For the third time this season, two of the top teams in the East will lock up in what could be a preview of this June's Eastern Conference Finals as Carmelo Anthony and the Atlantic Division-leading New York Knicks (35-20) host LeBron James and the red-hot world champion Miami Heat (41-14) Sunday at Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y.
Miami has been on a tear, having rolled to 14 straight wins. However, the Knicks humbled the champs in their last two meetings, blowing out the Heat 104-84 in their season opener at the Garden Nov. 2 behind Carmelo Anthony's 30 points and 112-92 on Dec. 6 when the Heat hosted the Knicks in Miami thanks to Raymond Felton's 27 points.
The Knicks have won seven of their last nine games at home and are riding a three-game winning streak, but have shown flashes of weakness with sloppy wins and coming off a four-game losing streak. With Mike Woodson shaking up the starting lineup by having Jason Kidd sit on Friday, it's still uncertain as to how much the game will be impacted.
The Knicks are 6.5 games behind the Heat for first place in the Eastern Conference, and are positioned for a possible matchup in late May with the Heat, who eliminated them in five games last year. Will the Knicks make it three in a row against their Eastern rival? Or will James and company finally beat the Knicks this season?
Latinos Post breaks down the key matchups for Sunday's showdown:
Match-ups
Center: Tyson Chandler, Knicks vs. Chris Bosh, Heat
Both of these men have been having a fine season that earned them NBA All-Star berths at the center position. Both of them deserved it.
Against the Heat, Chandler is averaging 11.5 points with 8.5 rebounds in the last two contests. His offensive production has been spotty in the last five games, a very up-and-down 10.8 points, but his rebounds are still at a solid pace, 13.6 boards. Bosh hasn't been as spectacular against New York, only 12.0 points and 8.5 rebounds to his name. The key will be the battle for the boards between these two; Miami has not been a very good rebounding team all season, something that Chandler can help the Knicks exploit.
Advantage: Even
Power forward: Carmelo Anthony, Knicks vs. Udonis Haslem, Heat
Anthony played only one game, the season opener, against the Heat, but he sure left an impression, torching the team that bounced him and the Knicks in the playoffs for 30 points and 10 rebounds, setting the tone for the Knicks' impressive season this year. In the last five games, Melo has been his usual dynamic self, scoring 28.2 points and coming off a 30-point Friday night against the Wizards. Haslem is a defensive presence; this is the kind of player they need him to stop. But when Anthony gets in a zone, he's one of the hardest players in the league to stop. Anthony will need more scoring help, however, if he wants to make it three in a row against the Heat.
Advantage: Knicks
Small forward: Iman Shumpert, Knicks vs. LeBron James
Shumpert is known for being a defensive specialist. However, his biggest test will come at the Garden-courtesy of arguably the most dangerous man in the NBA today. James is still the King, but he has been a spotty last week, averaging 25.6 points in his last five games, and coming off a dreadful 4-for-14 night against Memphis's smothering defense Friday night. In spite of James averaging 27.0 points in his last two games against New York, the Heat were still blown out by sizeable margins in both. Expect James to come out breathing fire, which will mean Shumpert will need some help, probably from Anthony.
Advantage: Heat
Shooting guard: James White, Knicks vs. Dwayne Wade, Heat
Kidd was benched Friday night in favor of White due to Kidd's recent struggles lately. While the conventional wisdom would suggest that Kidd should start against Wade, who has been scoring 27.0 points in the last five games but a mere 14 points in two games against the Knicks, Knicks coach Mike Woodson has not exactly been prone to following conventional wisdom as of late. Wade is the key; James will have his points, but for the Heat to win, Wade must be at his hot-shooting, driving, explosive best. But if the Knicks can contain him, the Heat might be set up for a third straight loss against the team challenging them for Eastern Conference dominance. That, however, will be difficult with the 30-year-old White, who has not been impressive this season.
Advantage: Heat
Point Guard: Raymond Felton, Knicks vs. Mario Chalmers, Heat
Felton has struggled since coming back, injuries robbing him of the tools that made him so deadly against the Heat, who he has burned for 20.5 points in their last two games. However, in his last three games, he has been stepping it up, Felton coming off a 23-point night against the Wizards on Friday night and a 50 percent shooting night. The Knicks will need more of that from Felton this Sunday. Chalmers doesn't score a lot, but he has been on fire from the three-point line since Feb. 21, hitting 50.0 percent from downtown. Felton will have to make sure that Chalmers doesn't get any good looks from beyond the arc.
Advantage: Knicks
Bench
One NBA scout recently said that the Knicks bench "doesn't scare anyone." But the fact is, the Knicks reserve corps has far more weapons than the Heat do. Even with limited minutes, Amar'e Stoudemire can drop 20 points at any given time, and J.R. Smith, playing like an NBA Sixth Man of the Year candidate, has put up 15.4 points in his last five games; if he catches fire, that changes the game. Steven Novak might be struggling with the three-ball lately, but he's still one of the most lethal three-ball shooters in the league and the savvy veteran Kidd, if he comes off the bench, adds a big weapon to surprise Miami with on the substitutions.
Miami has Ray Allen, who can still change the game with a well-timed three-ball, and Shane Battier adds defensive presence with a shooting touch. But don't expect much scoring production from Norris Cole, Rashard Lewis or Chris Andersen. They're role players with their own specific purpose. Either way, when it comes to offensive production from the second unit, if the Knicks can exploit this, Miami might not have the weapons to respond.
Advantage: Knicks
TV Schedule
Game time begins at 1 p.m. EST on ABC.