Latest news with #Bulls-Heat
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NBA playoff picture: East locks in full playoff field, while Lakers clinch No. 3 seed in chaotic West
The current state of the NBA playoff field in the Eastern Conference bracket is fully decided, while the Western Conference is about as set as a bowl of incompetently prepared Jell-O. The NBA played its penultimate slate of games on Friday before its finale on Sunday, and the first wave of games locked in the East's first-round matchups. The Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics will face play-in teams, while the other series will be the New York Knicks against the Detroit Pistons and the Indiana Pacers against the Milwaukee Bucks. The first batch of play-in games will be the Orlando Magic against the Atlanta Hawks and the Chicago Bulls against the Miami Heat. The winner of the first game will face the Celtics, while its loser will face the winner of Bulls-Heat for a series against the Cavaliers. The Bucks, still playing without Damian Lillard, locked in the fifth seed with a 125-119 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday, behind 32 points, 15 assists and 11 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo. GIANNIS GOES OFF, BUCKS CLINCH 5 SEED 🙌 32 PTS | 11 REB | 15 AST His 4th triple-double in the last 5 games 🤯 — NBA (@NBA) April 12, 2025 The Bulls also ensured they would host a play-in game with a 119-89 beatdown of the Washington Wizards. NBA Eastern Conference playoff first round series 1. Cleveland Cavaliers (64-17) vs. play-in team 2. Boston Celtics (60-21) vs. play-in team 3. New York Knicks (50-31) vs. 6. Detroit Pistons (44-37) 4. Indiana Pacers (49-32) vs. 5. Milwaukee Bucks (47-34) Play-ins: No. 7 Orlando Magic (41-40) vs. No. 8 Atlanta Hawks (39-42), No. 9 Chicago Bulls (38-43) vs. No. 10 Miami Heat (36-44) The play-in games will take place between next Tuesday and Friday, with the first round beginning a day later. Meanwhile, the West entered Friday in a continued state of chaos, with two games separating six different teams ranging from third in the standings to eighth. Some of those teams will host a playoff series, while others will be facing each other in the play-in tournament. The Lakers, the only team of those six already guaranteed a playoff spot, at least provided further clarity by locking down the No. 3 seed with a 140-109 win over the shorthanded Houston Rockets. Luka Dončić had a productive night. LUKA IN 31 MINUTES VS ROCKETS 🪄 39 PTS, 8 REB, 7 AST LAKE SHOW SECURES THE NO. 3 SEED IN THE WEST 🔥 — Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 12, 2025 The Denver Nuggets also defeated the Memphis Grizzlies behind another triple-double from Nikola Jokić, keeping them in control of their destiny for a guaranteed playoff spot and locking Memphis into the play-in tournament. Western Conference standings after April 11 1. Oklahoma City Thunder, 67-14 2. Houston Rockets, 52-29 (15 games back) 3. Los Angeles Lakers, 50-31 (17 GB) 4. Denver Nuggets, 49-32 (18 GB) 5. Los Angeles Clippers, 49-32 (18 GB) 6. Minnesota Timberwolves, 48-33 (19 GB) 7. Golden State Warriors, 48-33 (19 GB) 8. Memphis Grizzlies, 47-34 (20 GB) 9. Sacramento Kings, 39-41 (27 GB) 10. Dallas Mavericks, 38-42 (28 GB) As you can see, we've got ties for fourth place between the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers, sixth place between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors. The former teams in each pair hold the tiebreaker, but that can obviously change on Sunday, especially with the Clippers and Warriors playing each other. The Nuggets will face the Rockets, the Timberwolves get the Utah Jazz (likely without Anthony Edwards) and the Grizzlies get the Dallas Mavericks. A four-way tie between 49-33 teams remains possible. If you assume the Nuggets beat a Rockets team likely to be resting much its rotation and the Timberwolves manage to not stumble against the 17-64 Jazz, the West effectively comes down to that Clippers-Warriors game. Here are the standings if that happens: West first-round matchups if Clippers win Sunday 1. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. play-in team 2. Houston Rockets vs. play-in team 3. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 6. Minnesota Timberwolves 4. Denver Nuggets vs. No. 5 Los Angeles Clippers Play-in: No. 7 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies, No. 9/10 Sacramento Kings vs. No. 9/10 Dallas Mavericks West first-round matchups if Warriors win Sunday 1. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. play-in team 2. Houston Rockets vs. play-in team 3. Los Angeles Lakers vs. No. 6 Golden State Warriors 4. Denver Nuggets vs. No. 5 Minnesota Timberwolves Play-in: No. 7 Los Angeles Clippers vs. No. 8 Memphis Grizzlies, No. 9/10 Sacramento Kings vs. No. 9/10 Dallas Mavericks Again, note how we're assuming Nuggets and Timberwolves wins there. If either of those teams lose, it gets a lot more complicated.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Trae Young Has Strong Comments About Magic After Ejection in Hawks' Loss
The Atlanta Hawks suffered a 120-95 loss to the Orlando Magic in the 7-8 matchup of the NBA play-in tournament on Tuesday. The Magic secured the 7th seed with the win and will face the defending champion, No. 2 seed Boston Celtics, in the playoffs. Advertisement Meanwhile, the Hawks will have to battle the winner of the 9-10 duel between the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat for a playoff spot. Late in the fourth quarter with 4:47 left, Hawks superstar guard Trae Young was ejected from the game after receiving two technical fouls from the game officials. After scoring on a floater, Young took the ball and whipped it to referee James Williams, who dealt him a technical foul. Moments later, he didn't promptly give up the ball to game official Pat Fraher as he exited the court, resulting in a second technical. During the post-game press conference, Young—who finished with 28 points on 8-of-21 shots—explained his frustrations behind the late-game ejection and cited how 'physical' the Magic are. Advertisement 'They're a physical team,' Young said. 'I've had two teammates hurt this year in one game against them. I'm not going to call them dirty players or anything like that. "I think they have a lot of talented players. But a lot of the plays and the moments... it's not even necessarily basketball at that point. I think that's where the frustration got." The fiery guard also shared that his actions were meant to defend his teammates. 'Sometimes when I take my frustration out on the refs it's not just for me,' Young said. 'It's for my teammates. I see Dyson Daniels going; he may not be a household name yet, but he deserves the same amount of respect as some of these other guys. If you see a foul, you should call a foul. That's pretty much all it was for me.' Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young reacts after receiving a second technical foul and ejection against the Orlando Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images In the post-game pool report, referee Williams said Young was called for the second technical for 'making a mockery of the game.' Advertisement 'Trae Young received his first unsportsmanlike technical foul for throwing the ball at a game official," Williams said. 'He received his second unsportsmanlike technical foul for kicking the ball away and making a mockery of the game as we were attempting to shoot the free throw for the first technical foul.' Young will now have to put all his frustration—and this loss—behind him as they gear up for the winner of the Bulls-Heat play-in game.
USA Today
17-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Tyler Herro pushes Heat into NBA Play-In elimination matchup with Hawks
Tyler Herro pushes Heat into NBA Play-In elimination matchup with Hawks Show Caption Hide Caption Denver Nuggets fire Coach and GM just before the NBA playoffs For The Hoops crew debates whether the Denver Nuggets are in panic mode ahead the playoffs after firing head coach Mike Malone and GM Calvin Booth. We have our first elimination of the 2025 NBA Play-In Tournament. The No. 9 Chicago Bulls slogged through an unfocused, undisciplined and ineffective first half at home, falling to the No. 10 Miami Heat, 109-90. Heat All-Star guard Tyler Herro laced his first eight shot attempts and finished with 38 points on 13-of-19 shooting to lead all players. Point guard Josh Giddey led Chicago with 25 points, but the Bulls were held to 39.8% shooting from the floor. ANALYSIS: 2025 playoff storylines: Who can dethrone the Celtics? MORE: Playoff picks: Our predictions for every first-round series Miami now travels to Atlanta to face the Hawks on Friday night in an elimination game, with the winner claiming the East's No. 8 seed and a matchup against the No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers. Here are three takeaways from Wednesday night's Bulls-Heat play-in game: Plagued all season by slow starts, Bulls dig themselves a hole too big Chicago's defensive intention in the first half of an elimination game was — frankly — insulting. Miami started 9-of-11 from the field and scored its first 10 points in the paint. Three of those early attempts were uncontested layups when Herro breezed through the lane. The easy buckets, naturally, unlocked the rest of Herro's portfolio; he scored 16 in the first quarter and made his first eight attempts, overall. Bulls players stood around, pointed fingers, did not communicate well and seemingly moved more slowly than Miami. This has been an issue all season: Chicago tied for 22nd in first-half defensive rating (115.6) and tied for 25th in first-half net rating (-5.4). The Bulls will have all offseason to ponder a solution. Plagued all season by incompetent second halves, Heat respond in the fourth Miami lost an NBA-worst 15 games this season after carrying a lead into the fourth quarter. The Heat were 14-28 in clutch games. Wednesday night, they held a 24-point lead at the half and saw it evaporate to 14 after scoring only 17 points in the third quarter. It appeared inevitable that Chicago, which swept Miami in three regular season games (including a pair of fourth-quarter comebacks), would close the gap. The Heat, though, led once again by Herro, withstood Chicago's attempts to claw back into the game, clamping down on defense. Miami limited the Bulls to just 16 points in the fourth quarter, and just 90 overall — a season low. This against a Chicago team that averaged 121.1 points per game over its last 28. The bad news for Miami: Cleveland — if the Heat beats the Hawks Friday — is not Chicago, and Miami would not be able to afford inefficient second halves against the NBA's top offense. Erik Spoelstra masterclass shows why Miami can be tough out Regarded widely as one of the premier coaches in the NBA, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra created a decided advantage Wednesday night with his gameplan. The Bulls ranked second in pace, generating 103.61 possessions per 48 minutes. And while Miami clearly focused on getting back in transition, the Heat, perhaps unconventionally, tried to outrun the Bulls. Miami, which ranked 27th in pace (97.08), pushed the tempo, unsettling Chicago's defense and leading to uncontested looks. The easy buckets in turn stifled Chicago's offense, preventing transition opportunities. At the half, Chicago had scored just four fast break points. And then on defense, Spoelstra matched up do-it-all defender Bam Adebayo, who starts at power forward, against Bulls point guard Josh Giddey, the player who had given Miami fits. Giddey did have his 25 points, but his four assists were well below his season average of 7.2 per game.
Miami Herald
12-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Locked into No. 10, Heat looks ahead at its play-in tournament challenge: ‘Anything can happen'
This season hasn't gone as planned for the Miami Heat. From the Jimmy Butler trade to a long 10-game skid to a bunch of blown leads, it has been a season full of adversity for the Heat. Now even with a chance to still advance to the playoffs, the Heat faces even more adversity in the form of the toughest path to the playoffs among teams still in contention. Despite Friday night's 153-104 blowout win over the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Friday night, the Heat found itself locked into 10th place in the Eastern Conference because of victories by the Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls. As the East's 10th-place team, the Heat will need to win two consecutive road play-in games just to qualify for the playoffs as the conference's No. 8 seed and clinch a first-round matchup against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. 'It's the second season and this is something that I want everybody in the locker room, which they do have this, I want everybody to be appreciative of this opportunity,' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said after the team set a new franchise record for the most points scored in a single game and earned the second-most lopsided victory in team history in Friday's 49-point win in New Orleans. 'It could be something where you're not even in the play-in or have an opportunity for this. We have an opportunity to win and move on to the next thing. I mean, this is exciting. This is great competition.' That competition will begin when the Heat travels to take on the Chicago Bulls at United Center on Wednesday in an elimination play-in tournament game. The Heat lost all three regular-season matchups against the Bulls this season. 'We're 0-3 against them in this season,' Heat guard Tyler Herro said ahead of Sunday's regular-season finale against the Washington Wizards at Kaseya Center (1 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Sun). 'It's going to obviously be a big challenge for us going on the road and winning two games, but nothing we haven't done before and we're ready for the challenge.' With the East's play-in seeding locked at No. 7 Orlando Magic, No. 8 Hawks, No. 9 Bulls and No. 10 Heat, here's the challenging path to the playoffs that Miami faces ... The East's play-in game between the No. 7 Magic and No. 8 Hawks will be played on Tuesday in Orlando at a time still to be determined and aired on TNT. The winner of this matchup earns the conference's seventh playoff seed and will face the second-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs. The East's play-in game between the No. 9 Bulls and No. 10 Heat will be played on Wednesday in Chicago at a time still to be determined and aired on ESPN. The loser of this matchup is eliminated from playoff contention. Then the East's play-in game between the loser of the Magic-Hawks matchup and the winner of the Bulls-Heat game will be played on Friday in either Orlando or Atlanta and aired on TNT. The winner of this matchup earns the conference's eighth playoff seed and will take on the top-seeded Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs. 'Win or go home. It's like the NCAA Tournament. Anything can happen,' Heat center Bam Adebayo said. 'You've seen teams in the tournament that got swept by a team in the regular season and you get that one shining moment and it's a turnaround.' With the Heat already locked into 10th place in the East and the Wizards already clinching one of the worst three records in the NBA for the best chance at the top pick in this year's draft, Sunday's regular-season finale between the Heat and Wizards is relatively meaningless for both teams. The expectation is the Heat will likely sit some of its regulars and use the final game of the regular season to give developmental players like Josh Christopher, Keshad Johnson and Isaiah Stevens (if healthy) an opportunity to play extended minutes. But there is at least one thing to monitor Sunday, as the Heat's draft position could be affected by the result of its regular-season finale. The Heat, which only keeps its first-round pick this year if it misses the playoffs, enters Sunday with the NBA's 11th-worst record that comes with a 2 percent chance of landing the top pick and a 9.4 percent chance of snagging a top-four pick during next month's NBA Draft Lottery. But the Heat could still finish anywhere between the 10th and 12th lottery seed depending on Sunday's results. The Phoenix Suns (whose first-round pick will go to the Houston Rockets) hold the league's 10th-worst record at 36-45 and the Bulls own the 12th-worst record at 38-43, as the Heat is able to finish tied with either of those teams based on the outcome of Sunday's games. The 10th lottery seed comes with a 13.9 percent chance of getting a top-four pick and a 3 percent chance of landing the top pick during the draft lottery. The 12th lottery seed gives that team a 7.1 percent chance of jumping into the top-four picks and a 1.5 percent chance of being awarded the No. 1 pick. What happens if multiple lottery teams finish with the same record? Their lottery ball combinations are merged and then divided equally. For example, if two teams are tied, they would each get half of the combined combinations. A random drawing is then held to break the tie and determine the draft order if none of the involved teams jump into the top-four selections during the lottery. The Golden State Warriors are also worth monitoring, since the Heat acquired the Warriors' pick in the Butler trade. Miami will get Golden State's first-round selection this year as long as it falls between No. 11 and No. 30. The only chance of the Warriors keeping their first-round pick this year would be if they end up in the play-in tournament, lose in the play-in and then overcome long odds to get a top-four pick during the lottery. The Warriors enter Sunday in sixth place in the Western Conference and will only fall to seventh place and play-in tournament territory if they lose at home to the Los Angeles Clippers in their regular-season finale while the Denver Nuggets defeat the Houston Rockets and the Minnesota Timberwolves also beat the Utah Jazz. The Warriors enter the final day of the regular season tied with the Timberwolves for the league's 20th-worst record. When teams finish with the same regular-season record but aren't in the lottery, their draft order is determined by a random drawing. 'You have to perform collectively at a high level,' Spoelstra said of the Heat's play-in reality of having to win two straight road play-in games just to make the playoffs as the East's No. 8 seed. 'Chicago is playing at a high level, we've playing at a high level. And as competitors, you have to absolutely embrace it, enjoy it and we do. We feel grateful for the opportunity to play for an opportunity to get into the dance.' But to make the playoffs this season, the Heat will need to do something no other team has done. No 10th-place team in either conference has ever advanced past the play-in tournament since this current play-in format was first instituted for the 2020-21 season. 'We've seen a season turn around through the ups and downs,' Adebayo said, with the Heat set to take part in the play-in tournament for the third straight season. 'I always keep that in the back of my mind. Anything can happen.' Will anything happen, though? 'Obviously, we got to play those games,' Adebayo answered. 'So we'll figure it out when we get there.'
Miami Herald
12-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Takeaways: Heat sets franchise record in rout of Pelicans, but still locked into 10th place in East
Five takeaways from the Miami Heat's 153-104 the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night at Smoothie King Center to close its final trip of the regular season — a two-game stretch away from home — at 1-1. The Heat now returns to Miami to close the regular season on Sunday against the Washington Wizards: In the end, Friday's Heat blowout win in New Orleans didn't matter. It's set: The Heat will face the Chicago Bulls at United Center on Wednesday in an elimination play-in tournament game. With the Atlanta Hawks defeating the 76ers and the Bulls beating the Washington Wizards on Friday, the Eastern Conference's play-in seeding is locked at No. 7 Orlando Magic, No. 8 Hawks, No. 9 Bulls and No. 10 Heat. As the East's 10th-place team, the Heat will need to win two consecutive road play-in games to qualify for the playoffs as the conference's No. 8 seed and clinch a first-round matchup against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers. Here's how it will work ... The East's play-in game between the No. 7 Magic and No. 8 Hawks will be played on Tuesday in Orlando at a time still to be determined and aired on TNT. The winner of this matchup earns the conference's seventh playoff seed and will face the second-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs. The East's play-in game between the No. 9 Bulls and No. 10 Heat will be played on Wednesday in Chicago at a time still to be determined and aired on ESPN. The loser of this matchup is eliminated from playoff contention. Then the East's play-in game between the loser of the Magic-Hawks matchup and the winner of the Bulls-Heat game will be played on Friday in either Orlando or Atlanta and aired on TNT. The winner of this matchup earns the conference's eighth playoff seed and will take on the top-seeded Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs. The Heat will try to make play-in history, as no 10th-place team in either conference has ever advanced past the play-in tournament since this current format was first instituted for the 2020-21 season. The Heat escaped each of its first two trips to the NBA's play-in tournament with the East's No. 8 playoff seed, making an improbable run that ended with a loss to the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals in 2023 and then being eliminated by the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs last season. But the Heat entered the 2023 play-in tournament as the East's seventh-place team and the 2024 play-in tournament as the East's eighth-place team. While the Heat was essentially locked into 10th place in the East entering Friday's game, the Heat still played its regulars since it began the night with a slim chance to move up the standings ... and put together a historic performance. The only Heat players unavailable on Friday were Nikola Jovic (broken right hand), Pelle Larsson (sprained right ankle), Kevin Love (personal reasons), Isaiah Stevens (right foot discomfort) and Dru Smith (left Achilles surgery). Meanwhile, the depleted Pelicans were missing most of their roster. New Orleans, which has been among the NBA's worst teams this season and has long been eliminated from playoff contention, was without 11 players on Friday (Brandon Boston, Bruce Brown, Jordan Hawkins, Herbert Jones, Karlo Matkovic, CJ McCollum, Yves Missi, Trey Murphy, Dejounte Murray, Kelly Olynyk and Zion Williamson). With the Heat still playing its best players and the Pelicans missing their best players, the game reflected that. The Heat never trailed Friday, pulling ahead by as many as 52 points on its way to the 49-point victory. It's the second-most lopsided victory in Heat history behind only last season's 60-point win over the Portland Trail Blazers last season. In addition, the Heat's 153 points set a new franchise record for the most points scored in a single game. As usual, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro led the way for the Heat. The duo combined for 45 points while sitting out the entire fourth quarter of the lopsided victory. Adebayo finished with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field, 4-of-6 shooting on threes and 3-of-4 shooting from the foul line, 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals in 22 minutes. Herro closed with 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, 2-of-3 shooting on threes and 6-of-6 shooting from the foul line, four rebounds, four assists and one steal in 21 minutes. Duncan Robinson added 21 points on 6-of-12 shooting from behind the arc in 19 minutes off the Heat's bench. By the end of the rout, the Heat emptied its bench and ended up playing each of its 13 available players Friday. Even seldom-used Heat players like Josh Christopher and Keshad Johnson played late in the contest. There was one concerning Heat thing in Friday's blowout win: Andrew Wiggins struggled. In his second game back from a right hamstring injury, Wiggins closed the Heat's victory over the Pelicans with just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting from the field and 0-of-4 shooting on threes to go with five rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes. Wiggins totaled just four points on 1-of-8 shooting from the field and 0-of-3 shooting on threes in Friday's first half. Wiggins missed six straight games because of right hamstring tendinopathy before returning to play in the Heat's last two games. He has totaled 24 points on 9-of-23 (39.1 percent) shooting from the field 3-of-10 (30 percent) shooting on threes in his first two games back from the injury. When asked how he was feeling physically after his return on Wednesday, Wiggins downplayed his hamstring issue: 'I felt solid. If you're out there on the court, then no complaints. You got to be 100 percent, so I felt good.' Wiggins has dealt with a few injuries since he was traded to the Heat on Feb. 6 as part of the Jimmy Butler deal. Wiggins has missed 14 games because of injury or illness since being traded to the Heat on Feb. 6 as part of the Jimmy Butler trade. Wiggins missed one game due to a stomach illness, five games due to a sprained right ankle, two games due to a left lower leg contusion and six straight games due to a hamstring issue. The Heat needs a healthy and more effective version of Wiggins in next week's play-in tournament, as it faces the uphill battle of needing to win two consecutive road games to make the playoffs. Adebayo continues to take and make threes at an eye-opening rate. With Adebayo shooting 4 of 6 from deep in Friday's victory over the Pelicans, he's now shooting an ultra-efficient 50 of 115 (43.5 percent) from behind the arc in his last 34 games. He has also made at least one three-pointer in a career-best 12 straight games. This is an encouraging trend, considering Adebayo shot just 29 of 106 (27.4 percent) on threes in his first 44 appearances of the season prior to this hot stretch. Adebayo has already set new career highs in three-point makes (79) and three-point attempts (221) this season. He has shattered his previous career-high marks of 15 three-point makes and 42 three-point attempts, which were both set last season. Adebayo has shot 79 of 221 (35.7 percent) from three-point range this season. Up next for the Heat — a relatively meaningless regular-season finale. With the Heat already locked into 10th place in the East and the Wizards already clinching one of the worst three records in the NBA for the best chance at the top pick in this year's draft, there's little to be gained for either team on Sunday. The expectation is the Heat will likely sit some of its regulars and use the final game of the regular season to give developmental players like Christopher, Johnson and Stevens (if healthy) an opportunity to play extended minutes. But there is one thing to monitor Sunday, as the Heat's draft position could be affected by the result of the regular-season finale. The Heat, which only keeps its first round pick if it misses the playoffs, entered Friday's game with the NBA's 11th-worst record, which would give Miami a 2 percent chance of landing the top pick and a 9.4 percent chance of snagging a top-four pick during next month's NBA Draft Lottery.
