An NBA scout allegedly said that no one wants to see the Miami Heat in the playoffs.
Last season, the Heat made it all the way to the NBA Finals as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference. Miami made relatively quick work of its first two opponents of the 2023 playoffs, as the team eliminated the Milwaukee Bucks in five games in the first round before beating the New York Knicks in six games in round two.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Heat faced off against Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics. The Heat held a 3-0 series lead against the Celtics at one point and seemed primed to make quick work of Boston like they did with the Bucks and Knicks, but the Celtics proceeded to win the next three games of the series to force a Game 7.
Miami beat the Celtics on the road by 19 points in Game 7 to secure an NBA Finals berth. Jimmy Butler led the Heat in scoring with 28 points on 12-of-28 shooting from the field.
In the NBA Finals, the Heat faced off against the Denver Nuggets, who beat Miami in five games to win the 2023 title. Star big man Nikola Jokic was named the Finals MVP for Denver.
Fast forward to the current day, and the Heat are fresh off a seven-point home victory over the Houston Rockets on Monday. Heat guard Tyler Herro starred in the win, as he dropped 28 points, three rebounds and three assists while shooting 10-of-20 from the floor and 5-of-10 from behind the 3-point arc across 34 minutes of playing time.
The Heat have a home matchup against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder on the horizon on Wednesday. The Thunder picked up an eight-point win in their most recent game against the Washington Wizards on Monday.
After their game against the Thunder, the Heat will then host the Orlando Magic on Friday. The Magic own an identical record to the Heat at this juncture at 21-15.