Miami Gone Streaking - Heat with Historic Run

This 17 game Miami winning streak is starting to get interesting. For historical reference, the Heat are currently tied for the ninth best single season winning streak for the regular season only. One more win puts them at sixth and another after that at fourth. While I’m not predicting the Heat to break the 72 Lakers’ record of 33 games, the streak is clearly impressive.

Just how well has Miami been playing? Since the streak began over a month ago, per NBA.com, Miami has outscored opponents by 13.5 points per 100 possessions. For the year they’ve outscored opponents by 9.1 points per 100 possessions, so they truly have improved their performance as of late.

The Miami rotation is largely the same as it has been all season with the exception of Chris Andersen who, though helpful, is not the key to one of the greatest winning streaks in NBA history. Miami has improved a bit on both ends of the floor over the streak – by 3.4 points per 100 possessions offensively and 1 point per 100 possessions defensively.

No one attribute is responsible for this improved performance. The Heat have been a bit better at rebounding, shooting, and not turning the ball over for this stretch, but that could easily be the result of the combined 47% winning percentage of the teams Miami has beaten over this span.

So how much longer can it last? For our breakdown of the odds on Miami and other games, check out our Premium Section. Personally, I’m not counting on them beating the 2008 Rockets’ 22 wins. It should be noted that their next game is against the Pacers team who handed the Heat their last defeat early in February. However, this time the game is in Miami, and the Pacers have one of the worst drop-offs in performance on the road compared to at home as any team in the league.