With Miami up 2-0 in the first round, they were confident heading into Atlanta for Game 3. On the other hand, the Hawks desperately needed a win to keep this series alive. They came out of the gate strong, capping off a strong first half with a 39-point second quarter. Down 64-51 after the half, Miami answered back with an impressive quarter of their own, outscoring Atlanta 30-15 in the third.
During this back-and-forth battle, Kyle Lowry left the game with a hamstring injury and was ruled out for the fourth quarter. Despite only having 14 points entering the fourth quarter, Trae Young was determined to keep his team in this series. He rattled off 10 points in the fourth, including a game-winning floater with 4 seconds remaining. Butler struggled from the field in this one, only converting 8 of his 20 shot attempts. Atlanta won this game 111-110 and was right back in the series.
With Kyle Lowry ruled out for the rest of the series, Miami looked to Gabe Vincent and Victor Oladipo to step up in Game 4. While both guards didn’t produce much offensively, they provided valuable defense on Trae Young all game long. Young ended the game with 9 points and shot 3/11 from the field. Butler stepped up once again and dominated the Hawks defense, finishing with 36 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 steals. Miami easily took care of Atlanta with a 110-86 win.
In an unexpected turn of events, Jimmy Butler was also ruled out for Game 5. In a crucial elimination game such as this one, Miami needed some big performances from their other stars. After his performance in the previous game, Victor Oladipo was inserted into the starting lineup and did not disappoint. He picked up right where Jimmy left off, driving to the basket and playing stellar defense.
Oladipo ended with 23 points on 50% shooting, as well as 3 assists and 3 steals. Bam Adebayo also had his best performance of the series, finishing with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Miami had to sweat this one out until the very end, but they closed out the Hawks with a 97-94 win and secured their spot in the second round.
A lot of the credit should go to the Heat’s defensive scheme for this series as they suffocated Trae Young in almost every game. Trae only averaged 15.4 points and shot 31.9% from the field in five games. He also had 30 turnovers, capping off the worst playoff performance of his short career. Miami looks ahead to an injury-riddled Sixers team in the next round.
For more NBA coverage, click here.
