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Sitting atop the Eastern Conference, the Miami Heat are patiently waiting to see how their playoff journey will unfold. Given how tight the standings are at the top and bottom, there are multiple potential opponents they need to prepare for.
Due to recent changes to New York City's mandates, the Brooklyn Nets have become a much more dangerous team heading into the postseason. With Kyrie Irving now eligible to take the floor in home games, they are one of the scariest bottom seeds in NBA history.
Currently sitting at eighth in the standings, Brooklyn will have to work their way through the play-in tournament. While they are likely to secure the seventh seed, there is still the possibility they will fall and face Miami in round one. A rather undesirable outcome as they fought hard to remain at the top of the standings.
While a series between these teams could go either way, an NBA scout recently told Ric Bucher of Fox Sports that Brooklyn is a team they should look to avoid.
"If I'm Miami, I don't want to see Brooklyn in the first round."
Miami Heat have opportunity to silence their critics
Two years ago, the Miami Heat shocked the basketball world in the NBA bubble. Led by an incredible run from Jimmy Butler, they were able to make it all the way to the finals before falling short to the Lakers.
Following their finals run, many labeled Miami as pretenders. Some feel they benefited from the abnormal circumstances and would not have had the same result in a "normal" season.
This year, they have a chance to silence those doubters. Not only do they have home-court advantage throughout the playoffs, but the brackets look to be playing out in their favor.
Right now, Miami has a reasonable path to the Eastern Conference finals. More importantly, the Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets, and red-hot Boston Celtics might end up on the opposite side of the bracket. Facing off against the new-look Philadelphia 76ers in round two is certainly the lesser of two evils.
If the Nets do remain the eighth seed, it will complicate things for Maimi. Facing off against Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in round one is not a good start for a team with finals aspirations. A series with Brooklyn would be a hard-fought matchup that could take a lot out of them. Having to exert that much energy in the opening round will not bode well for their Finals' chances.
Like every team atop the Eastern Conference, the Heat are hoping they are not stuck matching up with Durant and company to open the postseason.
