--Miami has back-to-back games at San Antonio (Friday) and New Orleans (Saturday). Those followed Wednesday's game against Philadelphia, making for a tough three-games-in-four-nights stretch. G Dwyane Wade said you can't think of it as a group of games.
"You don't do that because if you do that you can get discouraged real fast," he said. "You've got to take it one game at a time." --The Heat didn't have F Michael Beasley defend Philadelphia's Elton Brand on Wednesday. Instead, Miami had C Udonis Haslem defending Brand.
"That's what I feel most comfortable with right now," coach Erik Spoelstra said.
Beasley, who has had defensive issues, didn't disagree.
"I understand," Beasley said. "He's been in this game. He's guarded the best players; he's shut down the best players. So I understand 100 percent."
There's no word on whether Beasley or Haslem would defend San Antonio's Tim Duncan and New Orleans' David West this weekend.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Those things are just horrible. I feel like I'm a caged animal in that thing." -- F Shawn Marion on the protective facemask he has to wear for his broken nose.
