By Warren Blatt, NBA Editor
Miami Heat: 1st Seed, East (59-23)
Washington Wizards: 5th Seed, East (45-37)
(Basketball News) - The top-seeded Miami Heat will participate in the Eastern Conference semifinals for just the fourth time in franchise history, as they square off with No. 5 Washington in the best-of-seven series.
Miami and Washington are meeting in the postseason for the first-time ever. The Heat finished 14 games ahead of second-place Washington in the Southeast Division in the 2004-05 campaign.
The Heat reached the conference semis in 1997, 2000 and 2004. They made it through the round just once, as they defeated the New York Knicks in seven games in 1997, but were ousted in five games by the Chicago Bulls in their only conference finals appearance in franchise history.
Miami swept the New Jersey Nets, 4-0, in the first round of the playoffs, as it won the games by a total margin of 51 points. The Heat earned their first sweep in franchise history in a best-of-seven set.
All-Stars Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade led the way for the Heat in the opening round. Wade averaged team-highs in points (26.8 ppg) and assists (8.8 apg) against New Jersey, while Shaq, who was bothered by a bruised thigh in round one, contributed 18.3 points and 8.8 boards per game. O’Neal and Wade showed why they are arguably the best one-two combination in the league against the Nets, as one of the two players always stepped up when the Heat need a basket in a crucial part of the game.
Guards Damon Jones and Eddie Jones also provided some stellar play versus the Nets. Both players drained timely threes throughout the series. Damon Jones averaged 16.5 points, while Eddie Jones netted 16.3 per game.
Power forward Udonis Haslem played very well down low for the Heat in the opening series. He led the club in boards (11.8 rpg) and scored some clutch baskets on his way to averaging 8.8 points. Haslem gave Miami solid play on the blocks and will need to do the same in the second round.
Miami, which owns the home-court advantage in this series, was an impressive 35-6 at home during the regular season. The Heat were a respectable 24-17 on the road.
Washington defeated Chicago in six games in the conference quarterfinals, and earned its first playoff series victory since 1982 when it eliminated New Jersey, 2-0, in the first round. The Bullets, who became the Wizards for the 1997-98 campaign, fell in five games to the Boston Celtics in the semis that season. The Wizards started as the Chicago Packers in 1961 before moving to Baltimore and eventually ending up in the nation’s capital in 1974.
All-Stars Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison and guard Larry Hughes carried the Wizards past the Bulls. Arenas, who hit a game-winning jumper as time expired in Game 5 to give the Wizards a 3-2 lead in the set, led the club in scoring (23.0 ppg) and assists (6.0 apg), while Jamison, who netted 18.2 per game in the first series, grabbed a team-best 7.3 rebounds per contest. Hughes registered 22.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game against Chicago.
Reserve guard Juan Dixon provided Washington with solid play off the bench against the Bulls, as he averaged 12.2 points per game, while center Brendan Haywood posted 9.3 points and seven rebounds in the set.
Washington won all three games against Chicago at the MCI Center and was 1-2 on the road in the opening round.
The Wizards were 29-12 as the host during the regular season, and were just 16-23 on the road.
During the regular season, Miami won all four meetings between the teams as it won twice at both AmericanAirlines Arena and the MCI Center. The Heat have won eight straight games over Washington. The last time the Wizards defeated Miami was on April 11, 2003.
FRONTCOURT: The Wizards will have the same problem that the rest of the league has had. They will not be able to stop Shaq. The Heat’s dominant center will have no problem positioning himself down low and scoring plenty of easy baskets. Miami will exploit the mismatch in the middle and it will be very difficult for Washington to overcome.
Haslem and Eddie Jones, who also plays shooting guard, will lineup next to the Heat’s superstar center, and once again will benefit from the attention Shaq gets. They will get a lot of open looks at the basket and should be able to use the space that O’Neal creates to drive to the hole and draw fouls on the Washington defenders. Haslem will accumulate a bunch of garbage points and will hit the occasional 15-foot jumper, while Eddie Jones will score from the outsider and won’t be afraid to drive to the hoop if given the room.
The Wizards counter with center Haywood, Jamison and Jared Jeffries. Haywood and Jeffries are not big scorers and will need to bring their game to the next level if Washington hopes to hang with the Heat. Haywood is a solid rebounder, while Jeffries is athletic and can be effective in transition.
Jamison, who battled a nagging knee injury at the end of the regular season, will score and rebound, but it won’t be enough. He is the one Washington frontcourt player that the Heat will have to concentrate on stopping.
Shaq gives Miami the big advantage here. He is the most dominant player in the league and should be thrilled with this matchup.
EDGE: MIAMI
BACKCOURT: Arenas and Hughes vs. Wade and Damon Jones is a decent matchup. All four players can score in bunches and will provide the fans with plenty of entertaining play.
The 23-year-old Wade and Arenas are two of the top point guards in the league. Both players are offensive machines, but the difference is that Wade has Shaq as a teammate and that opens up the court for the speedy guard. Arenas has to work harder for his points, while Wade makes it look easy.
Damon Jones is one of the best three-point shooters in the league. He was 17- of-34 from beyond the arc against the Nets. Like Eddie Jones and Haslem, Damon Jones gets a lot of open looks and is capable of scoring at a fast pace in a short amount of time.
Hughes is athletic and like Arenas excels in transition. He will need keep scoring consistently in the second round if the Wizards hope to keep up with the Heat.
Even though Shaq is not a guard, he is the difference once again. His presence makes life on the court much easier for Wade and Damon Jones. Yes, Arenas and Hughes are extremely talented, but they don’t have a teammate like O’Neal in the middle to get the ball to, and they will have to work very hard to earn what they get on the court. Wade is a superstar and he will once again shine in this series, just as he did against New Jersey.
Life on the basketball court is easier for the Miami guards.
EDGE: MIAMI
BENCH: Miami has decent bench. Thirty-five-year-old reserve center Alonzo Mourning, forward Christian Laettner and guard Keyon Dooling will get the majority of the minutes that the Miami starters don’t play.
Mourning averaged 9.5 points and 4.8 rebounds in just over 15 minutes of action in the four games against New Jersey. He played well in the middle and injected life into the Heat’s play on both ends of the court. Dooling averaged nine points in the first round, while Laettner logged just over 12 minutes per game versus the Nets. Center Michael Doleac and forwards Shandon Anderson and Rasual Butler could come off the pine and see some minutes in time of need
Washington’s bench is not as deep as Miami’s. Etan Thomas will try and help Haywood defend Shaq, while Dixon can score from the outside and is able to play alongside Arenas or Hughes.
Washington president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld announced during the first round that center/forward Kwame Brown will not play for the team for the rest of the postseason. The decision for Brown not to participate in the remainder of the playoffs came after a meeting between him, head coach Eddie Jordan and Grunfeld. Without Brown, 6-8 center/forward Michael Ruffin will be asked to play some important minutes.
EDGE: MIAMI
COACH: Stan Van Gundy, the brother of Houston coach Jeff Van Gundy, had his load lightened considerably when Pat Riley acquired Shaq from the Lakers last offseason. He guided the Heat to the second round of the 2004 playoffs, as they lost in six games to the Indiana Pacers. Stan Van Gundy is 10-7 all-time in the postseason as Miami’s general.
Washington’s Jordan, who was known for his success as an assistant coach in New Jersey and Sacramento, has proven his ability as a head coach. The head man’s Princeton-like movement offense scored 100.5 points per contest (6th) during the regular season. Jordan has been able to get the most out of his club this season, and has made the franchise proud with its first-round victory over Chicago.
EDGE: EVEN
PREDICTION: This is a great matchup for the Heat, as Washington may just be happy getting to this round. Shaq and Wade will post big numbers and will put on a basketball clinic. Miami will have no problem advancing to its second Eastern Conference finals in franchise history.
MIAMI IN FOUR
Miami Heat 
Washington Wizards 
