Tonight, the Washington Wizards will square off against the Miami Heat at the Sprint Center in Kansas City. Here's everything you need to know about the game.
Why is this game being played in Kansas City? Long story short: Kansas City has an NBA-calibur arena in the Sprint Center, but they don't have an NBA team, so the next best thing for them is to try and invite teams to play preseason games in their arena. Obviously, the folks at the Sprint Center wanted to make sure the event sold out, so they put together a deal with the Heat, and I'm guessing they got the Wizards because Bradley Beal grew up in St. Louis.
Will the game be on TV tonight? Yes! You can catch it at 8:30 PM EST on Comcast SportsNet.
Who is out? John Wall, Nene and Kevin Seraphin are all still out for the Wizards. Bradley Beal practiced this morning after sitting out yesterday's practice and is a game-time decision for tonight's game. I'll be the optimist and say that Beal probably plays tonight. Obviously, they're going to be cautious with Beal, but if they were really worried about furthering his injury, I doubt he would have practiced this morning.
For the Heat, Dwyane Wade sat out last night's game, but is expected to be back in action tonight. Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem, Joel Anthony and Jarvis Varnado are all out for tonight's game.
How is former Wizard Rashard Lewis doing in Miami? About the way you'd expect someone to play when they realize they've gone from Washington to Miami. Though his primary role will be as a catch-and-shoot guy, he also flashed a bit of his all-around game against the Spurs, as he scored 15 points, had four steals and three assists in their win.
Have any Eastern Conference teams said anything about the Heat that should be cause for concern? During the Miami's 105-78 beatdown of Detroit last week, an assistant for the Pistons had this to say:
If they're going to go 82-0 this season, then why the hell are the rest of us even here? We're all wasting our time.
Because they could still lose in the playoffs, assistant coach! Remember the Patriots?
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