Lowry Butler is out
The Miami Heat, who are no. 1 in the East, are just one win away from advancing to the next round. Butler's strength in the playoffs is breathtaking, and as for Trae Young, facing the Heat's iron barrel-like defense, it is a bit inadequate, and in four games, two of them have scored in single digits, which is simply an unacceptable fact for a star player, not to mention a big heart player like Trae Young. From here, you can see how good the Heat's defense really is.
Game 5 of the series, for Trae Young and the Hawks, is undoubtedly a backwater battle, winning the game will still have a chance, once lost, then it means the end of the season. In this game, the Heat's core guard Lowry continued to be absent due to injury, and the same absence was the Heat's home star Jimmy Butler, which reflected the heat's self-confidence.
Trae Young feels cold in the hand
Bogdanovic could not play in this game, in this situation, Trae Yang opened the field feel very bad, only 4 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist on 1-of-6 shooting, but Schult stepped forward to get 7 points and 1 assist, the Hawks still scored 22 points in a single quarter, and the Heat only scored 21 points, and Oladipo, who started the game, had 8 points and 1 rebound. After returning from the second quarter, Trae Young still did not find his form, only 1 shot, relying on free throws to get 1 point, 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 2 turnovers.
Although Hunter had 7 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists, the Eagles still scored only 20 points this quarter. The Heat gradually regained their touch, Strus shot 5 of 5, had 12 points, 3 rebounds and 1 steal, leading the team to 33 points. At the end of the half, the Heat led the Hawks by as many as 12 points at 54-42. In the second half, the Eagles narrowed the gap to 4 points, but then Adebayor carried the team and had 8 points and 2 rebounds on 3-of-4 shooting, helping the Heat to stretch to 14 points again. Gallinari hit a final-minute three-pointer to help the Hawks narrow the gap to 11 points.
In the final quarter that decided the outcome of the game, Trae Young took four substitutes and constantly ate into the point difference, and after Okonwu scored 2+1, the Hawks only trailed the Heat by 3 points. The Heat scored five straight points to stabilize the situation, and then the Eagles continued to catch up, but could no longer narrow the point gap. Trae Young's bottom corner is an empty three-pointer, and even smashed directly on the edge of the rebound, which is incredible. But Hunter scored five straight points and the Hawks trailed by just two points. Adebayor dunked to stabilize the situation, and Audi forced a foul, but Trae Young made two free throws and missed the opportunity.
Tucker fouled Hunter and left the field with six straight fouls. Strus missed three points, and Trae Young suddenly stopped the ball at a critical moment and was completely lost on the court. The Hawks' final attack was stolen by Adebayo, accompanied by the final whistle, and the Heat finally defeated the Hawks 97-94 to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals by a series score of 4-1.
The Heat eliminated the Hawks 4-1
The Hawks ended the season with Trae Young once again lost on the field as the team's star, shooting 2-of-12 from the field, 5-of-0 three-pointers, with only 11 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 6 turnovers. However, Hunter showed his strength, shooting 11 of 21, with 35 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals, including 18 points in the last quarter, but the sixth of the last quarter was in the field, unable to return to the sky. Hult had 12 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists and 2 steals, gallinari also had 12 points, and no other player scored in double figures.
Without Butler and without Lowry, the Heat won the game with excellent defense. Oladipo started and dreamed of returning to the top, with 23 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists and 3 steals on 8-of-16 shooting, Adebayor shooting 7-of-11 and also had 20 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists, Strus had 15 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, Hiro on the bench also had 16 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists and 2 steals, and Martin had 10 points, 4 rebounds and 1 steal. Next, the Heat will be on stage in the Eastern Conference semifinals, waiting for the winner of the 76ers and Raptors series.