On Friday night the Miami Heat staged a surprising comeback against the Chicago Bulls by clinching a berth in the NBA playoffs' first round. The Heat trailed by 15 points with fewer than six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter but rallied behind 31-point performances from Max Strus and Jimmy Butler. The Heat outscored the Bulls 26-0 in the last 5:50 of regulation and held them scoreless. The Heat won 102-91 and will face the Milwaukee Bucks, who prevailed against the Detroit Pistons to secure the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Heat and Bucks will square off in the same series as their conference semifinal victory over the Bucks in five games last season. The Bucks is the league's top team in this season under the guidance of 2 times MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and they will be looking for revenge and payback On the other side, despite having an erratic and injury-plagued season, the Heat has occasionally displayed signs of their full potential. With seasoned players like Butler, Goran Dragic and Trevor Ariza, as well as rising stars like Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson, the Heat have a squad that is both balanced and flexible.
The show will have several fascinating pairings and plotlines like these:
- How can the Bucks stop Butler, who faced them in last year's playoffs and averaged 23.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.4 assists?
- How will the Heat stop Antetokounmpo, who averaged 26.7 points, 13.8 rebounds, and 5.7 assist in the regular season against them?
- How will the Heat's three-point shooting fare against the Bucks' defence, which allows the most three-point attempts and makes in the league?
- How will the Bucks' additions of Jrue Holiday, P.J. Tucker and Bobby Portis impact their performance and chemistry against the Heat?
- How will the Heat's experience and culture help them overcome their underdog status against the Bucks?
The series has been scheduled to begin on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. The game will be televised on ESPN. Stay tuned for more updates and analysis on this exciting playoff matchup.