The Miami Heat look for three wins in a row as they prepare to face the high-powered Los Angeles Clippers Sunday night inside the Kaseya Center. They are coming off of a seven-game losing streak, but seemed to have turned a corner since then, but the opponent led by stars Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and James Harden could provide trouble to an ascending Miami squad.

Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra spoke before the game to the media about the matchup against the Clippers and what he expects from them. He said to ClutchPoints that Clippers head coach Ty Lue has done a “really good job” with Los Angeles as they started tremendously slow but have won 24 of their last 29 games, calling them “the hottest team in the league.”

“Ty [Lue] has done a really good job maximizing the group, getting them to play to an identity, getting everybody to embrace their roles,” Spoelstra said. “And you have to credit them also, there's a lot of noise when you lose and they lost five games in the beginning. After the trade the noise gets loud, but they used it as something that galvanized them and got them focused on the task and they've been the hottest team in the league.”

Lue talks about Spoelstra being feisty and what Terry Rozier adds to Heat

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra in front of the Kaseya Center.

Besides the two teams facing off earlier in the year where the Heat lost in Los Angeles, both head coaches are very familiar with one another as they are both on the staff for Team USA. Before the game, Lue said to the media that Spoelstra was “very feisty” over the summer.

“Very feisty, we're all competitive, but competitive at a higher level, he's intense from the jump ball,” Lue said. “He's fired up, ready to go, just seeing his intensity to start games is good to see.”

When the Heat and the Clippers last faced each other, it was on New Years Day on Jan. 1 where the former lost, 121-104, as said before. However, Miami looks a bit different with the trade for star Terry Rozier from the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Kyle Lowry and a 2027 first-round pick. Lue said to ClutchPoints that he “adds a pop to that offense.”

“Just being able to add pace. Great scoring ability and he's a good defender that's gonna play hard and then compete. A lot of things that Kyle brought, similar just, you know, a lot younger than Kyle and able to do it on a a nightly basis,” Lue said. “Because Kyle [Lowry] was 37 years old, he can do it sometimes, but Rozier is good pick up, he's a good player. He adds a pop to that offense.”

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Jimmy Butler to be key for Miami against the Clippers

There is no doubt that a key to Sunday's game will be the threat of Heat star Jimmy Butler as he has been more aggressive than ever in the past two games. He will have to do the same if Miami wants a shot at the Clippers who feature four potential hall of fame players as Spoelstra said that he loves it when Butler is in “attack mode.”

“We love it when he's in attack mode and we all feed off of his aggressiveness and his energy,” Spoelstra said. “Physically, he's feeling good right now and we're trying to simplify things offensively just so we can get everybody feeling comfortable and that's 1A and 1B for us to get him in his strength zones and then play off of him.”

The Heat are now 26-23 on the season which puts them seventh in the Eastern Conference. Sunday's game against the Clippers is the start of a four-game home stand that includes a back to back on Tuesday and Wednesday facing the Orlando Magic and the San Antonio Spurs. It concludes next Sunday in the afternoon against the Boston Celtics.