Mar 14, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat forward Justise Winslow (20) drives to the basket against Denver Nuggets forward Will Barton (5) during the second half at American Airlines Arena. The Heat won 124-119. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Denver gets its first look at the post-Wade era Miami Heat on Wednesday as the Heat travel to the Mile High to take on our Denver Nuggets.
What a difference a year can make. The last time Miami were playing at the Pepsi Center, they employed a line up that consisted of guys like Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Luol Deng and Amar’e Stoudamire.
Fast forward to today, Dwyane Wade is in a Bulls uniform, Luol Deng is in LA, Bosh may never play again due to a serious medical issue and, Amar’e Stoudamire is applying his trade in Israel.
In fact, just five of the thirteen players that were active with the Heat last time they were in the Mile-High are still with the team this time around: Hassan Whiteside, Tyler Johnson, Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson and Udonis Haslem.
Of those five players, only Whiteside was in the starting line up.
Want your voice heard? Join the Nugg Love team!
With so much turnover, the Miami Heat are understandably struggling in the early part of the 2016-17 season as they look to find cohesion and comfortability with each other.
For Denver, this is a game they must win if they want to make the playoffs, even with all the injuries the Nuggets currently have.
A struggling Eastern conference team that comes to town needs to be put away.
Lets take a look at how the Nuggets can get the job done.
Nov 21, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside (21) at the foul line against the Philadelphia 76ers during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Philadelphia 76ers won 101-94. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Force Whiteside to switch on the pick-and-roll
The Miami Heat are currently 4th in the NBA in shots blocked per game at 6.1 per contest. The large majority of those blocks come curtesy of center Hassan Whiteside, who averages 2.5 per game, good for 4th in the league individually.
More from Nugg Love
Whiteside has spectaular, Sportscenter-type blocks on a regular basis. However, the statistics and highlight reel rejections don’t tell the full story. The presence of Whiteside alone is enough to impact heavily on games.
Some players aren’t willing to drive the basketball knowing Whiteside is lurking down low. Some offenses begin to settle for long range shots instead of taking their chances against Whiteside in the paint. When players do drive, even the shots Whiteside doesn’t block, he still manages to effect.
A key to victory for Denver will be to run a plethora of pick-and-rolls up top and force the switch so that Whiteside ends up on the likes of Mudiay, Jameer or Chandler.
That way, the smaller Nuggets guy can take Whiteside off the dribble and negate his abilities around the basket.
Forcing the switch is easier said than done, and if Denver can successfully force the switch, it will greatly help their offensive efficiency.
Nov 28, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Goran Dragic (7) is pressured by Boston Celtics forward Jae Crowder (99) during the first half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Stop Dragic from penetrating the lane
Heat guard Goran Dragic is one of the better guards in the league at getting to the rim. He uses the pick-and-roll effectively and has an array of savvy veteran moves that allow him to get into the paint.
While he is a solid threat from distance, Dragic makes a living by getting to the cup and drawing fouls.
Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Once in the lane, Dragic is a capable passer who can dump the ball off to Whiteside or pass outside to an open shooter.
The Nuggets will need to stop this penetration in order to get a W on Wednesday.
In order to do this, Denver should put a bigger player on Dragic up top and make it harder for him to use screens or get by his opponent one-on-one.
Mudiay is a big, tough guard who could do the job on Dragic. However Wilson Chandler and even the newest Nugget Alonzo Gee would be great options to guard Dragic on the perimeter.
Nov 23, 2016; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) grabs a high pass in the second quarter against the Utah Jazz at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Swinger-USA TODAY Sports
Run them out of the building early
The Nuggets have had their fair share of close games already this season. Including multiple overtime games at home against the Blazers and Thunder.
While they make for exciting and engaging contests, they are doing no favors for the blood pressure of Nuggets fans, and an old school beatdown is exacty what the doctor ordered.
Denver need to get off to a good start and put Miami away early. With the assistance of the ever present altitude, the Nuggets have an advantage they must make use of.
The Mile-High crew have been scoring incredibly well the last few weeks, having put up 120, 129 and 110 in recent games.
A lot of the scoring punch though, has come when the likes of Chandler Murray and Jameer have entered the game.
Denverr have struggled coming out of the gate early this season while the bench have been nothing short of spectacular.
If the starters can get off to a fast start, the bench should seemingly be able to come in and put the nail in the coffin.
This article originally appeared on 
