NBA | Hawks 114-Heat 123
Miami Heat, play-in experts
Spoelstra’s team wins in Atlanta, in overtime, and clinches a playoff spot. The first 10-seed ever to do so. They’ll face the Cavs.
The Eastern Conference play-in tournament, another reminder of just how shaky the conference’s top tier has been, delivered one great game, easily the best of the 2025 play-in round. That’s saying something: the Miami Heat won in Atlanta (114–123) in overtime to claim the East’s final playoff spot. Erik Spoelstra’s team jumped from the 10th seed to the 8th and will now face the Cleveland Cavaliers starting tomorrow. On paper, they’re overmatched—but they’re in.
Because the Heat still aren’t quite good enough, they keep finding themselves in this position. And somehow, they keep coming through. These aren’t the triumphs that teams dream of—not the kind Pat Riley dreams of—but for now, they’ll take what they can get. And it’s not nothing. They finished the regular season 37–45, three wins behind the eighth-seeded Hawks, and spent the year riding through chaos: Jimmy Butler drama, failed runs at Kevin Durant, a 10-game losing streak, and 22 blown double-digit leads. Given all that, becoming the first 10-seed to survive the play-in and reach the playoffs isn’t a bad consolation prize.
Miami has now made it out of the play-in three years in a row—beating the Bulls each time. In 2023, they rode that wave all the way to the Finals. This time? That kind of run feels far less likely.
Heat nearly throw it away
In Atlanta, the Heat nearly pulled off another one of their patented meltdowns. They led by 17 in the second quarter (28–45) before falling behind by six (98–92) in the fourth, as the Hawks surged behind a furious run. Atlanta later collapsed, but not before Trae Young sent the game to overtime with a basket in the final second and a half. In the extra period, Davion Mitchell—scoreless through regulation—drilled three three-pointers (outscoring the Hawks 9–8 from beyond the arc in OT), while Tyler Herro hit two more. The Heat went 5-for-6 from deep in overtime and doused the Hawks for good. Herro finished with 30 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists; Bam Adebayo added 17, 11, and 5 with 5 blocks; and Andrew Wiggins posted 20, 8, and 8. Along with Mitchell (16 points, 5 assists), Haywood Highsmith, rookie Kel’el Ware, and a few key shots from Duncan Robinson, this is the transitional Heat core that—at the very least—will be playing playoff basketball. We’ll see how much trouble they can give the Cavs.
The Hawks head into the offseason after another forgettable year. Not terrible, not great—just there. They were hurt by the injury to Jalen Johnson, who started the season looking like a breakout All-Star candidate, and now all eyes turn to how much Trae Young’s future dominates the summer headlines. The point guard averaged over 24 points and 11 assists per game, leading the league in total and per-game assists. And yet, he and the Hawks remain stuck in a holding pattern, a partnership seemingly headed for an inevitable split. Against the Heat, it was the same story: flashes of brilliance, big-time moments—including the basket that forced overtime—but ultimately falling short. And to make matters worse, Young was caught up in a late-game tangle with Davion Mitchell that he couldn’t shake free from.
Dyson Daniels looks like an ideal backcourt complement, a standout defender. Zaccharie Risacher (a brutal night: 3 points on 1-of-11 shooting, 0-of-7 from three), a low-hype No. 1 pick, has quietly had a promising rookie season. Onyeka Okongwu has shown he can be a starting-caliber center (28 points, 12 boards tonight). Add a healthy Jalen Johnson and you’ve got a balanced, sensible lineup… but probably not the one that will lift the Hawks out of mediocrity. At some point, the franchise will need to make big decisions. Transformational ones. And inevitably, that means decisions involving Trae Young. That’s just how these things go.
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18
Mouhamed Gueye
|
|
10
Zaccharie Risacher
|
|
17
Onyeka Okongwu
|
|
5
Dyson Daniels
|
|
11
Trae Young
|
|
0
Dominick Barlow
|
|
27
Vít Krejčí
|
|
3
Caris LeVert
|
|
14
Terance Mann
|
|
24
Garrison Mathews
|
|
20
Georges Niang
|
|
29
Daeqwon Plowden
|
| Min | Pts | TR | OR | DR | Ast | Los | Rec | Blk | S1 | S2 | S3 | RF | CF | Val | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
18
Mouhamed Gueye
|
14 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0/0 | 0/1 | 1/2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
|
10
Zaccharie Risacher
|
15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1/1 | 1/4 | 0/7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
|
17
Onyeka Okongwu
|
49 | 28 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0/0 | 8/11 | 4/8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
|
5
Dyson Daniels
|
44 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0/0 | 4/11 | 1/2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
|
11
Trae Young
|
44 | 29 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7/8 | 5/13 | 4/9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
|
0
Dominick Barlow
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
27
Vít Krejčí
|
8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
3
Caris LeVert
|
37 | 15 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0/1 | 3/6 | 3/9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
|
14
Terance Mann
|
25 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
|
24
Garrison Mathews
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
20
Georges Niang
|
25 | 20 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2/2 | 6/8 | 2/7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
|
29
Daeqwon Plowden
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
13
Bam Adebayo
|
|
22
Andrew Wiggins
|
|
7
Kel'el Ware
|
|
18
Alec Burks
|
|
14
Tyler Herro
|
|
20
Kyle Anderson
|
|
24
Haywood Highsmith
|
|
11
Jaime Jaquez Jr.
|
|
16
Keshad Johnson
|
|
5
Nikola Jović
|
|
9
Pelle Larsson
|
|
45
Davion Mitchell
|
|
55
Duncan Robinson
|
|
2
Terry Rozier
|
| Min | Pts | TR | OR | DR | Ast | Los | Rec | Blk | S1 | S2 | S3 | RF | CF | Val | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
13
Bam Adebayo
|
44 | 17 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1/2 | 8/12 | 0/2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
22
Andrew Wiggins
|
42 | 20 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2/5 | 6/11 | 2/6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
|
7
Kel'el Ware
|
21 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0/0 | 6/6 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
18
Alec Burks
|
11 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 1/2 | 1/5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
|
14
Tyler Herro
|
44 | 30 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5/6 | 5/11 | 5/10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
|
20
Kyle Anderson
|
11 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0/0 | 1/4 | 1/1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
|
24
Haywood Highsmith
|
39 | 12 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0/0 | 3/3 | 2/6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
|
11
Jaime Jaquez Jr.
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
16
Keshad Johnson
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
5
Nikola Jović
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
9
Pelle Larsson
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
|
45
Davion Mitchell
|
40 | 16 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2/4 | 1/4 | 4/9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
|
55
Duncan Robinson
|
9 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1/1 | 1/1 | 1/3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
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2
Terry Rozier
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |