Whiteside leads Portland against Miami after 23-21 double-double
Portland Trail Blazers (15-21, ninth in the Western Conference) vs. Miami Heat (25-10, third in the Eastern Conference)
Miami; Sunday, 6 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Portland takes on the Miami Heat after Hassan Whiteside’s 23-point, 21-rebound showing in the Trail Blazers’ 122-103 win over the Wizards.
The Heat are 16-1 in home games. Miami is third in the Eastern Conference with 36.6 defensive rebounds per game led by Bam Adebayo averaging 8.1.
The Trail Blazers are 7-12 on the road. Portland averages 46.1 rebounds per game and is 21-3 when grabbing more rebounds than opponents.
The teams meet Sunday for the first time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Duncan Robinson leads the Heat averaging 3.2 made 3-pointers and scoring 11.9 points per game while shooting 45.6 percent from beyond the arc. Adebayo is shooting 57.0 percent and averaging 16.5 points over the last 10 games for Miami.
Damian Lillard is averaging 26.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 7.4 assists for the Trail Blazers. CJ McCollum has averaged 4.1 assists and scored 24.6 points over the last 10 games for Portland.
LAST 10 GAMES: Heat: 7-3, averaging 108.1 points, 47.9 rebounds, 23.7 assists, 6.4 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 44.6 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 109 points on 44.2 percent shooting.
Trail Blazers: 5-5, averaging 112.4 points, 45.7 rebounds, 18.1 assists, 5.7 steals and 7.2 blocks per game while shooting 45.9 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 112.4 points on 45.3 percent shooting.
INJURIES: Heat: Justise Winslow: out (back).
Trail Blazers: Jusuf Nurkic: out (leg fracture), Skal Labissiere: out (knee), Zach Collins: out (shoulder), Rodney Hood: out for season (leg).