Heat Oust Bulls in Play-In Finale – At this early juncture, the Miami Heat’s 2024 road to the playoffs is a carbon copy of their 2023 run. It is like they are going back in a time machine. Last year, the Heat dropped their first game in the NBA play-in tournament, but found a way to bounce back in their second contest to squeak into the playoffs as a No. 8 seed.
To kickoff this year’s postseason, the Heat lost its first play-in matchup in a nail-biter to the Philadelphia 76ers, 105-104. However, with a second chance to earn the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Heat defeated the Chicago Bulls in a blowout on Friday night, 112-91, to advance to a first-round series against their arch rival and No. 1 seeded Boston Celtics.
Miami came out of the gate strong, on a mission and would not be denied, exploding on a 19–0 surge in the opening quarter that had the Bulls back on their heels and searching for answers. Chicago did not do anything to help their own cause, shooting an anemic 3-for-13 from distance on the way to manufacturing a sparse 17 points in the frame. That long-range shooting or lack thereof, did not improve, as they shot 5-for-23 from beyond the arc in the first 24 minutes of action. Overall, the Bulls shot 27 percent in the first half.
No Jimmy Butler, no problem.
Tyler Herro did everything for the Heat with 24 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, just one dime shy of a triple-double. Rookie Jamie Jaquez Jr. also had a great floor game, scoring 21 points with six rebounds and six assists. 16-year veteran, Kevin Love provided a nice jolt of energy off the bench and showed his championship metal, chipping in with 16 points on 10-for-10 shooting from the free throw line and 2-for-3 from 3-point range.
The Heat captured its decisive victory even without the services of leading scorer Jimmy Butler, who suffered a sprained MCL in his right knee during Wednesday’s loss. Butler was initially only ruled out for Friday’s game, but is expected to be out of commission for several weeks with the injury.
The Bulls were led by DeMar DeRozan’s team-high 22 points, with a double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds from Nikola Vucevic. The Bulls were impacted by Coby White’s poor performance. After scoring 42 points in a play-in win over the Atlanta Hawks, White shot only 5-for-16 from the field and finished with 13 points.
The Bulls very well could have a much different look in the 2024-25 campaign. Head coach Billy Donovan will most likely be back. There was loud talk in coaching circles that Kentucky might take a run at him after the departure of John Calipari to the University of Arkansas. But the Wildcats hired their alum, Mark Pope, which takes a potential option away from Donovan, if he even wanted to return to the collegiate level, after winning two championships with the Florida Gators in 2006 and 2007.
Chicago’s biggest question of the offseason will likely be whether or not to retain two-time All-Star Zach LaVine. The veteran guard was frequently discussed in trade rumors, but season-ending foot surgery put that possibility on the back burner. However, LaVine should be ready to go for the start of training camp in September and if he shows he is healthy, trade rumors will likely swirl once again.
The organization could also decide to part ways with DeRozan and big man Andre Drummond, both of whom will be unrestricted free agents. DeRozan was the Bulls’ leading scorer this season averaging 24 points per game, but he will be 35 years old next year, entering his 16th year in the league and the front office may not want to make a long-term investment in that.
Going into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed last season was no obstacle for Miami, who upset the No. 1 Milwaukee Bucks who were without Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a back injury, in the first round. The Heat then defeated the New York Knicks and beat the Celtics in seven games to advance to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Denver Nuggets in five games.
Boston no doubt remembers losing last year’s Game 7, 103–84. That was a devasting and shocking result for a team looking at a possible NBA championship, their 18th and their first since 2008. The Celtics rebounded to finish 64–18 during the regular season, by far the league’s best record. Consequently, they are the favorites to win this year’s title.
Game 1 of the Heat-Celtics first-round playoff series tips off Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
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Pelicans Rally Past Kings – The New Orleans Pelicans were able to overcome the loss of their star, Zion Williamson, even if only for one night.
The Pelicans prevailed past the Sacramento Kings 105-98 on Friday in the final game of the NBA play-in tournament, despite losing their most talented and recognizable player to a hamstring injury in their previous game against the Los Angeles Lakers. They are now set to face the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round as the West’s No. 8 seed.
The loss abruptly concludes the Kings’ season, which continued into Friday after a convincing win over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. The team has failed to win a playoff series since back in 2004.
Brandon Ingram led the way for the Pelicans, with 24 points, six rebounds and six assists, Jonas Valanciunas added a solid double-double with 19 points and 12 boards on an impressive night for a team that went 49-33 in the regular season. Sacramento got off to a blazing start early on, but the Pelicans, cheered on by an enthusiastic Smoothie King Center crowd behind them, took control late in the second quarter and did not look back, leading by at least five points for the entire second half.
“We stayed together. We supported each other. We played for each other,” Valanciunas said. “We all want to get to the playoffs. And we did it by playing good basketball, by supporting each other, helping each other on defense, on offense, sharing the ball, you know, making a right play. It’s fun basketball to play that way.”
A 10-0 run at the start of the fourth quarter all but put the game on ice, although a late Kings comeback attempt did trim the lead to single digits.
Now, the Pelicans have the young and hungry Thunder to be concerned about, with Williamson regulated to be a spectator. He was diagnosed with a hamstring strain and will be re-evaluated sometime next week, leaving the Pelicans to figure out Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company without him. The Pelicans posted a record of 1-2 against the Thunder in the regular season series.
Game 1 is scheduled for Sunday at 8:30 p.m. CT in Oklahoma City (TNT).
The Kings came into this season with hopes higher than any season in recent memory. The duo of De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis led Sacramento to the third-best record in the West with one of the best offenses in the NBA last year.
That season ended in disappointing fashion with a classic seven-game loss to the Warriors in the first round, but hope remained. The team’s core was young, with Fox, Sabonis, Keegan Murray, Malik Monk and Kevin Hurter all 27 or younger. It was reasonable to expect that improvement was on the horizon, but the Kings experienced complacency and stagnation instead.
It would be irresponsible to say the Kings have to rebuild and go back to the drawing board after two postseason disappointments, but they clearly cannot approach this offseason thinking all they need is a complementary piece here or there. Life is never easy in the Western Conference.
The Kings owe the Atlanta Hawks their first-round draft pick this year as part of the trade for Huerter. If they want to double down on this core, it might be time to trade away even more draft capital for a veteran to slide in somewhere between Fox and Sabonis.
