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Marion, O'Neal meet when Heat face Raptors

Mar 6, 2009 - 11:13 AM Miami (32-28) at Toronto (23-39) 7:00 p.m. EST

TORONTO (Ticker) -- Shawn Marion and Jermaine O'Neal will be facing their former teams when the Toronto Raptors face the Miami Heat on Friday.

Marion and O'Neal were the main pieces in a pre-deadline deal that sent Marion to Toronto in an effort to increase the athleticism across the front line.

While Marion certainly is a more athletic player than O'Neal, the deal has yet to pay dividends in the win column. The Raptors have dropped three straight despite getting solid production out of Marion, including 18 points in a 107-97 loss at Houston on Tuesday.

The Heat haven't exactly taken off since O'Neal joined the lineup, either. Miami has not won back-to-back games since January.

O'Neal managed just six points on Wednesday in a 135-129 win over the Phoenix Suns. Dwyane Wade picked up the slack with 35 points and Michael Beasley added 28 off the bench.