Nearly midway through a daunting road stretch, the banged-up Miami Heat face a significant task in trying to close a six-game trip at .500 before a brief swing home.
That challenge comes Sunday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who own the NBA's third-best home record and have recently gotten back to pairing solid defense with explosive offense on their floor.
The Heat (23-17) continue battling Atlanta atop the Southeast Division while playing 11 of 12 on the road. Although Miami has lost three of those first five, it has kept pace because the Hawks are slumping.