A 21-point victory, and it is eighth in the East! The Heat dreams of returning to the top, and the peak is still glorious despite defeat
The battle for the eighth place in the East
With the loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in the play-in tournament and the injury to star Butler, everyone felt that the Miami Heat's season was coming to an end. However, fans familiar with the Heat know that this team has never relied on any one player, not even the star Jimmy Butler. After losing a play-in game, the Heat have one more chance to face the Chicago Bulls in the play-in tournament for the eighth spot in the East, and then face the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.
The Bulls beat the Hawks in Game 1 of the playoffs, and with Kobe White showing his talent, plus DeRozan and Vucevic put the individual strength of the Big Three there. Unlike the Heat, the Bulls rely more on the individual ability of their players, while the Heat have a perfect system of basketball.
Heat vs. Bulls
With Butler sidelined, Harkes came to the starting lineup. At the beginning of the first quarter of the game, the Heat completely dominated the game, Herro got 6 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, Harkes also had 8 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists, and Lefu on the bench had 5 points and 1 rebound, the team scored 34 points in a single quarter, while the Bulls only scored 17 points, including Vucevic 4 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist, DeRozan 3 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists, and White did not score a point on 0 of 4 shots. After returning from the game in the second quarter, the Heat's hand declined, and Herro only had 3 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist, and the team only scored 13 points in a single quarter.
The Bulls seized the opportunity, DeRozan scored 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting, White also had 6 points, 1 rebound and 1 steal, the team scored 20 points in a single quarter, and at halftime, the Heat led the Bulls by 10 points at 47-37. In the second half, the Heat found their form, Herro scored 12 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists on 4-of-7 shooting, and Lefu scored 6 points and 2 rebounds, and the team scored 35 points in a single quarter. Vucevic had 8 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist, while DeRozan only had 2 shots, 2 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist, and the team scored 23 points in a single quarter, and the Heat extended their lead to 22 points in one go.
In the final quarter of the game, the Bulls were unwilling to give up in the final game of the season, and DeRozan stayed on the court and gave it his all, but the point difference continued to widen. Harkes scored another 7 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist, and Love also had 5 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, and the Heat once took a 29-point lead, and the game was completely out of suspense. With the final whistle, the Miami Heat defeated the Chicago Bulls by 21 points 112-91.
The Eastern Conference champions are back
The Miami Heat, the champion of the East, once again finished eighth in the East, and faced the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs, a familiar opponent, last season's Heat eliminated the Celtics to the stage of the Finals. Butler's absence will cause people to worry, but in this game, without Butler and Rozier, the team still beat the Bulls, which shows the essence of this team. Herro had a quasi-triple-double of 24 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists, becoming the team's best performer.
Rookie Harkes stepped up with 21 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists on 8-of-16 shooting, Bam Adebayo had 13 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, and the veteran Lefou, who liked that off the bench, also had 16 points, 7 rebounds and 1 assist. The Bulls unfortunately ended the season, and DeRozan was still honorable despite the defeat, scoring 22 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists on 8-of-16 shooting, and this game was a hard-fought 41 minutes. Vucevic only had 16 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists, White had 13 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists, Dosum had 10 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, Jawante Green on the bench had 12 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists, and Caruso, who played with an injury, also had 6 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists.