Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks prediction and combined starting 5 - May 15th, 2021 | NBA Season 2020-21
The Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks will face each other in Milwaukee on Saturday. They are likely to meet again in the NBA Playoffs.
The 2021 NBA Playoffs are closing in, and the fight for favorable seeding in the Eastern Conference continues, as teams between the fourth and sixth seeds are all separated by just 0.5 games.
The Miami Heat (39-31) have already secured a spot in the postseason, but the team is fifth in the East, just 0.5 games behind the fourth-seed Atlanta Hawks. The Heat are also tied with the New York Knicks, but they have a favorable tiebreaker. Miami had swept the three-game season series against the Knicks.
On the other end, the Milwaukee Bucks (45-25) are still in contention to grab the top seed in the East. They are only two games behind the Philadelphia 76ers, and one behind the Brooklyn Nets. Milwaukee needs Philadelphia to lose its remaining two games, and Brooklyn to lose at least one.
If the Milwaukee Bucks win their two remaining games and end up tied with Philadelphia and Brooklyn, they will be the first seed of the East as they own the tiebreaker against both teams.
Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks prediction
Though both the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks have secured their places in the postseason, this matchup will be important for their seeding aspirations. The Miami Heat would like to avoid falling to sixth and having to enter a likely first-round matchup with the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Heat defeated the Bucks in last year's postseason.
This game will have two Top 10 defensive teams in the 2020-21 NBA season. On its end, the Miami Heat has the eighth-best defense in the league, while the Milwaukee Bucks are 10th in Defensive Rating.
The Milwaukee Bucks' offense is the fifth-best in the NBA at 117.2 points scored per 100 possessions. The Miami Heat cannot match such production on offense, as they only average 111.1 points per 100 possessions (20th in the current season).
Still, this game should be quite competitive if both teams give it importance for their postseason seeding. Both the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks have taken eight wins in their last 10 games. The Heat is on a four-game winning streak, while Milwaukee has two wins in a row.
At home, the Milwaukee Bucks have a solid 25-10 record, but that will not be decisive against the Miami Heat, as they have a 18-16 record on the road this year. This game will decide the winner of the regular-season series between the Heat and the Bucks, and it might be a Saturday night thriller.
Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks combined starting 5
Point Guard - Jrue Holiday | Shooting Guard - Jimmy Butler | Small Forward - Khris Middleton | Power Forward - Giannis Antetokounmpo | Center - Bam Adebayo
Jrue Holiday has had a solid first campaign with the Milwaukee Bucks and he, along with other new faces on the roster, has given the team a new look in the 2020-21 NBA season. With Holiday's presence and experience, the Milwaukee Bucks have to be considered a big contender this year.
Holiday is averaging 17.7 points, six assists and 1.6 steals per game this season, and he's also put up a 50/39/78 shooting split.
On the Miami Heat's side, Jimmy Butler is the leader and best player on the roster. Butler's presence for the Heat in the 2020-21 NBA season has meant success, as the team has a 33-19 record with him playing, and a lowly 6-12 without him.
Butler is averaging 21.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, 7.1 assists per game and a league-leading 2.1 steals per game. Butler's also made 49.7% of his field goals and 86.3% of his free throws. He also has a career-high four triple-doubles this season, and 17 double-boubles.
Meanwhile, Khris Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo have been essential for the Milwaukee Bucks again. The team looks set to be highly competitive in the 2021 NBA Playoffs.
Middleton, though he missed out on an All-Star spot this year, has had an extraordinary season. He is averaging 20.4 points, six rebounds and 5.4 assists per game with a 47.4/41.6/89.7 shooting split.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, the two-time reigning MVP, should definitely be considered a legit candidate for another MVP award. However, his name has not been mentioned too often in the 2021 MVP discussion.
Still, Giannis has been impressive, and has arguably played better than last season. He is averaging 28.4 points, 11 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. All of this while shooting 57% from the field, 30.3% from three, and 68.9% from the free-throw line.
To close our combined starting lineup between the Miami Heat and Milwaukee Bucks, we have Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo.
Adebayo has had a stellar season for Erik Spoelstra's team, and he will be essential in the NBA Playoffs if the Miami Heat have another deep run.
Bam is averaging 18.9 points, nine rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.2 steals and a block per game, while making 57.4% of his field goals and 79.9% from the free-throw line.
Also read: Top 5 best NBA playoff series of the 2010s