Brooklyn Nets at Miami Heat Live Game Thread: Wait, *this one* is crucial game

WHO: Brooklyn Nets (32-32) at Miami Heat (27-34)

WHAT: Look, not trying to paint this is a must-win, but really they Nets do need this one after losing at home to the Wizards and Hornets. They’re making this much more difficult than it needs to be.

WHERE: American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. EST

HOW: YES, FSSUN; NBA League Pass

THE STORY: Game Preview

Dwyane Wade is having his best three point shooting season in the final year of his long and illustrious career, shooting 32 percent on a career high 3.6 attempts per game. What’s that? Oh you think those numbers aren’t very good? Well, you’re correct reader. Good looks. Wade is one of the four or five best shooting guards of all time, winning three championships and guiding the Heat through what has been essentially 15 straight years of success. He also can barely shoot threes. It’s okay though, because neither could Kobe or MJ. @ me on Twitter I’m ready for your takes! Haters, stay mad!!

Regardless, Wade is in the stretch run of his basketball career, and he’s playing like he’s trying to drag one last Heat team into the playoffs on his back. 17.7 points in his last six is a solid number for a guard who’s almost forty.

Miami’s actual best player, Josh Richardson, is averaging 17.5 points, 4 assists, and 3.6 assists on 41/37/86 shooting for the season. He’s a pretty big 6’6 shooting guard who excels even more on defense than he does on offense. He’s going to be a problem for Brooklyn’s big three guards, D’Angelo Russell, Caris LeVert, and Spencer Dinwiddie. He can hit threes better than pretty much else on the Miami roster and is capable of carrying a larger scoring load with 10 games of 24 or more points this season. (Richardson was taken in the 2015 immediately after Juan Pablo Vaulet.)

For more on the Heat, check out: Hot Hot Hoops