The Miami Heat were defeated by the Indiana Pacers 117-115 on Sunday. It was a back-and-forth affair that saw Indiana emerge victorious.
The Heat are now 2.5 games behind the Pacers for the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference. Jimmy Butler addressed the Heat’s situation with Miami likely headed to the NBA Play-In Tournament for the second consecutive season.
“It was the typical… our way when we’re not guarding anybody whenever shots go in,” Butler said, via Naveen Ganglani. “It’s great to say we fought back, we were resilient, we did all that, but we still lost. So none of that matters.
“If we end up in the play-in, we end up in the play-in. We all have a job to do anyways. That’s how we’ve always played. We’ve never made it easy on ourself. Why make it easy now?”
Last year, the Heat reached the NBA Finals after entering the postseason in the play-in tournament. But it required a long journey throughout the playoffs to defy the odds. Accomplishing the same feat during the 2023-24 campaign will prove to be an immense challenge.
Can the Heat make another deep run? Yes. But again, teams are going give Miami challenges in the postseason.
Jimmy Butler’s 2023-24 season
Butler is averaging 21.1 points per game on 49.4 percent field goal and 40.1 percent three-point shooting in 2023-24. He is also recording 5.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 1.3 steals per outing.
Butler is one of the best players in the league. Injuries have impacted him this season, though, with the Heat star being limited to 56 games played thus far.
The good news is that Butler is ready to go with the postseason right around the corner. He is going to help Miami make a run this year once again.
Heat’s postseason outlook as play-in possibility looms
The Heat are not going to finish worse than the No. 8 seed. They hold a substantial advantage over the Chicago Bulls, who are No. 9 overall, in the Eastern Conference standings.
Miami trails the Philadelphia 76ers by just a half-game, however. The Heat may be able to surpass Philadelphia for the No. 7 seed with a strong finish to the regular season.
In the end, the Heat are preparing for the NBA Play-In Tournament. Barring a change in the standings, the 76ers, Bulls, and Atlanta Hawks will be the teams joining Miami in the tournament.
Chicago and Atlanta both hold sub-.500 records but could potentially pull off an upset. Both teams feature the ability to have big nights, and all you need in the tournament is to win a game or two depending on the standings.
Nevertheless, Jimmy Butler and the Heat will remain confident despite their final standings placement.
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