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#4 Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets traded away Clint Capela and acquired 3-and-D wing Robert Convington, to fortify their small-ball lineup. Furthermore, they added Jeff Green and DeMarre Carroll to the rotation and have never looked back since.
Coach Mike D'Antoni is pulling all stops to alleviate player matchup problems on defense and improve their playoff seeding by choosing to play without a bonafide center on the roster. Not only does it sound like a risky proposition heading into the playoffs, but the consequences of fielding a 6-foot-5 PJ Tucker at the center spot are also indeed stifling.
Although they have some of the easiest games at hand during this final stretch, Houston's bold experiment will be examined closely at each step.
#5 Miami Heat
The Miami Heat lost six of their last ten games and as a result, slipped to the fourth spot on the East standings. Their current 36-20 (0.643) record deserves to be better, considering the revolutionary year they've had so far.
The inclusion of Andre Iguodala has seen him coming off the bench to average 4.6 points, 4.8 boards and 1.6 assists per game so far. Miami would be looking to elevate those numbers if they plan on using Iggy's postseason expertise on both ends of the floor. Moreover, Jimmy Butler (personal) and Tyler Herro (right ankle) have both missed games lately.
It would be interesting to see if this dynamic squad steps up to finish as a top 3 seed in the East and solidify Erik Spoelstra's case even more for the 'Coach of the Year' honors.
