Miami Heat vs Chicago Bulls
The last chance to make the dance gets underway in South Beach, Miami as each team looks to claim the #8 seed in the NBA's Eastern Conference and the right to face the #1 seed, Milwaukee Bucks.
The Miami Heat look to reclaim NBA Playoff success after making the NBA Finals just 2 years ago, but now find themselves in dire straits with star player Jimmy Butler (33) claiming "Come Friday, we have to play the legit exact opposite of how we played tonight" after their loss in the first play-in game.
This quote is no exaggeration, with the Heat having found themselves trailing by 15 points and being outrebounded 63-29 by the game’s end in the opening round loss to the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night.
Miami’s stars will need to shine in order for them to get the job done against the Hawks. If the same Butler who averaged nearly 30 points a game in last year’s postseason run shows up, the Bulls will be in trouble. Their second leading scorer Bam Adebayo (25) will look to establish his physical presence, snagging rebounds and scoring from the post – but the real question will be in the bench play. Kyle Lowry (37) came off the bench with a season-high 33 points in Tuesday’s loss, and if he can continue that offensive firepower, the Bulls will be in for a long night.
The Chicago Bulls overcame a 19-point deficit to defeat the Toronto Raptors in the opening round of the Play-In Tournament and earned the right to challenge the Miami Heat for the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Bulls’ last game against the Raptors generated several headlines, one being Bulls’ star Zach Lavine (28) scoring 39 points and authoring a late-game comeback that saved their postseason hopes. This drew high praise from head coach Billy Donovan, who stated “His performance was extraordinary… it gave us life and it gave us hope.”
Surprisingly, the bigger headline of that game came from the daughter of Bulls’ star player DeMar DeRozan (33). After talking her Dad into skipping school to attend the game, she sat courtside and delivered blood-curdling shrieks in an attempt to disrupt Raptors players each time they went to shoot a free-throw. Her screams were audible on almost every Raptors free-throw, and may have contributed to them shooting an abysmal 18/36 from the line!
Both teams have star duos – the Heat with Butler and Adebayo, and the Chicago Bulls duo with Lavine and Nikola Vucevic (32). If either duo steps up and dominates the game, their respective team will likely hold onto the lead. However, if they neutralize each other, expect the role players and bench to carry the weight, a matchup which slightly favours the Miami Heat.
Minnesota Timberwolves vs Oklahoma City Thunder
Two teams who found themselves on the opposite ends of remarkable comebacks in the first round of the Play-In Tournament now enter Friday's final Play-In game looking to secure their path to the NBA Playoffs.
As of late, the Minnesota Timberwolves have been making headlines for all the wrong reasons. They squandered a 15-point lead in Tuesday’s overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, and to make matters worse, were without star player Rudy Gobert (30), who punched teammate Kyle Anderson (29) during a timeout in the regular season finale last Sunday. Gobert was suspended for the crucial matchup against the Lakers in the first round of the Play-In Tournament. The absence of the star big man was felt, as the Los Angeles Lakers out-rebounded and out-scored Minnesota in the paint, an area in which Gobert is known for his outstanding performance.
Behind the scenes, Gobert and Anderson have made peace after the physical altercation, with Gobert telling the media "I still love Kyle. He's still my brother. I tell people, sometimes you fight with your family”.
That peace will be necessary, as the Timberwolves cannot afford his absence for another crucial game. Gobert is a defensive stalwart who has won the “Best Defensive Player” award three times, and contributes a lion’s share of rebounds and points for Minnesota.
Minnesota’s other starters will need to step up if they want to get the job done against Oklahoma City. Anthony Edwards (21) made just 3 buckets off 17 shots in their overtime loss to the Lakers, and Karl Anthony-Towns (27) spent most of the second half playing overly conservatively, nursing five fouls to avoid ejection.
The Oklahoma CIty Thunder enter Friday’s game with momentum on their side; most NBA fans and media were shocked they even made it to this point in the postseason. Oklahoma City were projected to be one of the worst teams in the league, and lost their #2 overall draft pick, Chet Holmgren (20), to a season-ending injury before the season even started.
The team’s remarkable season and recent postseason success came into existence because of two prospects who are now making the leap into stardom, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (24) and Josh Giddey (20). Gilgeous-Alexander’s 32 points and Giddey’s 31 were responsible for over half of the team scoring total in their first-round Play-In Tournament win against the New Orleans Pelicans.
If Minnesota can slow the tempo and momentum of Oklahoma City, they stand a real chance, especially with the return of Gobert to the lineup. However, if Oklahoma City’s new stars continue their hot-streak, expect this year’s Cinderella Story to take shape and make their way into a first round playoff matchup against the Denver Nuggets.
