Heat series preview and prediction for 2023 NBA playoffs

[ad_1]

It’s been a dreamlike start to these playoffs for the Knicks, besting the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games despite an injured Julius Randle. Awaiting them in the second round is long-time rival and eighth seed Miami Heat, ready to turn their postseason into a nightmare.

With their upset over the Bucks, the Heat reminded the NBA world it’s that same contender this time of year no matter the regular season outcome. They’ll be tougher, more poised and better built to compete with New York.

Who’s going to come out on top of this renewed rivalry and advance to the Conference Finals?

Miami won’t look anything like Cleveland, but there are some similarities in the match-up. For one, the Knicks are once again the deeper squad.

The Heat’s rotation currently consists of Bam Adebayo, Kevin Love, Jimmy Butler, Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Kyle Lowry, Caleb Martin, Duncan Robinson, Cody Zeller and Haywood Highsmith. We don’t need to go one-by-one, but there’s a lot of Cedi Osman/Danny Green level guys in there.

We saw how that turned out in Cleveland, and New York needs to take that kind of advantage against Miami. It’ll have to start with specific match-ups on the offensive end.

The Knicks are bound to see multiple looks from the Heat, who are coached by one of the best in the game, (especially at on-the-fly and mid-series adjustments) Erik Spoelstra. The good news is New York has multiple looks and dependable scorers, so should they be able to adjust and adapt they will be in good shape.

That means if Miami’s switching everything, Jalen Brunson has to hunt Love, Martin and the guards in pick-and-rolls. If they’re trapping, Josh Hart, Randle or whoever the outlet is needs to receive a crisp pass and make the right read against a blitzing Heat defense.

Zone defenses will require strong cuts and weak-side action to create good looks from deep, which they’ll have to hit. Ultimately there’s no secret who this Knicks offense is running through, and the Heat don’t have many answers for him.

Story continues

One-on-one Brunson can torch anybody, except for maybe Butler, consistently. His picks will likely get…

[ad_2]
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/knicks-heat-series-preview-prediction-204709495.html?src=rss

Author : SNY

Publish date : 2023-04-27 20:47:09

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.