Bosh out, it will really be up to Hassan Whiteside to provide a quality post presence for his team in this series due to his rebounding and shot blocking.
The biggest hurdle the Charlotte Hornets have to overcome in this series is experience. They didn't make the playoffs last season and as group have very little playoff experience. Even though they have the same record as this Heat team and are healthier, they still have to go up against the likes of Dwyane Wade, Joe Johnson, and Luol Deng, guys who have a lot of playoff experience.
In order for the Hornets to overcome this hurdle, they'll need to get big production from Kemba Walker, who really is the lone star on their team. Walker is averaging 20.9 points per game on 37.1% shooting from 3-point range and 84.7% shooting from the foul line. He has the potential to take over this series and have his playoff coming out party. If he is able to average 24+ points per game and get the help he needs from Al Jefferson, Nicolas Batum, and Jeremy Lin, this Hornets team has what it takes to win this series.
When looking at how this series plays out, I'm leaning very slightly towards the Miami Heat winning just because they have more weapons and more experience. I would not be surprised if the Charlotte Hornets won this series, but given that the Heat have Dwyane Wade and a beast like Hassan Whiteside down low in addition to the other guys I mentioned, I'm going to say that the Heat win this series in six games. It'll be close, but the Heat will prevail.
Note: Game 1 of this series is Sunday at 5:30 PM EST on TNT
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