Red-hot Heat look to keep sizzling vs. Pistons

MIAMI -- Can anything stop the Miami Heat?

The Heat (17-30), winners of six games in a row including a stunner over the Golden State Warriors, play host to the Detroit Pistons (21-25) on Saturday night at American Airlines Arena.

Miami's win streak is its longest since February 2014.

Detroit, if nothing else, will be the more rested team. The Pistons, winners of three of their past four games, haven't played since a home loss to the Sacramento Kings on Monday.

Meanwhile, Miami had to travel home from Chicago, where the Heat defeated the Bulls 100-88 on Friday night.

But who needs rest when you are as hot as the Heat?

In just two weeks, Miami has gone from perhaps the worst team in the league to the hottest club in the NBA. The streak started Jan. 13 with a win over a very good Houston Rockets team. The Dallas Mavericks, who were playing well at the time, were the next team to go down. Then it was the Milwaukee Bucks who succumbed to the Heat.

The Heat streak became surreal when Dion Waiters' last-second shot beat the Warriors, owners of the best record in the league.

Miami hit the road on Wednesday and came away with another improbable win, falling behind by 15 points entering the fourth quarter before beating the Brooklyn Nets.

After a career-high 33 points against Milwaukee and 33 points and the game-winner vs. the Warriors, Waiters scored 24 and hit the game's biggest shot against Brooklyn. His last-minute 3-pointer sunk the Nets just as that shot downed Golden State.

This incredible run has Miami thinking playoffs, which would have been crazy talk two weeks ago.

"We are all doing it together," Heat backup center Willie Reed said after Friday's game in a televised interview on Sunshine Sports. "It doesn't want matter who gets the shine."

The Pistons probably won't recognize the Heat. They beat Miami just before the Heat got scorching hot, winning 107-98 on New Year's Day.

"They're playing really well and really hard," Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy told The Detroit Free Press. "(Point guard Goran) Dragic is playing at a really high level. Waiters was incredible in the Golden State game. Their best players are playing well, and that's a great formula."

For the first time since 2004, the Heat have no All-Stars. Miami center Hassan Whiteside and Dragic were snubbed.

Whiteside, who missed Friday's game due to a sprained right ankle, is averaging 16.9 points, 13.9 rebounds and 2.0 blocks.

The Pistons also had no All-Stars. Center Andre Drummond, who was an All-Star last year, was snubbed despite averaging 14.2 points, 13.5 rebounds and 1.2 blocks.

Van Gundy is upset that there are no centers on the East roster as Atlanta's Dwight Howard was also left off.

"I'm against it," Van Gundy told The Detroit Free Press when asked about how centers have been devalued. "There used to be on the ballot two guards, two forwards and a center.

"The set-up now is wrong. There should be at least one true center."

Pistons guard Reggie Jackson is averaging 15.9 points and 5.6 assists but has only played 25 games due to a knee injury.

The Heat signed 6-8 undrafted rookie forward Okaro White to a second 10-day contract. He played college ball at Florida State.