2024 Miami Heat playoffs picture after loss vs Golden State Warriors (March 26): Updated standings, schedule and more
The Miami Heat (39-33) faced off against the Golden State Warriors (37-34) on Tuesday. The Warriors were hoping to win their matchup against the Heat as they were in jeopardy of losing their spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament. Fortunately for them, they came out on top on Tuesday night and came up with a convincing, 113-92 victory.
Klay Thompson looked like his All-Star self as he carried Golden State to victory. Thompson led the Warriors with 28 points, five rebounds, two assists and one block. "Klay" also shot the ball efficiently with 42.8% shooting from beyond the arc and 55% overall.
Going directly against Thompson on offense was the Miami Heat's Bam Adebayo. Without Jimmy Butler by his side to help him beat the "Dubs", Adebayo stepped up the occasion. Adebayo nearly came up with a double-double performance with 24 points, nine rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block.
Helping Adebayo on offense were Haywood Highsmith and Terry Rozier, who both scored 15 points, respectively. Three other Miami players were in double-scoring figures as Jaime Jaquez Jr. (12 points), Nikola Jovic (11 points) and Caleb Martin (10 points) all made significant contributions. However, it was not enough to stop Golden State in its tracks.
Miami Heat Playoffs Picture: Updated standings
After the loss against Golden State, Miami now has a 39-33 record. The Heat remain in seventh place but are now tied with the Philadelphia 76ers who have the same win-loss record. The Heat are currently 1.5 games behind the Indiana Pacers (41-32) who are ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference.
The Heat still has a chance to secure a playoff spot without having to go through the NBA Play-In Tournament if they manage to win at least 80% of their remaining games. That's also given if the Pacers end up flopping and lose the remainder of their games.
Miami Heat Playoffs Picture: Remaining schedule
The Miami Heat currently have 10 games remaining in their regular season. However, given the adversaries they'll be facing within that time frame, it's not going to be a walk in the park. Their next opponents in the coming games will be the New York Knicks (43-28), who've performed masterfully thanks to the efforts of first-time All-Star Jalen Brunson.
The Heat will also face the Philadelphia 76ers (39-33) who are also trying to secure a guaranteed slot in the playoffs despite not having their star big man Joel Embiid. The Dallas Mavericks (42-29) might also prove to be a worthy challenge.
Given the matches they have ahead, head coach Erik Spoelstra will need to figure out a way to slither past the marquee matchups for them to take the No. 6 seed by the end of the regular season.