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INDIANAPOLIS – Dwyane Wade can’t get his age-25 explosion back, he can’t magically heal Chris Bosh’s abdominal muscle and he can’t take back the angry words he said to his coach on national television. But there are things that Wade and Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra can do to attempt to change the tide in their series with the Indiana Pacers.

Spoelstra goes to extreme and sometimes paranoid lengths to conceal his true thoughts and strategy. The team’s various non-answers about Wade’s health are just a recent example. But one thing that did come through in their preparation for Sunday’s Game 4 is some planned changes for the struggling and perhaps hurting Wade.

Without Bosh as a pick-and-roll partner in addition to giving up 7 inches to primary defender Paul George, Wade’s had trouble getting to the basket in this series. It’s forced him to rely more on jumpers than his preferred attacks. And his jump shot, whether it’s a slump or because his lift is being affected by some leg issues, has been in a deep freeze.

Spoelstra, seeing these realities, apparently intends to make some adjustments to try to find Wade some relief.

“Big part of that is my responsibility to make sure he get to place where he’s comfortable and confident and where he can be aggressive,” Spoelstra said. “That’s where we’ve been focusing our energies the last couple of days. I anticipate we’ll do a better job of it this game.”

Just what wrinkles Spoelstra has in mind and whether it might make a difference is to be determined. But this bit of in-between-game coaching is some of the most vital coaching Spoelstra has had to execute all year.

His moves so far in the series have come off as erratic, including a bizarre first quarter in Game 3, when he started a player who hadn’t been seen for weeks, Dexter Pittman. Then he shuffled in no less than 11 different players in the game’s first 12 minutes like it was some sort of preseason scrimmage.

Already dealing with a fragile offense, the Heat’s rhythm has been obliterated over the last two games. After averaging 98 points a game in the regular season and 96 in the first round against the New York Knicks, the Heat haven’t cracked 75 points since Bosh’s injury. In an effort to find a mixture that works in light of Bosh's absence, Spoelstra's decisions have been all over the place.

Udonis Haslem, one of the steadiest players on the team, has seen his playing time slashed and his mood darken noticeably on the bench and in the locker room. Rookie Norris Cole has gone from in the rotation to deep on the bench to one of the first subs in. Shane Battier went from backup wing to starting power forward. And then there’s Pittman, whose three minutes in Game 3 could kindly be called unsuccessful. Spoelstra must’ve agreed because Pittman never saw the floor again.

The whole thing resembled an out-of-control garden hose. Not exactly the feeling you want in a pivotal playoff game.

“When you have injuries, especially to key guys, roles change,” Battier said. “You just have to roll with it.”

With all that going on, figuring out how to ease Wade’s struggles -- he shot 10-of-35 over the past two games and has just 12 free throw attempts after he got 14 in Game 1 alone -- is Spoelstra’s greatest challenge.

If Spoelstra can tweak his game plan and find a way to re-engage his second-leading scorer, it could help turn the series around. And perhaps restore some confidence after a coaching performance that so far could be termed as shaky.

It is possible the Heat could look to post Wade up more often, a mainstay of his game during the season that has disappeared over the past several games. Spoelstra may attempt to free up Wade away from the ball so he doesn’t have to beat his man plus a secondary defender, most often the free-roaming Roy Hibbert, to get to the rim. It’s possible Spoelstra could go to Wade pick-and-rolls with LeBron James, which might force the Pacers to change the passive style they’ve enjoyed without having to worry about Bosh setting those usually valuable screens.

What is known is that Spoelstra had a meeting with Wade on Friday at the team hotel before Wade drove to see his old college coach, Tom Crean, at Indiana University. Then the Heat had a long film session on Saturday before going over new strategy for Game 4.

When it was over, Wade was downplaying health concerns and making references to how a game plan change may be beneficial.

“A lot of [the struggles] is not your lift or your explosion, sometimes it’s the game plan,” Wade said. “I’m sure tomorrow will be a different game than any other game in the series from how and where my attacks come.”

Wade, Spoelstra and the rest of the Heat hope it’s sure. They have not had any answers to the Pacers’ defense since Game 1. It may not be as simple as changing the strategy, if Wade is limited by an injury, there is only so much than can be done against an Indiana team that has been thoroughly enjoying itself on defense.

But Spoelstra seems ready to try something new, again. He’s running out of chances to find something that works.

“We have to vary our menu,” Spoelstra said. “We have to use everything we have.”

MIAMI -- The Heat weren't supposed to be this top-heavy.

The loss of Chris Bosh has ripped a gauze pad off Miami's hidden wound, exposing the Heat's thin depth behind the Big Three. In the Heat's first full playoff game without Bosh, the team's third-highest scorer tallied a putrid five points. According to STATS LLC, that's the first time in Heat franchise history that only two players scored more than five points in a game. According to our friends at ESPN Stats & Info, a team has never won a postseason game with that type of scoring distribution.

Use any statistic you please, what's clear is that the Heat have a pressing issue on their hands. It's just one game, but Game 2's lopsided scoring distribution reinforces the fact that the Heat are desperate for any help from their supporting cast.

It wasn't supposed to be this way.

In the summer of 2010, Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller were signed to five-year contracts worth a total of $45 million to act as relief and support for the Big Three. They were hired to be cushions for the Big Three, there to protect them with shooting and balance. We're in just Year 2 of those deals, and whispers of the dreaded "washed up" label can't be too far away for Haslem and Miller, who are 31 and 32 years old, respectively.

Haslem's 5.8 PER is the worst rating among the dozens of big men with at least 125 minutes logged in the playoffs. Miller has scored more than four points just once over his last five games and is shooting 33 percent from the floor in the playoffs.

So what happened? We'll take it one struggling ballplayer at a time.

Udonis Haslem
Haslem maintains he is 100 percent. After he chatted with Pat Riley on the sideline at Wednesday's practice, I asked him whether there's anything physically limiting him on the court, and he responded sternly.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," he said. "Nothing's wrong with me. I'm fine."

In this case, actions might speak louder than words. What his actions on the floor suggest is that something is keeping him grounded. Literally. Haslem, who was once one of the league's more efficient big men, has seen his field goal percentage plummet this season to 42.3 percent. In the playoffs, his conversion has sunk even lower; he's shooting 33.3 percent in what Erik Spoelstra likes to call "the second season."

What should concern the Heat is that the opposing team always seems to throw a block party when Haslem gets the ball underneath. And it's not just because 7-foot-2 Roy Hibbert has anchored Indiana's front line. This has been a season-long trend. When we pull up NBA.com's stats tool, we find out that a whopping 20 percent of Haslem's shots in the paint have been blocked this season, which is the third-highest rate among qualified big men in the league. (Only Brandon Bass and Ivan Johnson were swatted more). That's one out of every five shots. That's also double the rate we saw before he was injured last season (10.3 percent). In his last full season in 2009-10, that number stood at 12.5 percent.

As a result of all the blocked shots, his field goal percentage on shots in the paint has dwindled to a mere 46 percent, which is far below the 54.5 percent average among bigs. More and more we see Haslem retrieving an offensive rebound (often off his own misses) and passing it out to the perimeter instead of going back up with it. While that might be the smarter move, it's also one that might not have happened a couple of years ago.



Then we get to that jumper. The herky-jerky shooting motion has never been a thing of beauty, but it always seemed to get results. Not so much lately. So far in the postseason, he's shooting a putrid 27.3 percent on jumpers, according to Synergy Sports, which is down from his rate of 36.2 percent in the regular season. Before going down with a foot injury, Haslem nailed 50.9 percent of his jumpers, making him one of the best knockdown midrange shooters in the league.

What's the cause of his jumper's demise? It could be a matter of balance and follow-through as his former trainer and current ESPN Insider David Thorpe observed in January. Although Haslem started hitting shots soon after that article was posted, his proficiency has hit rock bottom yet again.

This is not the Haslem the Heat thought they were getting when they signed him to a contract that extends to 2015. The fire, heart and leadership that earned Haslem a co-captain designation? That's still there. That should never be doubted with Haslem, the team's hard-nosed leader and rock of the franchise. The production, though? That's been missing for some time now. The 12 minutes he received in Game 2 spoke wonders about where he fits into the Heat's current plans.

So what happened to Haslem? It's hard to say. Again, Haslem insists that he's healthy, but that foot injury required several surgeries over the past year or so. The increase in blocked shots suggest that he doesn't have the same burst that he used to. His strong rebounding numbers might tell us that he's not hurting at all, but Haslem's rebounding has always been a product of expert positioning and effort, not bounce.

The Heat need Haslem's shooting more than ever now that Bosh is sidelined. He's giving no reason for Hibbert and David West to follow him after a pick-and-roll. As is, the Pacers bigs are more than happy to throw an extra body in the way of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, rather than stick to Haslem in the midrange. The Pacers are making it clear that they don't feel he's a threat from there anymore. And it's hurting the Heat's attack.

Mike Miller
Miller and Haslem find themselves in the same boat, which is appropriate since they were college roommates at Florida. After receiving a multiyear deal to flank the Big Three, Miller has barely played a healthy minute on the floor. In Game 2, he grimaced as he trotted up and down the floor with a noticeable limp, perhaps due to a lingering soreness from his left ankle injury that forced him to miss 14 games in March and April.

Miller, like Haslem, maintains that he is healthy. The hobbling in Game 2 suggests otherwise, and there's little doubt that it's sapping his game. The Heat recruited Miller because of his shooting stroke and ballhandling ability. Upon his signing in July 2010, Riley gushed about Miller's skill set, calling him the finest perimeter shooter in the NBA and the signing as "a match made in heaven."


"He is a multifaceted player who can rebound, handle the ball and make plays," Riley said that summer. "We expect big things from him."

The shooting stroke is still there -- he's shooting 36.7 percent from downtown in the playoffs and 45.3 percent in the regular season, but the ballhandling and playmaking skills that the Heat were sold on? We've haven't seen that in months.

If you have any doubt that Miller's ankle is bothering him, chew on the following information. In Game 2, Miller played 17 minutes. In those 17 minutes, guess how many times he dribbled in the half court?

Four.

And he lost the ball on three of those dribbles, causing two turnovers.

Think about that. Four dribbles in 17 minutes.

Miller, who used to play de facto point guard during his days in Memphis, played 17 minutes in Game 2 and successfully put the ball on the deck once in the half court. (I say half court because he caught an outlet pass and dribbled twice on one occasion before passing the ball past half court). As has been true for a while, Miller's role on the team has been reduced to a corner 3-point shooter, camped out and waiting for the kickout from James or Wade.

This is a significant problem for the Heat, because once Bosh went down, they have had no one who can create their own shot besides James and Wade. It's gotten so bad that the team is forced to rely on rookie Norris Cole, who shot 34 percent after the All-Star break, for buckets off the bench. Sure, Cole can create his own shot, but making the shot has been a different story -- although it should be mentioned that he made both of his attempts in Game 2.

When the Heat signed Miller and Haslem, there was no way of knowing that they were going to battle injuries for almost all of their first two seasons in uniform. Between the foot, ankle and shoulder injuries and the concussions, there's a ton of bad luck involved. But you always run that risk when you sign veterans on the wrong side of 30 to five-year deals. Thanks to injuries and age, the multidimensional players they thought they were getting have become increasingly limited as basketball players.

What the Heat need now is Miller and Haslem to step up if they hope to escape out of the Eastern Conference semifinals. There's still time to get healthy and reverse the trends.

But the more they limp up the floor and get swatted underneath the basket, the more it appears that time might be running out.

In another installment of the Heat Index's 3-on-3 series, our writers give their takes on the storylines before the Heat visit the Pacers for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

1. Fact or Fiction: Dwyane Wade should have been suspended.

Tom Haberstroh: Fiction. Although, I've gone both ways on this one. Darren Collison decelerated slightly for the pass, so I'm not sure it was all Wade's fault for the sheer velocity of impact. But I can't shake the feeling that this wasn't a fully objective ruling. I keep asking myself the following three "What Ifs": What if Collison and Wade switched places? What if Chris Bosh wasn't out indefinitely? What if the Heat were up 2-0 instead of split in the series? We'll never know.

Michael Wallace: Fiction. I thought a Flagrant 1 was adequate punishment to fit the crime. As it turned out, that extra possession Indiana got as a result of Wade's message-sending cheap shot ended up costing the Heat in a 3-point loss. I will say this: Had Wade or LeBron been hit from behind like that, my guess is the call would have been more harsh under the same circumstances.

Brian Windhorst: Fiction. It was a cheap shot hit and was properly called a flagrant foul. It would've been interesting had it been called a flagrant-2 foul and they had to review it and decide whether Wade should've stayed in the game. Joey Crawford was all over the play, made the call and the league stood by him. It was proper.

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2. Fact or Fiction: Heat need Haslem to step up more than Miller

Haberstroh: Fact. Haslem has played worse than just about anybody left in the playoffs and the Heat don't have anyone who can score underneath. If they can just get Haslem to provide 10 points with some mid-range jumpers and put-backs, it would open up so much in LeBron James and Wade's games, especially in the pick-and-roll.

Wallace: Fact. Only because Shane Battier, Mario Chalmers or James Jones are capable of giving Miami the shooting Mike Miller is supposed to provide. With Chris Bosh out, Miami doesn't have any other bigs who as effective as Haslem could be in the pick-and-roll game with Wade and LeBron. Who else is going to grab 10 rebounds if needed? Haslem must first give Erik Spoelstra a reason to play him more than the 12 minutes he got in Game 2.

Windhorst: Fact. Well, the Heat need somebody to step up, anyone. But Haslem would be a bigger boost because if he was able to get his jumper going he would be a threat in the pick-and-roll game. With Bosh gone, the Heat's favorite play has been gutted because the Pacers do not respect whoever is in the play unless it is Wade and LeBron.

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3. Fact or Fiction: This series is a 50/50 toss-up at this point.

Haberstroh: Fact. I would say that a breakout game of the Heat's supporting cast is just around the corner, but I look at Haslem and Miller limping up and down the floor and I can't help but wonder if there's something more that's plaguing this team. The Pacers are healthy, hungry and home for the next two games. This is a toss-up, to me.

Wallace: Fiction. I'd go 55/45 still in favor of the Heat. Miami still has the league MVP in James and a top-5 player in Wade on the roster. Two more baskets from anyone else on the roster the other night would've put the Heat ahead 2-0 right now. You could also look at it another way and say that if the refs didn't hold back Indy in Game 1, the Pacers could also be up 2-0. So in essence, that does mean this thing is essentially anyone's series to win.

Windhorst: Fiction. The Heat have the two-best players and overall more experience. They still have the edge but it is much closer, there's a much smaller margin for error with Bosh out.

INDIANAPOLIS -- On his way off the AmericanAirlines Arena practice court Wednesday, Miami Heat forward Udonis Haslem stopped to speak with someone who knows the kind of impact the rugged veteran is capable of having on a title-contending team.

Waiting off to the side of the gym was Heat president Pat Riley, who coached Miami when Haslem was a starter during the team's 2005-06 championship run.

In many ways, Riley still sees Haslem as the player capable of taking on the toughest defensive challenges in the frontcourt while also managing to routinely knock down mid-range jumpers in big spots to provide the Heat relief.

But a combination of injuries and offensive struggles the past two seasons have taken a toll on Haslem, who is in the midst of the least-productive season of his career.

Under normal circumstances, Haslem would be the natural choice to step in and fill the void created by the absence of Chris Bosh, whose strained abdominal muscle is likely to sideline the perennial All-Star for the rest of Miami's conference semifinal series against the Indiana Pacers.

But Haslem played just 12 minutes during Tuesday's 78-75 loss that allowed the Pacers to tie the series at 1-1 and steal home-court entering Game 3 on Thursday in Indiana. So before the Heat departed Miami on Wednesday, Riley pulled Haslem aside to try to clear up a few concerns.

Part of the reason Haslem's minutes have been reduced recently, specifically late in games, is because LeBron James shifts to power forward -- Haslem's natural position. The Heat also spread the floor with 3-point shooters around James, and have gone to Bosh or Joel Anthony at center.

“Part of the deal is you produce on the court, and when you're not on the court, you continue to support your guys and continue to be a good teammate,” Haslem said of his conversation with Riley. “It's not like I'm giving up minutes to some bum off the street. My minutes are going to the MVP at (power forward). When I get my opportunities, all I can do is try to make the best of them."

The Heat might never again need as big of a boost from Haslem as they do right now. With Bosh out of the mix and Miami desperately looking for production beyond James and Dwyane Wade against the deep and relentless Pacers, Haslem is one of a few key role players the team is relying on to break out of slumps that have lasted far too long.

When Riley envisioned the players who would make the most impact on the Heat's roster, the hope was that James, Wade and Bosh would be adequately and consistently supported by Haslem, Mike Miller and Shane Battier.

But all three reserves haven't exactly lived up to expectations this season. Haslem and Battier are shooting the worst percentages of their careers. Miller's overall production as a shooter and facilitator has fallen off so much the past two seasons that teammates don't even consider him to be one of the primary ball-handling options on the team -- which was supposed to be a strength.

Unless the three of them get going quickly in this series, the Heat could be upset by Indiana. What the Game 2 victory did for Pacers was provide evidence that they can absorb solid games from James and Wade and still beat a Bosh-less Heat team by limiting contributions from others. It's not all that different from the Heat knowing they could sustain a 40-point game from Carmelo Anthony last series and still cruise to victories against the New York Knicks.

James and Wade scored 21 of the Heat's 23 points in the fourth quarter of Game 2 and also took 17 of 23 shots. Among the adjustments Miami talked about making for Game 3 was to get -- and keep - others confidently involved to help ease the load on James and Wade.

“All of us will take the onus on making sure other guys get more opportunities,” Wade said. “And me and LeBron will also make sure the opportunities we have will be a little bit more effective. It's nothing new for us. We have a lot of guys that get the ball because we handle a lot, and we have to make plays for them. So we have to do a better job of trying to find out how to get those guys more involved.”

Beyond James, Wade and Bosh, the Heat fashion themselves as a team of specialists - role players who do one specific thing well. Most aren't considered players capable of consistently creating their own shot. So even when Wade and James aren't scoring, they're working just as hard to set up scoring opportunities for their teammates.

Without Bosh, the Heat have even fewer options when it comes to players who can catch the ball and create offense for themselves, which puts even more pressure on the offense on nights when Miller, Haslem, Battier and Mario Chalmers -- primary rotation players -- aren't making shots. The most glaring offensive statistic for the Heat through two games is their 1-for-22 shooting from 3-point range.

“For us, it's the obvious storyline,” Battier said. “Some missed shots that are right there for us are the main culprit. We're getting looks. We're not going to overreact. If the shots present themselves again, we're going to take them and take them with confidence.”

The fact remains the Heat are a wounded team searching for answers in the middle of a series that could prove to be tougher than many observers expected.

“Anybody can be beat at any time,” Haslem said. “Even with Chris, we can be beat. We're not unbeatable. But, like I said, we've got to come together and it's got to come from multiple guys. It's not just going to be one guy.”

Riley's message to Haslem was that the Heat's ability to come together will be crucial for this team to rebound from the Game 2 loss and regain its footing in this series. As frustrated as Haslem might be with his inconsistent playing time and struggles within the offense, he said “it's not the time” to gripe or complain about anything.

“If anything, we come together right now,” Haslem said. “We don't go separate ways and complain about individual things. So I'm all in for what needs to be done to help the team win.”

In another postseason installment of the Heat Index's 5-on-5 series, our writers give their takes on the storylines before the Heat host the Pacers in Game 2 Tuesday night.

1. Fact or Fiction: Roy Hibbert will get 20 and 10 in Game 2.

Tim Donahue, 8 points, 9 seconds: Fiction. It's possible, but unlikely. There are too many things that mitigate against Hibbert getting much more than 30 minutes - fouls, matchups, conditioning. In addition, Hibbert is too easy to take away, if he becomes the main focus of the offense. The 17 and 11 he put up Sunday feels awfully close to his peak to me.

Tom Haberstroh: Fact. Expecting big things from him in Game 2. I see Frank Vogel getting back to his roots, and studying the tape to find a better way to get Hibbert the ball in the post with Chris Bosh ailing. Secondly, the Heat know that locking down the perimeter and creating havoc in the passing lanes will lead them to fast-break opportunities. They'll "let" Hibbert get his.

Jared Wade, 8 points, 9 seconds: Fiction. He dropped a 20/10 only four times this regular season and couldn't manage to do so against the center-less Magic in the first round. Doubt he starts now against one of the league's premier defensive teams.

Michael Wallace: Fiction. I believe Hibbert will get the rebounding numbers. But he doesn't have to quite score 20 for the Pacers to be effective. In order for Indiana to fully exploit its size/strength advantage, Hibbert's production must be complemented by David West.

Brian Windhorst: Fact. He got only 27 minutes and 12 shots in Game 1 because of foul trouble. He also had to play a half against Bosh. And he still had 17 points and 11 rebounds. No excuse not to improve on that.

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2. Fact or Fiction: Danny Granger needs to step up more than Hibbert.

Donahue: Fact. Miami proved that it can live with the Pacers' bigs having their way, provided Indiana gets little or nothing from the perimeter. The Pacers have little or no chance of winning a game - let alone the series - if Granger doesn't play better at both ends.

Haberstroh: Fact. This is their leading scorer and he was invisible offensively. The Heat don't respect Granger quite on the same level as Carmelo Anthony, but he's clearly much less capable against James. If the Pacers have any hope of stealing a game in Miami, Granger needs to hit his shots. Otherwise, where else are those points going to come from?

Wade: Fact. The Pacers spread the scoring around pretty evenly but Granger usually finishes near 20 points when they're playing at their best. This means he gets a few open 3s, a few transition points and a few points he creates by getting to the rim or pulling up in the midrange. He needs to find a way to score or Indiana is toast.

Wallace: Fact. Granger claimed that Vogel apologized after the Game 1 loss for not getting him more involved offensively. Granger also has to be much better than 1-for-10 from the field. Bottom line is Granger must make James work much harder defensively at a time when he'll be carrying an even bigger load to make up for Bosh's absence.

Windhorst: Fiction. The Pacers' hopes are on Hibbert, he has to be a force. He has to compel the Heat to alter their defense and get out of their preferred style. Granger of course has to play better, he can't be going 1-of-10. But after watching Granger play against James about 25 times over the years, I do not expect greatness.

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3. Fact or Fiction: You expect the foul disparity to even out in Game 2.

Donahue: Fact. No good way to answer this, but 9 is a big gap, so it will likely go down. Miami (read: James and Wade) attacks the rim much more, and that will create more fouls. Unless Granger and Paul George become much more active, the Pacers will remain upside down when it comes to foul count.

Haberstroh: Fact. Call him soft or whatever, but Bosh is one of the top whistle-drawers in the game. He'll be missed in the free throw column and it's not like Ronny Turiaf, Joel Anthony and Udonis Haslem need to be fouled underneath. James and Wade won't stop attacking Hibbert and West on the front line, but don't forget that that Pacers posted a higher free throw rate (percentage of shots coming from the free throw line) than the Heat this season. It'll balance out some.

Wade: Fiction. I expect it to be closer, but still favor Miami. The Heat are just so much more aggressive in terms of attacking the hoop with abandon. Sunday wasn't a single-game aberration as much as it was a continuation of a season-long trend for both squads.

Wallace: Fiction. James and Dwyane Wade will always get calls, many of which they deserve and some that are byproducts of superstar treatment. That won't change. The only thing the Pacers can do is attack the basket on the other end and make the refs occasionally call it both ways.

Windhorst: Fact. It'll tighten up. But how much disparity was there? The Heat took 10 more free throws than Indy. That's not exactly normal but it's not obscene. The Heat average eight more free throws than their opponents in the playoffs. The Pacers foul a lot. The Heat are going to take more free throws in this series most likely.

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4. Fact or Fiction: James should start at power forward.

Donahue: Fact, though I'm not entirely sure if it matters. It seems unlikely that experimenting with starting Turiaf or Anthony will hurt the Heat much. However, James should see significant time at power forward, because it puts the most pressure on the Pacers. It's also the most likely way to neutralize the one advantage West and Hibbert give Indiana.

Haberstroh: Fact. If it means more floor-spacers in Mike Miller and Shane Battier on the floor instead of Turiaf or Anthony, the Heat should seriously think about starting James at the 4 -- although the MVP clearly said he didn't expect (er, want) to start at the power forward slot at Monday's practice. Normally, I don't care who starts or finishes, but in this case, I think the upside is great enough that James should get the start. Playing Turiaf or Anthony means more 3-on-5 ball.

Wade: Fact. Getting Battier on the court for more minutes is better than extending the time given to any of Miami's bigs.

Wallace: Fiction. Keep James in his comfort zone for now. Besides, there's no need to risk the early foul trouble or the physical exertion banging with West and Hibbert down low from the start. Put Turiaf at center and keep Haslem at power forward for the time being.

Windhorst: Fiction. I don't care who starts, he'll likely finish playing power forward.

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5. Fact or Fiction: The Heat should still be favored in this series without Bosh.

Donahue: Fact. Bosh is a significant loss, but it remains to be seen how quickly Miami will feel it, or how quickly the Pacers can capitalize on it. Ultimately, the Pacers still have to overcome first James, then Wade before making Bosh's absence matter. The reward's richer if they can, but overcoming those two isn't all that much easier for Indiana.

Haberstroh: Fact. I originally had the Heat in five, but I'll push that back to seven games. Even without Bosh, the Pacers still don't have any answers for James and Wade's attack. If Granger doesn't show up, might have to keep this at Heat in five.

Wade: Fact. But barely. It is now a very even series if Bosh doesn't play again this round. In Game 1, Indiana showed that it can play with, and perhaps even better than Miami for long stretches. The Pacers will have to withstand great play by two great players, but they now have a clear advantage in roster spots 3 through 10.

Wallace: Fact. The Heat still have two of the top five players in the game, still have home-court advantage and still have a level of confidence and mental toughness the Pacers have yet to show on a postseason stage with this much intensity.

Windhorst: Fact. They still have the two best players including the MVP.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra often says that Chris Bosh is the most irreplaceable player on the Heat. Not best, but most critical.

With Bosh leaving Sunday's game with a lower abdominal strain, we'll find out how vital he is to the Heat. To be clear, abdominal strains are one of the trickiest injuries in basketball. Sometimes they knock out a player for a day (like what happened Jazz big man Al Jefferson this season). Sometimes they knock out a player for three weeks or more (like what happened to Kevin Garnett in 2008).

Depending on the severity of the strain revealed on Bosh's MRI, he could be out anywhere from a day to a whole month. A month on the sideline would likely mean he's done for the season. The best guess at the moment is that this abdominal strain will probably keep him out for the rest of the Pacers series, but we'll know more about it after the Heat's practice on Monday afternoon.

So if Bosh is out for the rest of the series, what does that mean for the Heat?

They still have LeBron James and Dwyane Wade
This is pretty obvious, but James and Wade are pretty good at basketball. Any time you can have two perennial MVP candidates wearing the same jersey, that team's chances are pretty good regardless of how much overlap they bear in playing style.

This notion was solidified on Sunday, when the James and Wade outscored the Pacers by themselves in the second half. Yes, James and Wade combined for 42 points after halftime while the entire Pacers team scored just 38 points. Riding the dynamic duo, the Heat absorbed Bosh's injury and squeaked out a win over the fifth-winningest team in the NBA this season.

Is that success sustainable? It actually might be. Looking at the regular season, we find something interesting: the Heat blew out teams with James and Wade on the floor and Bosh sidelined. When the Big Three was reduced to the Big Two for 235 minutes on the court this season, the Heat scored 120.8 points per 100 possessions while giving up only 99.8 points per 100 possessions according to basketballvalue.com. Said another way, the Heat beat opponents by 17.8 points every 48 minutes when James and Wade played without Bosh. Looks like addition by subtraction, no?

Well, we have to be careful here. The James-Wade tandem preyed on opponents partly because they played against second units. The Heat obviously want the Big Three on the floor as much as possible against the opposing teams' best lineups, so the Bosh-less units usually came against bench players in the regular season.

For this reason, there's no sense in thinking that the Heat can continue that torrid pace here in the playoffs against the cream of the crop. And the sample size isn't huge (for reference, it's about one-tenth the size of our sample looking at Carmelo playing without Amare). But 17.8 points every 48 minutes is a strong indication that James and Wade can hold their own.

OK, so what does it mean for this series?
Now that we're done with the overview stuff, let's talk details. Bosh was particularly valuable in this series because of his ability to hit a jump shot and pull gentle giant Roy Hibbert outside the paint. With Bosh out, they're forced to rely on Udonis Haslem, Ronny Turiaf and Joel Anthony to set picks and hope that the defense doesn't double-team the ball-handler (which would typically be James and Wade).

We saw a lot of this in Game 1 on Sunday. With no reason to follow Turiaf or Anthony at 18 feet, Hibbert just camped out in the paint and waited for James to approach. Couper Moorhead of Heat.com did a fantastic job of breaking this play down with video. When Hibbert gave James space, the MVP took advantage by pulling up for clean looks in the midrange. That's not a shot Spoelstra wants every time, but giving James space is never a bankable plan.

The Heat won't find someone to replace everything that Bosh does, but Haslem was supposed to be a serviceable understudy. As a gifted midrange shooter and tenacious rebounder, Haslem fit the role as a solid backup power forward who could offer some floor-spacing with his jump shot. But Haslem's shot has been broken for some time now; he's shooting just 3-for-12 (25 percent) on midrange jumpers in the playoffs (via Hoopdata.com). Bosh he is not.

But Turiaf and Anthony should see a big boost in minutes. When the task is to catch-ball-dunk-ball, Turiaf and Anthony can be useful (Anthony has been playing as if his hands had been recently dipped in glue). Asking them to do anything outside the immediate basket area is a fool's errand, although Turiaf can dish it out to shooters. If they can catch James' and Wade's dump passes when Hibbert and David West collapse onto the ball-handler, that could go a long way to decongesting the offense.

James at power forward: power outage concerns?
James isn't a known as a power forward by trade, but he has the strength and size to be the league's most effective 4 if he wants. Don't believe me? James has a 29.1 player efficiency rating (PER) as a small forward this season according to 82games website. At power forward? James' PER soars to 37.1, which is simply off-the-charts good.

With the size of Karl Malone, James can be a monster on the block when he wants to be, thanks to his improved postgame footwork and ability to pass out of double-teams. We saw James at the 4 for 20 minutes in Game 1 on Sunday and the Heat outscored the Pacers by 15 points. The Pacers tried to stick Danny Granger on James and assign West to take Shane Battier on the perimeter, but removing a big body like West from the paint area is just asking for a Wade or James basket attack.

Rest assured, the Pacers will make adjustments in Game 2. While the Heat could start James at the 4 spot in Game 2, the Heat must be careful about James' stamina. They do not want him burning all his energy trying to body up West on the block, then expecting him to shift into higher gear on offense with Bosh out.

With Battier in the fold, the Heat's No. 1 priority this season was making sure they found relief for James and keeping his minutes down in the playoffs. Asking James to battle West for 45 minutes isn't part of that plan, but Spoelstra might not have any choice. They'll be glad now that they were extra careful about James' minutes in the Knicks series.

At the end of the day, this is Spoelstra' great dilemma: Can the Heat survive and prevent James from burning out in the Finals again? That's the big question. The Heat might have enough to get by the Pacers, because James at the power forward slot might be their best option in the first place, but at what cost?

Getting past the Pacers without Bosh is the Heat's current priority, but it's not the only one. They have enough talent to prevail in this round, but the bigger question might be whether they'd be running on empty thereafter.

MIAMI -- The Pacers and the Heat are spending an extraordinary amount of time studying each other this week. Here’s a look at what their scouting reports will look like, provided by league advance scouts’ notes on both teams:


PACERS STRENGTHS

• Getting to the line. One of the biggest changes Frank Vogel has implemented with the Pacers is turning them from a team that shoots a high volume of 3-pointers to a team that focuses on dribble penetration. As a result, they get a significant portion of their offense from getting to the foul line. They have several perimeter players who specialize in it, from Danny Granger, Darren Collison, Paul George and George Hill. They are also a disciplined 3-point-shooting team. They don’t take many of them but they make them, shooting at a good percentage.
• Zoom. The Pacers will go to “zoom” several times a half. This is where they quickly turn from their preferred tempered approach to playing up-tempo. This is often triggered by dribble handoffs. They use the element of surprise.
• Bigs. The Pacers have four quality big men and two energy bigs off the bench in Tyler Hansbrough and Lou Amundson. They also have good general length. As a result they are a good rebounding team, top-10 in the league, and an elite team when it comes to second-chance points. They are not a dynamic offensive team, but with second-chance points and free throws, they get by.
• Wing versatility. The Pacers can play with excellent size on the perimeter. They can switch on pick-and-rolls because players like Granger and George can defend point guards. Most of the time they are solid in rotations.

PACERS WEAKNESSES

• Low assist team. The Pacers have a handful of players who can create their own shots but they do not execute plays very well. They were one of the lowest assist teams in the league. They try to set up a lot their offense out of the post, but overall their ball movement is not strong. Their guards also are prone to turnovers, though they have improved from last year when they ran former coach Jim O’Brien’s “quick” system.
• Average in transition. The Pacers won 90 percent of their games when they outscored their opponents in transition, but they only did that about a third of the time. They don’t look to run often and aren’t very proficient at it.
• Hibbert in the pick-and-roll. He has excellent size but Roy Hibbert has poor lateral quickness on defense. Teams should involve him in as much pick-and-roll action as possible.
• Foul-prone. The Pacers have a gritty team that works hard on defense but they often get over-aggressive. They committed the third-most fouls in the league. Getting big men in foul trouble can be accomplished and should be a priority.

WHAT THE PACERS NEED TO DO TO WIN

• Keep LeBron James and Dwyane Wade off the foul line. They are great scorers anyway; they will make baskets against good defense. But they are at their best when they are able to earn trips to the line.
• Dominate the boards and get second-chance points. The Heat have one of the better defensive teams in the league but have some of the worst size. Getting extra possessions is the best way to balance out the talent differential.
• Manage turnovers. The Heat can win without getting in transition, but that's usually how they blow you out. If you can limit letting them get free baskets with live-ball turnovers, you will have a better chance of managing the score.

HEAT STRENGTHS

• Transition. The Heat are one of the best teams in transition in the last two decades. James and Wade look to run and work well together in transition. They are so quick and can change directions so effectively that even fouling doesn’t always help, because they can usually shake the contact and turn it into a three-point play.
• Defensive speed. The Heat have excellent defensive versatility because James, Wade, Shane Battier and Mike Miller can guard multiple positions. It is hard to predict what lineups/matchups they will create because they have numerous wing options. They will attack pick-and-rolls, even with their big men, to reduce dribble penetration and have the athleticism to get out to shooters and challenge shots. They are able to create steals with their length, which is a major goal of their system.
• Drivers. James and Wade are two of the most effective drivers in the league. Also, Chris Bosh will look to put the ball on the floor after pump-faking. As a result, it is not unusual for these three to rack up 30-plus free throw attempts a game combined.

HEAT WEAKNESSES

• Size. The Heat often do not play a true center and their big men are all generally undersized. Bosh, Udonis Haslem and Joel Anthony all regularly guard players bigger than them. Their fourth big man is often James, who plays parts of most games at power forward. They have problems with teams that have good post scorers and weakside rebounders. These are just about the only area of the game they can be dominated in. They have some bigger bodies on the bench but Erik Spoelstra prefers not to use them.
• Defensive over-aggression. The Heat try to get in transition as much as possible and they apply a lot of pressure on defense, often trapping ballhandlers when they come off screens. As a result they gamble and will often give up position. They believe so much in their rotations that they will sometimes lose their floor balance. Also, their general defensive principles call for them to collapse on the ball when it goes to the middle. So you can often pass through their rotations to find an open man, and they will give up open 3-pointers if you can work inside out. You just have to be careful with those passes.
• Turnovers. The Heat will give the ball away in part because they look to push the ball in transition a great deal and in part because they are not always an effective half-court offensive team. James will often attempt passes that are high-risk, and Wade is susceptible to steals when he’s driving the ball. Both handle the ball a great deal and both have periods when they are loose with it, allowing vital transition chances for the opposition.

WHAT THE HEAT NEED TO DO TO WIN

• Control Indy’s bigs. The Heat will have a hard time winning the rebound battle; just playing even would be a victory. The Pacers rely on second-chance points as a significant portion of their offense. Hibbert is not a dominant player but has the ability to take over games at times with interior scoring. The Heat will have to attempt to limit his and David West’s effectiveness.
• Contain dribble penetration. Weakside defense is important when playing Indiana; you have to have help defenders ready because the Pacers prefer to attempt to drive from the perimeter. This is how they are able to get to the line, forcing fouls off the dribble. They need free throws and second-chance points because they don’t have great individual scorers. Staying out of the bonus is important.
• Apply pressure. The Pacers have a tendency to lose their focus and their patience. They can give up big runs and have their spirit broken. They are not a veteran team and most of their players have not played deep into the playoffs. The Heat have the ability to throw haymakers because of their talent and their athleticism. The Pacers have shown they can be shaky under pressure.

SCOUTS' PICK: Heat in five.

In another postseason installment of the Heat Index's 5-on-5 series, our writers give their takes on the storylines before the Heat host the Knicks in Game 5 Wednesday night.

1. Fact or Fiction: The Knicks were smart to hold Jeremy Lin out.

Jim Cavan, KnickerBlogger: Fact. Look, we get the whole Willis Reed resurrection narrative thing. But Lin ain’t no Reed, and these ain’t no 1970 Knicks. Besides, I’m not totally convinced that a 60 percent Lin is any better than whatever 100 percent point platoon the Knicks end up going with. Better to wait until next year. We Knicks faithful are used to that anyway.

Tom Haberstroh: Fact. This was fascinating to watch because the organization needed to weigh the short-term payoff versus the long-term risks. Play him now and try to fight your way back into the series at the risk of another knee injury? Sit him and ensure that you have a healthy point guard on the roster for next season? They chose the latter, and that was the smart decision; the realistic upside in playing him just isn't there.

Michael Wallace: Fact. If Lin isn't ready to return from that knee injury, then he simply isn't ready. No need to rush it, especially after seeing two of his backcourt teammates blow out their knees already in this series. It just doesn't make sense to risk setting yourself back for the start of next season in order to play in a series that seems all but over at this point.

Brian Windhorst: Fact. This is a complete no-brainer, to be honest. Let's assume you're Lin. Your knee doesn't feel right, probably more than you're even letting on to the media. Then you see Iman Shumpert and Baron Davis have to be carried off the court in the same week. Are you going to rush it?

Jared Zwerling, ESPN New York: Fact. First of all, Lin hasn’t had ample court time to prepare for the Heat’s swarming pick-and-roll defense, which forced him into eight turnovers on Feb. 23. In addition, playoff games, in general, are a different beast. In recent scrimmages, Lin has moved a bit gingerly and hasn't played with full intensity, so there's no way he'd ready for that level of physicality. After a season with so many injuries, the Knicks would look stupid if Lin suffered a setback for a vain cause. They should invest in his health to make sure he's their long-term solution at point guard.

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2. Fact or Fiction: Stoudemire's 20-and-10 was a bigger deal than Anthony's 41.

Cavan: Fact. Carmelo Anthony has been on a rampage for a while now, but Amare Stoudemire's one-handed -- and level-headed -- performance proved how important his high-caliber play is to the success and effectiveness of the orange-and-blue. The optimist in me hopes his run-in with a fire squelcher proves to be a turning point. The realist in me thinks he just recovered really well from punching glass. Either way, the Knicks need a similarly sizzling Stoudemire on Wednesday night.

Haberstroh: Fact. No one saw this coming. The Heat knew he had no jumper and no ability to comfortably drive left, but still he managed to register his first 20-and-10 game in weeks. You have to, well, hand it to the guy.

Wallace: Fact. Considering the Knicks' shortage of players who can actually create their own shot, rebound and get to the free throw line, it baffles me that some thought New York was better off in this series without Stoudemire and no adequate replacement. Miami was able to absorb high-scoring games from Melo before and still won. But there's no excuse for allowing Stoudemire to go off for 20-and-10 with one good hand.

Windhorst: Fact. Anthony won the game for the Knicks, but does everyone appreciate what Stoudemire did? His hand was being kept together by staples and stitches. The palm. The area that touches the ball. You cannot numb this area because you can't play with numb hands. You can't wear too large of a pad because it has the same effect. So you play one-handed. And you go for 20 and 10. Pretty remarkable, no?

Zwerling: Fact. Just hear it from Anthony: "It was big-time. I was surprised at what he was able to do, due to his hand. But for him to just come back and just prove to us and to prove to everybody that what he did was a mistake ... it was a minor setback, he came back, he bounced back and we respect that out of him." The Knicks had been struggling to find a significant second scorer in Games 1 through 3 to complement Anthony, and Stoudemire provided that "punch," as Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said after the game.

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3. Fact or Fiction: LeBron should be primary defender on Anthony.

Cavan: Fiction: The one glimmer of hope the Stoudemire-less Knicks had for stealing Game 3 -- namely playing Anthony at the 4 and forcing the Heat to throw Bosh on him in stretches -- might've flickered out. If I were Erik Spoelstra, I'd start a hot-shooting Shane Battier at the 3 and put James on Anthony as much as possible. Derp.

Haberstroh: Fact. Call me crazy, but I'd want James, the best isolation defender in the league, to guard the guy who lives on isolations. Battier isn't a poor defender against Anthony, far from it. He's just not the best option for the Heat. Udonis Haslem should take care of Tyson Chandler in normal circumstances; Sunday was the first time Haslem fouled out since Ricky Davis started for the Heat four years ago. Fluke situation.

Wallace: Fiction. For three games, I gave credit to Battier for doing his job and making Anthony work extremely hard to make difficult shots. Battier didn't stop doing his job in Game 4. Anthony just proved why he's an elite scorer in this league. Besides, James has been in foul trouble the past two games -- and Anthony has had calls go his way recently. Asking James to carry such a burden on both ends for extended periods in the playoffs is a bit much to ask.

Windhorst: Fact. At least in the clutch. The numbers speak for themselves. These teams have played five times over the past three weeks. It has been rather obvious with the eye test that Anthony doesn't drive on James as much and isn't able to create as much space against him.



Zwerling: Fact. While Mike Woodson and Spoelstra have given Battier credit for his defense on Anthony, the numbers don't lie. Anthony has been shooting 52.6 percent against Battier in the series, but only 29.3 percent against James. There aren't many players in the NBA who can match up physically and athletically with the Knicks' star, but James can, and he has made Anthony's catches and drives difficult. In Game 5, Anthony better hope his jump shot is on, like in Game 2. The emphasis on closing out the series should be enough motivation for James to guard Anthony down the stretch.

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4. Fact or Fiction: James should be ball handler on next do-or-die play.

Cavan: Faction. As with most crunch-time calls, it’s purely situational. If James is riding a Game 3-like fourth quarter, then sure, let him bring his boys home. He’s been getting to the rim pretty much at will, after all. But if Spoelstra sees an exploitable matchup or scheme better suited for Wade or even Bosh, there’s no reason the coach shouldn’t roll those dice.

Haberstroh: Fact. Not only is James the better option to run a pick-and-roll, but Wade is the better option as the basket cutter. Also, not enough people have mentioned this, but Bosh? He was open on the roll to the rim. Regardless, the most important thing is that all three of the Heat's stars are involved. That didn't happen in Game 4.

Wallace: Fiction. Perhaps he should. But I wouldn't define it as a flat-out fact. It depends on what kind of game James is having to that point. It depends on potential matchup issues. There's no one-answer-fits-all equation to this scenario. The luxury Miami has that few other teams (if any) have is that either Wade or James can make game-winning plays in that situation. Both have had failures in those moments, as well.

Windhorst: Fiction. Or Fact. Either way is fine from my point of view. There was nothing wrong with the idea of that play; it just wasn't executed. It would be interesting if James demanded the ball in that situation. But that hasn't been his position all season. Wade has three game winners this year.

Zwerling: Fiction. During the series, James and Wade have both been effective in the all-important fourth quarter. James has been getting to the line (7-for-8), averaging 8.7 points in the period on 44.4 percent shooting, while Wade has been doing it from midrange, shooting 10-for-18 (55.6 percent). They're equally dangerous in a do-or-die situation because they demand double-teams and can get into the lane. And that's where they pose a big threat as passers because of their ability to find one of the Heat's potent 3-point shooters.

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5. Fact or Fiction: Mike Bibby should be primary PG over Smith/Anthony.

Cavan: Fiction. Bibby has been somewhat effective off the ball, where he is better capable of hitting the glass (something he’s done well of late) and the occasional open J. If I’m Woodson, making Wade and James work as hard as possible in blanketing the ball-handling J.R. Smith or Anthony might be worth the price of the latter two getting gassed. Which sounds insane, and probably is.

Haberstroh: Fiction. Big dilemma for the Knicks. Don't know how they can hide Bibby defensively; he won't be able to guard Mike Miller. But I also don't know how the Knicks can get the shots they want with Smith and Anthony initiating from the top of the key. If Smith didn't turn into Toney Douglas all of a sudden, this wouldn't be a huge problem. The Knicks might have to just rely on Anthony at point. Gulp.

Wallace: Fact. Bibby isn't the player he was 10 minutes ago, let alone 10 years ago. But by process of elimination due to knee injuries, he's the only true hope the Knicks have at point guard. He still knows how to run a team and push the pace in stretches, even though his shot is inconsistent to nonexistent. Smith and Anthony will need to spell Bibby at times, but they shouldn't handle the bulk of the point guard duties. It takes away from their strengths.

Windhorst: Fact. No one would ever mistake Smith or Anthony for a point guard. They're pretty much the exact opposite.

Zwerling: Fiction. But it doesn’t really matter. Smith and Anthony are going to be handling the ball the majority of the time. What Bibby needs to be able to do is knock down the open 3-point shot off of Smith's and Anthony’s penetration, which he did in Game 4. Bibby hit two clutch long bombs at the end of the third quarter and the fourth to keep the Knicks ahead. At this point in his 14-year career, Bibby is really more of a glorified shooting guard because he’s not quick enough as a playmaker to put pressure on the Heat’s defense.

MIAMI – If coach Mike Woodson has a desperation Jeremy Lin curveball to throw into their playoff series against the Miami Heat, he's determined not to tip his pitch as the New York Knicks try to stave off elimination.

Then again, it's not like Woodson gave any indication in advance that forward Amar'e Stoudemire would come back from that gruesome hand injury and help the Knicks avoid being swept with Sunday's victory in Game 4 in New York.

So the lesson here is simple: When it comes to playoff adjustments and personnel developments, you're better off believing the exact opposite of what you hear.

But there's no denying the fact that the Knicks will return to Miami for Game 5 on Wednesday buoyed by their first playoff victory in a decade and with a sense that this series has been played a lot closer than the 3-1 deficit indicates.

“Now, if we can go down there and take Game 5, it really puts the pressure on them to come back up here to New York,” Woodson said of the prospect of beating the Heat on Wednesday and forcing a Game 6 on Friday back at Madison Square Garden. “It would be great. (Sunday) night was big. But it's just one game.”

It would require a historical run for the Knicks to rally their way back into making this series against the Heat anything more than a forgone conclusion. No team in NBA history has overcome a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series. Fewer than a handful have even come back to force a Game 7.

But New York has already made history from one perspective in this series. Sunday's win against the Heat snapped a league-record string of 13 consecutive playoff losses. The breakthrough victory was also the culmination of what Woodson believes has been a stretch of play over the past three games in which New York has mostly gone toe-to-toe with Miami from a competitive standpoint.

The Heat have won their three games by a combined 60 points, but since that 100-67 blowout in Game 1, the Knicks were in striking distance for stages of the fourth quarter in each of the past three games. There's been enough evidence to at least leave the Knicks with a bit of hope that they can continue to slow down Miami. In Games 3 and 4, the Heat scored 87 points both times and shot a combined 41.9 percent from the field.

With the Knicks now in full desperation mode, having lost guards Iman Shumpert and Baron Davis to devastating knee injuries and the uncertainty of Lin's return from minor knee surgery, Woodson has no choice except to accentuate the positives.

“We've been in every game,” Woodson said, with the 33-point loss in the series opener being the exception. “In Game 2, it was a fight until the end, and they made the plays they had to make in being at home. When we came home for Game 3, I thought we were ready to play. We got down early, called a timeout to kind of gather ourselves. Our bench played great … outplayed their bench in Game 3. We let it slip away on two or three bad offensive possessions and not getting back in transition. And (Mario) Chalmers hits the two big threes that broke the game open.”

Now the Knicks return to the scene of their greatest frustration in the series, with a roster further depleted by injuries and one loss from the abrupt end to their season.

Nevertheless, Woodson remains in adjustment mode. Critically short on point guards, Woodson strongly suggested – again, if you choose to believe what you hear – that he would be forced to switch Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith to point guard for extended shifts. That would particularly be the case, Woodson said, when the Heat plays their “big” lineup with either LeBron James or Dwyane Wade at the point alongside Shane Battier, Mike Miller and Chris Bosh.

Despite Lin participating in scrimmage work Monday and seemingly close to making a decision to return, Woodson spent more time addressing the virtues of veteran Mike Bibby and the possibility of playing emergency backup Toney Douglas.

“I'm struggling with when they go with the big lineup of Battier, Miller, LeBron and Bosh and another big,” Woodson said. “Now, I come in with Bibby. And Mike is now asked to guard Miller or he has to guard Battier. And that's going to be the same situation with Toney. He's a little bit smaller than Bibby and Baron. And to me, that's a bad matchup. That's why I might go big. They're playing big and that's why I might go J.R. and Melo at (point guard) and see if I can get by a few minutes like that.”

Either way, Woodson's strategy is to survive the Heat's early onslaught and keep the game close going into the fourth – which is something the Knicks have been able to do each of the past three games.

The Knicks stopped short of suggesting they have any momentum in the series after just one win. But Anthony is starting to regain some rhythm after that 3-of-15 shooting effort in Game 1, and Stoudemire is coming off his best game in the series. He had 20 points and 10 rebounds on Sunday after he missed Game 3 with a badly cut left hand, an injury he sustained following the Game 2 loss in Miami when he banged his hand out of frustration into a fire extinguisher case near the Knicks' locker room.

“I live for games like that as a coach, just to see who is going to make plays when it's close like that. And I thought our guys stepped up and matched every play they made down the stretch,” Woodson said of Sunday's win before shifting his focus once again to the daunting task ahead. “We feel good about ourselves, but we do understand that we're going back to South Beach to play in a hostile environment."

Shane Battier signed with the Miami Heat for moments like the one that came in Game 4.

When Battier announced his free agency choice in December, he outlined the deciding factor:

"I've played out every scenario in my head over and over," Battier wrote on Twitter. "It always came back to one thing for me: a winning role."

On Sunday, he got his wish.

Down by two points with 40 seconds left in a playoff game inside Madison Square Garden and his team desperate for a stop, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra trusted Battier -- not LeBron James -- to contain Carmelo Anthony on the play. It was a controversial move since Anthony mostly had his way with Battier throughout the series -- not to mention that the Heat have a perfectly viable alternative in James, perhaps the only defender in the league who can match Anthony's strength and quickness on the perimeter.

Nonetheless, Battier was the guy. Out on the floor in a critical possession, Battier was given the prized role he wanted back in December. Could he fulfill the "winning" end of the bargain?

As it turns out, the heady veteran got whistled for grazing Anthony's elbow on the follow-through of a pull-up 3-pointer. This is the cardinal sin for a defender, which visibly irked Battier as he shook his head on the floor in disbelief.

Whether Battier fouled him or not, this much is clear: Battier hasn't had much luck guarding Anthony. Anthony is now shooting 53 percent from the floor with Battier guarding him in the series, compared to the 29 percent Anthony shoots against James, according to ESPN Stats & Info tracking.

When Battier tried to muscle up Anthony, the Knicks star batted him away. When Battier tried to close off Anthony's driving lanes, the Knicks star easily maneuvered around him.

This is Spoelstra's big dilemma. The Heat thrive when James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are surrounded with 3-point sharpshooters like Battier, but they leave money on the table defensively every time James isn't guarding Anthony.

Can Spoelstra keep playing Battier if Anthony continues to dominate that matchup?

That's a tough question to answer made tougher by Battier's reputation as a defensive stalwart and his known desire to play in crunchtime. Battier didn't just want to sign with a winning team; he wanted to have a hand in it, too. In this series however, Battier's defensive weapons simply haven't put a dent in Anthony's armor.

So what then?

Spoelstra has alternatives, and Baron Davis' injury will make it easier to go in another direction. Udonis Haslem is one of the league's better defensive rebounders and can take care of keeping Tyson Chandler off the offensive glass, which was one of Spoelstra's cited reasons for sticking James on Chandler instead of Anthony.

Such a move would allow the Heat to play their "Big Five" lineup with Haslem and Mike Miller, all part of the same free agent haul in the summer of 2010. Miller is a superior 3-point shooter to Battier and won't have any trouble staying in front of Mike Bibby, who at this stage in his career has the mobility of a stop sign. That lineup, by the way, has outscored opponents 149 to 103 over the last two seasons.

It also has been used as Miami's closing lineup, but of course, Haslem fouled out in Game 4 and has surprisingly only been a nominal starter in this series (he has only played just 17.8 minutes per game). As far as we know, Haslem is healthy enough to log major minutes, but playing Haslem means that Spoelstra must forgo his favored "symbiotic relationship" lineup that calls for two sharpshooters bookending the Big Three. Inserting Miller allows Spoelstra to preserve some of his 3-point shooting attack while also locking down Anthony and Chandler.

Another option? If Spoelstra must play Battier, it's worth seeing what Battier could do against Stoudemire, whose hand injury has made him more predictable. Battier has guarded power forwards in the past and what Battier lacks in size, he gains in preparation. A one-handed Stoudemire against Battier is a stripped-ball waiting to happen. The question becomes whether the gains of LeBron on Carmelo outweigh the losses of putting Battier on Stoudemire. Worth a try.

Spoelstra's game plan has included a heavy dose of Battier and in the grand scheme of things, it's working. So far, the Heat are up 3-1 in the series and James has been rested. Spoelstra is insistent that the Knicks will not dictate the Heat's rotation. As he has said repeatedly, the Knicks have to prepare for the Heat's personnel, not just the other way around. In the closing minutes of Sunday's game, Spoelstra made it clear that he would not budge even after Battier absorbed a barrage of body blows from Anthony and then a final knockout punch on Sunday.

We might have reached the breaking point after Game 4. With a potential Game 6 swinging back to New York, there's no more time to experiment with Battier on Anthony. Battier might still have a winning role on the team, but his time should wait until Anthony is in the rear-view mirror.

• What have you done in the past 24 hours? Chris Bosh has flown from Miami to New York to Miami to New York and watched his wife deliver their first child in between. No big deal. The Heat are expecting Bosh to be in the lineup against New York on Thursday night but the great Tom Ziller of SB Nation doesn't want to hear the criticism if Bosh doesn't play. Frankly, I'm right there with Ziller.
• SI.com's Zach Lowe with a thorough breakdown of the Heat's action-packed offense so far in the series (with video!). As I re-watched the clips of LeBron's sharp entry passes across the court, I can't help but come to the conclusion that LeBron is the only player who can combine the height and skill required to complete those passes successfully. Maybe Pau Gasol? Great work, as always, from Lowe.
• Here's a photo of Chris Bosh holding his newborn son Jackson courtesy of Adrienne Bosh's Instagram feed. (Assist-point to Surya Fernandez of HotHotHoops.com for tweeting this one out). Agreed with the AP's Tim Reynolds here: "The biggest surprise to me in these Chris Bosh photos holding his baby: What hospital has scrubs big enough to fit a 6-foot-11 guy?"
• Jonathan Tjarks in a terrific (and lengthy) post at SB Nation draws parallels between the free-will roster construction of the Miami Heat and the Kentucky Wildcats, taking us down a road that might reshape your opinion of the feel-good Thunder: "For just as the Heat were building a potential dynasty around free agency, the Thunder were building one of their own through the draft. Fittingly enough, there's a good chance that the road to a championship for Miami, a team 'of the players, by the players and for the players,' will go through Oklahoma City, a franchise that represents everything wrong with professional sports."
• The great Howard Beck of the New York Times and our own Brian Windhorst joined our pals at HoopSpeakLive to talk Heat-Knicks. Archived video should be up shortly here.
• If you watched Monday's broadcast of Game 2, you might have caught Reggie Miller's critical commentary on LeBron James seeking the advice of the all-time greats on what it takes to win a championship. Miller, who ironically ended his playing career without a championship, felt LeBron shouldn't feel the need to solicit their opinions. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports that LeBron was asked about Miller's words on Thursday, but LeBron declined comment.
• Shane Battier can relate to what Bosh is going through right now. Palm Beach Post's Ethan Skolnick relays the story of Battier's newborn in last season's playoffs and how Steve Novak drove Battier three hours to the hospital after Battier hit a game-winning shot. "If it was a 4 o’clock tip, or a 7 o’clock tip, I miss that game, and not saying we don’t win the series, but maybe we don’t win that game. And maybe history is altered. The Gods smiled upon me that day."

MIAMI – As Mike Miller spoke with about a dozen reporters in front of his locker late Monday night, the Miami Heat swingman was continuously interrupted by the ring chime buzzing from the cell phone in his pocket.

“Man, you're blowing up,” someone told Miller, referring to the messages piling up on his cell.

“Yeah,” Miller responded, sounding slightly embarrassed. “I guess everyone just watched the game or something.”

The rest of the NBA postseason field might need to take notice, too, especially if the Heat's role players continue to perform the way they have to help boost Miami to a 2-0 series lead against the New York Knicks.

What the Heat displayed in the 104-94 victory in Game 2 was a sneak peek of exactly what stands to make this Miami team different than the squad that entered the postseason a year ago. With the exception of offseason free-agency pickup Shane Battier, the names and faces are the same from last year's postseason run that fell two games short in the Finals of winning a title.

But what the Heat are now showing is the difference a healthy, confident, aggressive and effective supporting cast can make around LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. Miami entered the playoffs with one of the least-productive benches in the league, one that provided fewer than 25 points a game and is considered by some league analysts as the main reason Miami might again stumble in its quest for a championship.

But if two games are any indication of what could be in store throughout the playoffs, the Heat's supporting cast could provide the boost that puts them over the top. So far, they've executed to expectation.

This time a year ago, Miller and Udonis Haslem were severely limited in the playoffs by injuries that forced them to miss much of the regular season. Now, Miller is shooting 43 percent from 3-point range in the series while aggressively putting up shots he once tended to pass up. Meanwhile Haslem, despite still struggling with is offense, is leading the team in rebounding and has outworked Tyson Chandler and Amare Stoudemire on the boards while averaging just 20 minutes through the first two games.

“This is what we always envisioned, with those lineups being out there and the acquisition of Shane,” James said. “Just to have Mike in rhythm, seeing him shoot the ball like we know he can shoot the ball. Having (Haslem) as comfortable (and) as healthy as he's been the last year, and everybody else, is great. We just want it to continue.”

Entering the series, I gave the Knicks' role players a clear edge over the Heat's, but developments have swung the advantage in Miami's favor. Iman Shumpert's knee injury in Game 1 took him out of the mix and the Knicks have gotten very little from league 3-point shooting leader Steve Novak. Beyond J.R. Smith's occasional scoring outbursts, the Knicks' supporting cast easily has been outperformed.

By comparison, Mario Chalmers – when he's not being scolded by James for lapses – has averaged 12 points, 7.5 assists and only two turnovers through two games. And Battier has absorbed the brunt of the defensive assignment on Anthony, yet has still managed to rebound and hit a pair of 3-pointers in both games to sustain game-sealing runs.

“It helps a lot, especially with everybody comfortable,” Chalmers said. “So we're not favoring one person. Those guys (James, Wade and Bosh) are trusting us to make plays, and that's what we're doing. I wouldn't say it's a blueprint. But it's a good job of everybody contributing. When we play like this we're hard to beat. And it shows.”

It also reveals the potential the Heat have when at full strength. This time last season, coach Erik Spoelstra wasn't sure what he would get out of his rotation beyond James, Wade and Bosh in the postseason. But among the early answers in these playoffs is the spark provided by Battier, one Spoelstra says gives the Heat, “an element we didn't have last year.”

There might not be an individual task in the East during the playoffs for Battier tougher than matching up with Anthony.

“That's part of the reason why I'm here, why I thought I'd be a good fit,” Battier said after Game 2. “The playoffs are a different animal. It's good to know my teammates have confidence in me, my coaches have confidence in me. But it's not about stats, it's about making plays and winning games. That's the fun part, and that's why I'm here.”

Miller said the coaching staff has challenged the Heat's role players with three simple tasks going into each game.

Play hard. Bring defensive energy the moment they enter the game. And knock down open shots when they get them.

Battier and Miller, specifically, have a fourth mandate.

“They're putting more onus on us to shoot the ball, contested or not, just to open up the floor,” said Miller, who's attempted 14 3-pointers through two playoff games after averaging just three attempts in the regular season. “If we're shooting it, even when we're not making it, it's easier on those guys. When we're aggressive, make or miss, it makes people guard us, makes them account for us.”

It's that accountability factor that has the Heat heading to New York for the next two games of the series after having held serve in Miami. That accountability should also serve early notice to the league that there's an improved difference and depth with the Heat this time around.

Will it be enough to make up that two-game shortfall in the Finals last season? Time will tell as tougher challenges loom throughout the Heat's playoff run. But the early signs have been encouraging for those in the race.

“That's the blueprint for how we want to play,” said Bosh, who was then asked if the Heat are stronger now than they were in last year's playoffs. “I want to say yes, but you know how the playoffs are. They're so long. There are going to be a multitude of tests in this postseason. We're making improvements every day. Our bench has improved in confidence and production. I want them to keep improving, keep believing in themselves and do what they have to do so we can keep going forward.”

Miller probably got around to eventually returning the calls and texts that flooded his voicemail after the game. If not, you'll have to pardon him.

He's been a bit busy on the other end with the Heat's supporting cast trying to send potential playoff opponents a message.

MIAMI -- It was two years ago when Erik Spoelstra turned a film session into a science lecture.

The head coach wanted to convey to his team the idea that attackers and shooters thrive by playing off one another. As Spoelstra saw it, attackers help shooters by drawing perimeter defenders into the paint and shooters help attackers by stretching the defense thin and opening up driving lanes.

It struck Spoelstra that the Heat's interplay between attackers and shooters represented a "symbiotic relationship," a term pulled straight out of a science textbook glossary to describe when two animals live in a mutually beneficial existence.

And so he decided to use it one day in a film session. In essence, the players were forced to add the word "symbiotic" to their vocabulary list. Naturally, there was some confusion initially.

"The first time I used it," Spoelstra recalled with a grin, "Udonis Haslem raised his hand and said, 'Coach, you have to stop using words like that. I have to write this down in English.'"

Haslem didn't have a pen and paper so he memorized it. Nowadays, you'll often hear the phrase "symbiotic relationship" scattered in Haslem's responses to questions from the media. It's currently a fixture in the Heat's everyday dialogue.

Lesson learned, apparently.

This concept isn't entirely new to basketball, but Spoelstra might be the first draw an analogy that conjures up images of bees gathering pollen on a flower bed. To Spoelstra, the key to the Heat's offense going forward -- and especially in this series against the Knicks -- is attackers and shooters scratching each other's backs.

"We always talk about the symbiotic relationship of the guys helping each other," Spoelstra Monday said after beating the Knicks 100-67 on Saturday. "We have to help our attackers get into the paint, get to the free throw line and get to the rim. At the same time, our attackers have to help our shooters by getting them timely passes when they're open."

In the romp over the Knicks in Game 1, the Heat attempted 21 three-pointers and toed the free throw line 33 times, marking the first time this season that they've matched both those totals in the same game. Obviously, it paid dividends for the Heat.

In shortened time off the bench on Saturday, Mike Miller rifled off nine 3-pointers and Shane Battier fired up six 3-pointers of his own. But to Spoelstra, that is simply not enough. He wants to see more.

"I don't even care about the makes that they have," Spoelstra said. "I just like seeing Mike hunting down for nine 3-point attempts. I really want him to get 10 attempts and I told him before the game that I wanted to see take 10 attempts. He can make zero of them, it doesn't matter. We have absolute confidence that it helps our game."

To some, that might seem like a coach encouraging failure. But Spoelstra sees it differently. Even if the Heat miss a 3-pointer, it helps to decongest the paint for LeBron James and Dwyane Wade to operate later in the game. The threat is just as helpful. The connection isn't obvious to some, but it's absolutely essential in Spoelstra's mind.

"That's the relationship we're talking about everyday," Spoelstra said. "The paint will be open for our attackers to make plays if we get to our spots and trust our shooters to do their job."

Battier enjoys the so-called symbiosis and it's a big reason why he came to Miami as a free agent in the offseason in the first place. He has heard it all during his 11-year playing career, being coached by Hubie Brown, Mike Fratello, Mike Krzyzewski, Sidney Lowe, Rick Adelman, Lionel Hollins, and now Spoelstra. But this season in Miami marked the first time he, has ever heard the term "symbiotic relationship" anywhere near a basketball court.

"It's a first," Battier laughed. "It's not your typical NBA reference, but it's appropriate.

"There is a certain vernacular with this organization," Battier said. "I will give it to Spo. He's pretty creative in trying to hammer home age old lessons so he tries to keep it fresh with different ... [long pause] ... methods."

Spoelstra might seem overly insistent on attackers and shooters playing off each other, but that's because the coach has seen the numbers. According to NBA.com stats tool, the Heat score 108.9 points per 100 possessions with James, Wade and Bosh on the floor. But when Battier joins them, that number rises to 114.9 points. And when Miller plays next to the Big Three? Miami's offensive efficiency skyrockets to a mind-boggling 125.9 points per 100 possessions.

Mutually beneficial, indeed.

The symbiotic relationship remains the foundation of the Heat's offense and Spoelstra hopes to see it emphasized more in Game 2 on Monday. Spoelstra's game plan depends on Battier, Miller, Mario Chalmers and James Jones spacing the floor. If nothing else, the players have bought into it, even thinking of themselves as shrimp-like organisms that help feed whales.

Or at least Battier views himself and his shooting colleagues that way.

"We are the krill of the Heat's ecosystem."

After witnessing a beatdown like Game 1, it's hard to imagine that the Heat-Knicks series will be anything but lopsided going forward. But if you've paid attention to playoff basketball over the years, you know that things can change quickly. Playoff teams must have a short memory; game plans are scrapped and teams treat each game like its own animal.

What adjustments will be made? It's impossible to predict how the coaches will react to Game 1, but here are three reasons Game 2 might not look anything like Game 1.

Guarding Carmelo Anthony: To front or not to front?

No one saw it coming. Or at least the Knicks didn't. Erik Spoelstra treated the April 15 regular-season matchup against the Knicks like it was a postseason game, making a key adjustment that we’d normally see reserved for the middle of a playoff series. The big wrinkle?

They fronted Carmelo Anthony in the post, shielding every entry pass and mapping a detour away from his favorite spots. Everyone knows that the Knicks play predictable one-on-one basketball (iso-ball for short) with Anthony on the elbow and Spoelstra made sure they were never comfortable even getting into that set. Anthony shot 3-for-15 for the game and the Knicks turned the ball over a whopping 27 times.

But don’t expect the Heat to stay set in their ways. LeBron James, who served as Anthony’s primary defender, told reporters after the game that they’re not done throwing curveballs.

“Now that he knows that we fronted him, we might have something different from Game 2,” James teased to reporters.

Shane Battier, who was also assigned to fronting duty, echoed James’ sentiment that fronting isn’t a permanent program.

“They’re going to make adjustments in Game 2,” Battier said. “We’re not going to have as easy of a time in Game 2 playing the same defense. That’s what playoffs are about. At least we gave him a different look and we’ll try to come up with a counter to their counter. That is the chess match that is the playoffs.”

How might the Knicks counter? There’s a reason teams don’t front post players all the time. It leaves the weak side vulnerable to swing passes. Every time the Heat fronted Anthony in the post, it required a big man to leave his assignment and help defend the lob pass over the top of the shield. If Anthony catches the ball and immediately whips the ball to the newly open man, the Heat’s strategy will suffer.

Additionally, the Knicks could run screens to free up Anthony at his favorite spots rather than have him battle for position. A third counter: have Anthony play point forward, which would avoid the front and forced entry passes all together. The Knicks’ coaching staff will install an array of counters to decongest the offense. As lopsided as Game 1 was, the Heat are far from declaring “checkmate.”

Life without Iman Shumpert

Though it didn’t rock the basketball world quite like Derrick Rose’s knee injury, Iman Shumpert’s torn ACL gave a sizable blow to the Knicks’ chances and morale in the series. Shumpert may be a rookie, but he doesn’t play like one on the defensive end. He ranks as the Knicks’ top perimeter defender. He cuts off all airspace when guarding the ball and rarely gives an inch for the player to move.

Now that Shumpert is sidelined, don’t be surprised if Dwyane Wade has a much better outing in Game 2. Though Landry Fields isn’t a poor defender, he’ll let Wade get far more comfortable out on the perimeter.

“Each defender is different,” Wade said in the locker room. “Shumpert is more of a pressure guy, trying to make sure you’re not comfortable especially when you have a ball on a live dribble, he’ll try to get up in your space. Landry Fields uses his length and size to his advantage.”

Wade might be looking forward to going against Fields, but the numbers tell us that he pretty much had his way against the rookie this season. According to NBA.com’s stats tool, Wade scored 29.3 points every 36 minutes with Shumpert on the floor, but that scoring output dropped to “just” 22.6 points per 36 minutes with Shumpert sitting on the bench.

But Wade isn’t the only player who might be relieved that he won’t have to face the pesky Shumpert. When Anthony needed a lift on James, Shumpert occasionally came to the rescue. That backup is no longer there, forcing J.R. Smith to serve as Anthony’s lone insurance plan on James.

How does losing Shumpert affect the Knicks’ offense? Compared to Fields, Shumpert is like Steve Kerr as a 3-point shooter (or Steve Novak for that matter). Fields has been a miserable shooter from downtown this season, shooting just 25 percent from there in the regular season, which will allow the Heat to be a little more aggressive with their defensive rotations. They won’t have to worry too much about Fields as a deep threat.

Tyson Chandler on the mend

As badly as Carmelo Anthony played in Game 1, no one looked and played worse than Tyson Chandler, a likely recipient of the Defensive Player of the Year award. How bad was his outing? Chandler became the first player in more than 25 years to record zero points and seven turnovers in a playoff game.

Somehow after all these years, Michael Jordan's "flu game" keeps looking even more impressive. Chandler gave it a go after being a game-time decision with the flu, but if he knew it was going to be one of the Knicks' worst playoff defeats in franchise history, he might have stayed in his hotel. Of course, Chandler had a big part in the outcome, getting whistled for charges while literally and figuratively dropping the ball on numerous occasions.

But the old playoff mantra of "it's only one game" rings especially true for Chandler. He was physically weak and mentally unfocused, which is a rare sight from him. The sharp rotations and heady basketball plays that we have normally come to expect from Chandler were swallowed up by the flu.

That fog won't linger long. It should only get better for Chandler and the Knicks as he recovers from the flu in the coming days. He might not be 100 percent for Monday's game, but it'll certainly be an improvement over the 10 percent he was feeling in Game 1.

If the Heat are expecting to get to the rim at will and draw that many whistles in Game 2, they are mistaken. Chandler is too good to let that happen again.

MIAMI – When it comes to the recent play of the Miami Heat's much-maligned supporting cast, doubt is gradually being replaced by definition.

That's the simplest way Heat forward Shane Battier can explain the recent consistency and upswing in production some key members of the rotation have provided Miami in support of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh as Miami gears up for the playoffs.

For the most part, the Heat know what to expect from the Big Three. But for much of the second half of the season, they just haven't been sure what they'd get from the Next Four. That's starting to change as Battier, Udonis Haslem, Mario Chalmers and Mike Miller are showing more signs that they've regained some rhythm and confidence over the past two weeks.

That group continues to redefine themselves.

Collectively, Battier, Haslem, Miller and Chalmers have accounted for 25 points, 13.2 rebounds, 8.1 assists and three steals a game during the Heat's five-game winning streak. Individually, they are starting to resemble the players they were expected to be when the season started. Beyond those four, the Heat also rely on center Joel Anthony to be a defensive spark off the bench and turn to James Jones in spot moments to space the floor with 3-point shooting.

“It's exciting to know our best basketball is ahead (and) not behind us,” Battier said as the Heat look to extend their winning streak to six games Saturday against the Wizards. “That can be a good thing going into the playoffs. Obviously, you'd love to say, 'OK, this is who we are going forward.' (But) we don't know who we are (yet). I say that as a positive thing for us, because what we were the last few weeks wasn't going to cut it.”

Their recent play just might be enough to get the Heat over the hump. Just from an offensive standpoint, add the 25 points the Heat's Next Four have provided with the combined 67.7 points that James, Wade and Bosh are averaging this season and it equates just under 93 points. When Miami scores at least 93, it is 38-7 this season.

With four games left in the regular season, Miami is working toward two goals while having already secured at least the No. 2 seed in the East. The first mission is to continue to rest Wade, Bosh and – eventually – James as much as possible for the postseason. The second priority, which is a byproduct of the first, is to get their once-reeling role players back into a reliable rhythm.

With Wade or Bosh sitting out four of the past five games – Bosh missed Thursday's win against the Bulls that moved the Heat within 1 ½ games of the No. 1 seed – Miami is executing its plan on that front. And as a result of the extra available playing time, some key rotation players have been able to get their games on track.

“That process has already been happening,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Guys are feeling much more comfortable with the rotation. (It's) fairly similar to what we're used to. Guys are understanding their roles and getting confident in how we're playing and totally understanding what makes us successful.”

That understanding has manifested itself in numerous ways.

Battier, having one of his least productive offensive seasons of his career overall, has shot 50 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from 3-point range over the past five games. His defense, however, has been solid most of the season as he continues to guard the opponent's best offensive player for extended stretches.

Haslem has struggled with his shot all season, but his consistent rebounding recently caused Spoelstra to insert him into the starting lineup to address one of the team's problem areas. Miami is 5-1 since Haslem took over as the starter alongside Bosh and James in the frontcourt.

Haslem said he expects to remain a starter even when Ronny Turiaf returns from a hamstring injury that's kept him out the past six games. Meanwhile, Miami has outrebounded four of its past five opponents, including a 45-40 edge against Chicago on Thursday night.

“Bottom line is when you get into playoffs and you go against teams like the Chicagos and Bostons - teams that are really going to dig deep into the film and try to take you out of what you do - guys like me, Mike and Shane are going to be put in position where we need to make plays,” Haslem said. “None of us has had our best offensive year this year. But that doesn't matter. You move on to the next game. We understand you have to have a short memory and get ready for the next one. We just have to build on that these last few games and be ready for when it does really matter.”

The Heat's bench has ranked near the bottom of the league in overall production the past two seasons. The role players have grown accustomed to criticism from national analysts who have suggested that James, Wade and Bosh don't have enough support when compared with star players on other title-contending teams.

But Wade likes what he's been seeing from the bench in recent games.

“I love to see that confidence come out,” Wade said. “Even Mike Miller just comes out shooting the ball. They make us a deeper team, a better team. We want to show them we need them if we're going to reach our ultimate goal. It just can't be heavily on three guys or four. It has to be a collective group.”

The process hasn't been easy, especially with the lineup combinations and rotation changing from game to game lately. Balancing rest for star players while developing a rhythm for the support cast has created a difficult juggling act at times.

“We're still learning about ourselves,” Battier said, despite being 62 games into a 66-game schedule. “It's been tough with Dwyane missing games and now Chris missing some games. I think we feel better about ourselves and we feel better about the direction we're going in. But it would be nice to have a few games with everyone in the rotation. We're getting there.”

The Heat don't have much more time to figure it out. But players are hoping to make the most of these final tuneup games to continue to build for the postseason.

“Guys are really stepping up in that regard,” Spoelstra said. “Stats don't tell the whole story.”