Portland Trail Blazers vs Miami Heat Prediction & Match Preview - January 19th, 2022 | NBA Season 2021-22

The first meeting between the Portland Trail Blazers and Miami Heat was marred by a fracas between Jusuf Nurkic and Tyler Herro. [Photo: NBA.com]

The resilient Portland Trail Blazers will continue their brutal six-game road trip with a matchup against the Miami Heat on Wednesday at FTX Arena. Portland lost to Miami in their first meeting of the season, and will look to split their season series. This is also the first time Tyler Herro and Jusuf Nurkic will meet following their dust-up in their first encounter.

CJ McCollum just returned from a long stint in the injury list, and promptly helped the Blazers survive against the Orlando Magic. In limited minutes, he finished with 16 points. The win was mainly behind the efforts of Jusuf Nurkic, who had a spectacular 21-point and 22-rebound effort.

The Miami Heat also welcomed a key piece of their puzzle, with the return of All-Star center Bam Adebayo. In his first game from a thumb injury, the defensive wizard scored 14 points to go with nine rebounds, two assists and a steal. He provided the defensive presence the Heat have been accustomed to over the years.

That one felt good. 😁 https://t.co/QZ39nbv29Y

Jimmy Butler was again at the forefront of the Miami Heat attack. He ended with a triple double, tallying 19 points, ten rebounds and ten assists. The assists were noteworthy, as the bruising forward did much of the playmaking without Kyle Lowry, who was out for personal reasons.

Match Details

Fixture: Portland Trail Blazers vs Miami Heat | 2021-22 NBA season.

Date & Time: Wednesday, January 19th; 7:30 PM ET (Thursday, January 20th; 5:00 AM IST).

Venue: FTX Arena, Miami, FL.

Portland Trail Blazers Preview

Two unlikely heroes have come up big recently for the Rip City team. [Photo: Oregon Live]

Everyone was practically counting out the Portland Trail Blazers when Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum went down with injury.

Not only have they survived, but they have also played better, particularly with the emergence of Anfernee Simons and Jusuf Nurkic's revival. With McCollum back in the lineup, the Blazers should be more formidable than they have been in the last few weeks.

Pulling the strings of late has been Simons, who seemingly came out of nowhere to drag the Blazers to respectability. He has developed a budding partnership with their bruising center, which has ignited the big man this season.

With the team healthier, the Heat wear a gritty look, and could give it their all on Wednesday.

Key Player - Jusuf Nurkic

Jusuf Nurkic's season averages are 13.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists, as a third option in the Portland Trail Blazers' offense. In his last ten games, he has upped his average significantly to 15.7 points, 12.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists. The improvement has been very noticeable, as Lillard and McCollum were sidelined.

Jusuf Nurkic puts up huge numbers to lead the @trailblazers to the win!

Jusuf Nurkic: 21 PTS, 22 REB, 4 STL, 2 BLK
CJ McCollum: 16 PTS
Nassir Little: 13 PTS, 10 REB, 4 AST https://t.co/bV2BeLmTmo

Anfernee Simons has also been spectacular, but it is Nurkic's reliability and consistency that have made him a little better than his young shooting guard. The 27-year-old center has shown his leadership qualities without two of the best players in the Trail Blazers' lineup.

McCollum is still feeling the effects of his long layoff, and is a little out of rhythm. Expect the 'Bosnian Bear' to carry the Portland Trail Blazers in the meantime.

Portland Trail Blazers Predicted Lineup

G - CJ McCollum | G - Anfernee Simons | F - Nassir Little | F - Robert Covington | C - Jusuf Nurkic.

Miami Heat Preview

The Miami Heat are still waiting for the reunion of their Big 3. [Photo: NBA.com India]

The Miami Heat continue to miss their Big 3 of Bam Adebayo, Kyle Lowry and Jimmy Butler for various reasons. Adebayo came back from a long layoff, but Lowry had to miss the game for personal reasons against the Toronto Raptors. Lowry is slated to miss another game for the same reason, so the reunion will have to wait for a while.

Despite long stretches without their top three players, the Heat are fourth in offensive rating and eighth in defensive rating. Miami's young players like Omer Yurtseven, Max Strus, Caleb Martin and Gabe Vincent have provided more than enough help to help the team excel. It's scary to think what head coach Erik Spoelstra can do with a healthy lineup.

Key Player - Jimmy Butler

Jimmy Butler came up big without Kyle Lowry in the Heat's win over Lowry's former team, the Toronto Raptors. The five-time All-Star scattered 19 points to go along with ten rebounds and ten assists in a thoroughly impressive performance.

The bruising forward had a game-high +13 net rating, helping the Heat outscore the Raptors by 13 points in his 36 minutes of game time. Butler, who hasn't played with the returning Adebayo since late November last year, impressed in the win.

Jimmy Butler tonight:

19 PTS
10 REB
10 AST

The Heat are 2nd in the East and are 0 games back from 1st place. https://t.co/4DIZLFC11K

Butler's aggressiveness against the long, athletic Raptors rubbed off on his teammates. He was the biggest reason they won the game as the Heat welcomed Adebayo back into the roster.

Miami Heat Predicted Lineup

G - Gabe Vincent | G - Duncan Robinson | F - Jimmy Butler | F - PJ Tucker | C - Bam Adebayo.

Blazers vs Heat Match Prediction

Perhaps more than any team in the NBA this season, the Miami Heat have thrived in adversity. Despite Lowry sitting this game out, they should have enough to snap the Portland Trail Blazers' two-game winning streak.

Where to watch the Blazers vs Heat game?

The NBA League Pass will stream the game live. Local coverage of the matchup will be available via Bally Sports Sun and ROOT Sports.