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Embattled Heat welcome Lakers to South Beach

Mar 10, 2011 - 3:41 PM (Sports Network) - It's time to make a stand if you're a member of the embattled Miami Heat.

The star-studded Heat dropped their fifth straight game on Tuesday to Portland and fell to 0-2 on a six-game homestand as rumors continued to swirl regarding Erik Spoelstra's job security. LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 26 points on 11-of-20 from the field in that one as the Trail Blazers handled the Heat, 105-96.

Dwyane Wade paced Miami with a game-high 38 points, six rebounds and five assists. LeBron James added 31 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists while Mario Chalmers added 10 points in the loss.

"It certainly is not easy right now," Spoelstra said regarding the team's recent struggles. "Frankly we don't have a lot of answers to how to get over this hump. The only thing we can do is to keep grinding and not let go of the rope."

Miami's struggles in close games and against the top teams in the NBA have been well-documented. The Heat opened their six-game homestand by losing a heartbreaker to Chicago on Sunday and are now a dismal 1-9 against the league's top five clubs, including two losses to the Bulls as well as defeats to San Antonio and Boston over the last three weeks. The lone win against the NBA's elite came against the Lakers on Christmas Day.

The numbers in close games are even more disturbing. Miami has lost 11 bouts this season in which they had a chance to take the lead or even the score in the final 12 seconds of regulation or overtime. The team is shooting a miserable, almost unheard of 1-for-19 in crunch time with the one make being a James dunk and the Heat still lost that game.

The two-time reigning MVP is 1-for-8 in tight, end-of-game situations while Wade, traditionally one of the NBA's best closers, is 0-for-3 and the rest of the club is a combined 0-for-7.

The problems lie in the team's top-heavy roster. "The Heatles" of James, Wade and Chris Bosh average nearly 70 points per game, 68 percent of the team's offense. In stark contrast none of the NBA's other championship contenders rely on their top three scorers like that. The Spurs, who possess the NBA's best record are the least reliant on their top three, which produces just 46 percent of their offense.

The two-time defending champion Lakers, meanwhile, have hit the gas pedal since the All-Star break, winning their eighth straight in Atlanta on Tuesday when Kobe Bryant ended with 26 points while Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol dominated inside, as Los Angeles rolled past the Hawks, 101-87.

Bryant also passed Moses Malone for sixth place on the NBA's all-time scoring list with his 13th point of the game. Bryant now has 27,423 points with his former teammate, Shaquille O'Neal, in site at No. 5 with 28,590 points and counting.

Bynum had 16 points and 16 rebounds against the Hawks and Gasol chipped in 14 and 11 for LA, which was coming off a convincing 99-83 triumph at San Antonio on Sunday and is 2-0 on a tough four-game road trip that will finish in Dallas after tonight's game. Lamar Odom and Derek Fisher tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively, in the win.

"There was a message that was communicated from top to bottom to come here and play well," Bryant said. "We stuck with the game plan and got a big win."

The Lakers have lost five of their last six trips to Miami.