Battier to start for Haslem, Beasley active for Tuesday's Game 1
The Miami Heat will open their second round series against the Brooklyn Nets with a starting lineup they haven't used in months on Tuesday.
Center Udonis Haslem will head to the bench, allowing Shane Battier to get the starting nod at power forward. This seems a prudent move given the long-ball lineup the Nets will be starting, and it allows the Heat to lineup their defense optimally.
| Heat Starter | Size | Nets Starter | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mario Chalmers | 6-foot-1, 190 | Deron Williams | 6-foot-3, 210 |
| Dwyane Wade | 6-foot-4, 212 | Shaun Livingston | 6-foot-7, 182 |
| LeBron James | 6-foot-8, 240 | Joe Johnson | 6-foot-8, 225 |
| Shane Battier | 6-foot-8, 220 | Paul Pierce | 6-foot-6, 230 |
| Chris Bosh | 6-foot-10, 228 | Kevin Garnett | 6-foot-11, 220 |
The move not only lets LeBron James guard Joe Johnson without cross-matching, it also prevents Chris Bosh from having to body up Paul Pierce.
There's also a possibility that the Miami Heat will deploy Michael Beasley for the first time this post-season.
Michael Beasley to be active tonight.
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) May 6, 2014
Beasley didn't appear once in the Heat's first-round series against the Charlotte Bobcats. Even when Erik Spoelstra's rotation was extended to 12 players, Beasley was nowhere to be found.
The second overall pick was used sparingly throughout the regular season, and it's now been almost three weeks since he last took the court.
Shortly after eating some cookies pregame, Michael Beasley found out he was active. "Oh, (expletive). I gotta go get taped!"
— Tom Haberstroh (@tomhaberstroh) May 6, 2014