Category: NBA

The blow that ultimately turned out the lights on the Miami Heat on Wednesday, and probably beyond, came late in the first quarter and not those final, frantic seconds at the end of the game. Jimmy Butler went up for a shot then under the basket and landed awkwardly on the extended leg of Philadelphia’s Kelly Oubre. Butler lay like a fallen oak on the floor in pain that was mirrored on the televised faces of Heat president Pat Riley and its vice president of scowling, Alonzo Mourning. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, looking for some karmic justice, asked the refs what happened there in harder language. Butler...

PHILADELPHIA – And so for the second consecutive season for the Miami Heat, the NBA play-in round comes down to a single all-or-nothing game at Kaseya Center. Last year, the Heat turned the opportunity into the launchpad for a run to the 2023 NBA Finals. This time, there will be a mere two-day turnaround from the sting of blowing a double-digit lead against the Philadelphia 76ers in a 105-104 loss Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Center. Oh, and it gets worse, with Jimmy Butler injuring his right knee late in the first quarter, hobbled from that stage, and now scheduled for a Thursday MRI. “It...

MIAMI — Erik Spoelstra routinely stresses how his Miami Heat relish a challenge. Related Articles Miami Heat | Toronto Raptors at Miami Heat | PHOTOS Miami Heat | Winderman’s view: A win and a loss (Kevin Love), as Heat injury woes persist They now have one, a Wednesday night NBA play-in road game against Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers. Win that, and it’s on to the first round of the NBA playoffs against the No. 2 New York Knicks. Lose that, and for the second year in a row there will be a winner-take-all game at Kaseya...

MIAMI – The hope remains there for an escape from the play-in round for the Miami Heat after they took care of business with a 125-103 victory Friday night over the Toronto Raptors at Kaseya Center. But the odds remain unsettling. Basically, if everything plays out to form on Sunday’s closing day of the NBA regular season, the Heat will finish No. 8 in the East and open their postseason with a Wednesday night road play-in game against the Philadelphia 76ers. The only escape hatch for the Heat is pairing a Sunday victory over the Raptors with a Sunday loss by the Orlando Magic to the Milwaukee...

MIAMI – The Miami Heat again showed Wednesday night they are not up to the challenge of the best of the West. Because of that, this time with a 111-92 loss to the Dallas Mavericks at Kaseya Center, the playoff picture in the East grew even more muddled for Erik Spoelstra’s team, despite a spirited late show of fight. In closing the season series 0-2 against the Mavericks, just as the Heat did against the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Clippers, the other elites of the Western Conference, the Heat lost control of their own destiny for homecourt advantage...

ATLANTA – While much changed with the Miami Heat’s playoff outlook with Sunday night’s loss to the Indiana Pacers, the Heat exited that game knowing that victories in their final four games gave them their best shot for direct entry into the NBA playoffs, or, at worst, a guarantee of opening the play-in round at home. One down – Tuesday night’s 117-111 grueling double-overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena – three to go: Wednesday night against the Dallas Mavericks and then a season-ending pair against the visiting Toronto Raptors on Friday and Sunday. No, not the most optimal...