The Miami Heat look like they are going to have to take the scenic route to the NBA Playoffs for the second straight year. Wednesday night’s 111-92 loss to the Dallas Mavericks dropped the Heat to 44-36 on the season.
That has put them in eighth place in the Eastern Conference. With only two games remaining in the regular season, it would take a minor miracle for Miami to climb out of the NBA Play-In Tournament and into the top six.
At the very least, they need to defeat the Toronto Raptors in their final two games of the regular season. On top of that, they need the Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers to get tripped up and lose all of their final games.
Getting out of the NBA Play-In Tournament should be a goal for the Heat, but they don’t sound like they are phased by it. After their game on Wednesday, head coach Erik Spoelstra was asked about seeding in the Eastern Conference and he brushed it off.
“We’re going to focus on the next 48 hours to get ready for another battle. I don’t even care what’s going on in the standings,” Spoelstra said in his postgame interview. “I just want our team playing the way we’re capable of playing, and that’s what we’re going to look to do these last two games.”
That answer isn’t all too surprising. Since becoming head coach of the Heat, Spoelstra’s team has seen everything the NBA Playoffs have to offer. He is one of the best in the business and nothing is going to be too daunting for them to overcome.
They likely aren’t worried because they know what it takes to climb out of the NBA Play-In Tournament. The Heat did it last season and advanced all the way to the NBA Finals as the No. 8 seed, eventually being defeated by the Denver Nuggets.
This is a battle-tested team that knows what it takes to succeed in crunch time. No matter what position they end up in the Eastern Conference, Spoelstra will have his team ready to go.
More must-reads: