By “Nunnie” Robinson, Westside, Gazette Sports Editor
The Miami Heat presently hold seventh place in the Eastern Conference with a 37- 31 record after losing a hard fought game against the Philadelphia 76ers in Philly Tuesday night. They are ahead of the Hawks, Bulls, and Pacers, but trail the Orlando Magic who boast a 40-28 with 14 games remaining in the season by a game and half and the 76ers by a half game. If the season ended today, the Heat would be compelled to compete in the play – in tournament against Atlanta, Chicago or Pacers. This is the intrigue surrounding the NBA and the rest of the season. Injuries to key players have tested the Heat’s fortitude and grit but has also afforded opportunities for others to thrive and demonstrate their basketball talents and gifts. Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, Kevin Love, Nikola Jovic and Josh Richardson are current players sidelined due to injury. Players taking up the slack, thus contributing to the Heat’s effort include Thomas Bryant, an athletic center-power forward, Delon Wright, and Haywood Highsmith. The Heat culture is real so rest assured that the self-discipline, supreme work effort, dedication, attention to detail and commitment to excellence and winning will never change. As everyone knows, the key to solving this conundrum is winning.
The Florida Panthers presently stand in second place in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the NHL with a 45-19-4 record, equating to 94 total points based on the scoring system. Even though they have won more games than the first place Boston (40), the Bruins lead because they have an 95 aggregate point advantage. I’ll delve into the NHL point system next week. A recent trend for Panthers is allowing opponents to grab early leads which are often difficult to comeback from.
The Panthers announced today they will host ‘White Out’ Night on Thursday, March 21 at Amerant Bank Arena. For the first time since 2003, the Panthers will don their white away jerseys when they host the Nashville Predators, who will wear their home gold jerseys at 7:30 PM at Amerant Bank Arena.
The Panthers are asking all fans in attendance to Wear White. Fans should break out their jerseys, jackets, sweaters, t-shirts and hats.
On Wednesday at 3:05 a.m. PST, the Dodgers and Padres renew an NL West rivalry that has gained some steam in recent years. The game will be the first regular season contest of the 2024 season and the two teams play the following day in Seoul, South Korea.
The true Opening Day, when all 30 MLB teams take the field, is Thursday, March 28. The first game of the day will take place at Citi Field in New York City, where the Mets host the Milwaukee Brewers at 10:10 a.m. PST.
