In the last eight days, they twice saw victory against Philadelphia slip away in the closing minutes. They were within four points of mighty Boston with six minutes left. And they have nothing to show for it in terms of wins and losses.

The defeats number nine after a trip to Orlando Friday, when they had one of the outings that left their coach disappointed even though they were in the game after three quarters. But coach Lawrence Frank insists he is proud of his embattled bunch, which often has followed the lead of some of the veterans.

"We have competitive guys, and we have good guys. We've got guys with a great deal of pride," said Frank. "It just so happens that the guys that aren't hurt are veteran guys who have an understanding of what happens in this league.

"There's a great spirit about them. It may not sound like the typical thing when you're (winless after nine games), but I love this group's fight."

Against Miami, they still won't have at least three starters (Devin Harris, Courtney Lee and Yi Jianlian) while swine flu victim Chris Douglas-Roberts continues trying to regain strength. They're 16-28 all-time in Miami, where they'll naturally be worried first and foremost about Dwyane Wade, who averaged 33.0 against them last season when the Heat won three of four games.

MAGIC 88, NETS 72: The Magic had Dwight Howard and the Nets didn't. Pure and simple. Howard was the dominant force at both ends with 26 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks. Brook Lopez shot 1-of-12 and managed only four points and five rebounds. The Nets had nine players, one more than they had in the previous 2 1/2 games. Orlando also had only nine, but one of the Magic's was Howard.