The Miami Heat are set to begin their 2022 NBA Playoffs journey on Sunday at FTX Arena.
Although they haven’t yet found out who they’re going to play, preparations are already underway. Given that they won’t play until Sunday and didn’t resume practice until Wednesday, some Heat players decided to head to the Bahamas in order to bond before the playoffs.
Bunch of Heat players took a bonding trip to the Bahamas in past couple of days before resuming practice today. Team did not pay for trip; the players did this on their own.
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) April 13, 2022
About two-thirds of the Heat roster bonded in the Bahamas before returning today for the start of playoff preparations. Tyler Herro, "When we look back after the season, the trip that we took to the Bahamas will be good for us."
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) April 13, 2022
It’s definitely great that some of the Heat’s players decided to take part in a bonding experience before Sunday’s game. Miami will need to be a very cohesive unit if it wants to win this season’s NBA title. The Heat are one of many contenders throughout the league.
Miami will play either the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets or Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. The Heat surely favor themselves over any of those potential opponents.
The Heat led the Eastern Conference for much of the regular season. Despite dropping out of first place in the East for a little while near the end of the regular season, Miami was able to bounce back and clinch home-court advantage up until the NBA Finals. It finished with a 53-29 record.
Last season, the Heat were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Milwaukee Bucks, who went onto win the 2021 title. During the 2020 playoffs, Miami made it to the NBA Finals but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.
Now, Miami is surely hoping to win its fourth title in franchise history. Only time will tell if that’s in the cards for the organization.
