The final spot in the Eastern Conference side of the NBA playoffs is up for grabs tonight on South Beach. The Miami Heat will be hosting the Chicago Bulls with the winner earning the No. 8 seed in the playoffs and a matchup with the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
The Bulls are in this game after an incredible comeback against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night. Chicago trailed by as many as 19 points but stormed back for a 109-105 victory. The Heat were not as fortunate in their first game.
They were handled with relative ease by the Atlanta Hawks, losing 116-105 on their home court. Their vaunted defense was nowhere to be found as the Hawks shot 63.6 percent on 2-pointers. Miami could have some struggles again tonight as Chicago swept the season series, going 3-0.
What can you expect to see in tonight’s matchup? Here is all the information you need to watch the game along with some analysis and predictions for how things will turn out.
Date: April 14th, 2023
Time: 7:00 PM ET
Location: Kaseya Center; Miami, FL
TV Channel: TNT
Radio: ESPNR, WQAM/WRTO
Injury Report For Chicago Bulls vs. Miami Heat
Chicago Bulls Injury Report: Lonzo Ball – Out – Left Knee Surgery
Miami Heat Injury Report: Nikola Jovic – Out – Back Spasms, Kyle Lowry – Questionable – Left Knee Soreness, Gabe Vincent – Questionable – Back Spasms
Expected Starting Lineups For Chicago Bulls vs. Miami Heat
Chicago Bulls Expected Starting Lineup: G Patrick Beverly, G Alex Caruso, F Zach LaVine, F DeMar DeRozan, C Nikola Vucevic
Miami Heat Expected Starting Lineup: G Gabe Vincent, G Tyler Herro, F Max Strus, F Jimmy Butler, C Bam Adebayo
Betting Odds For Chicago Bulls vs. Miami Heat
Bulls vs. Heat Spread: Heat -5.5
Bulls vs. Heat Over/Under Total: 208.5 Total Points
Bulls vs. Heat Moneylines: Bulls: +185, Heat: -215
The Bulls and Heat are coming into tonight’s matchup with opposite momentum. The Bulls are riding high after an impressive victory on Wednesday and the Heat have to be disappointed about how they played. Knowing how much success they had in the regular season, Chicago should be flying high with confidence.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFF COVERAGE: Chicago Bulls & Miami Heat Updates
The biggest key to this game will be whether or not Miami can score enough. They were unable to keep up with the Hawks, who came to play on the defensive end. The Bulls have a three-headed monster scoring-wise with LaVine, DeRozan and Vucevic and have looked much different on defense with a Beverley and Caruso backcourt pairing.
Butler will have to shoot the ball better than he did against the Hawks when he went 6-of-19. He will likely match up with DeRozan for the majority of the night, which is the best one-on-one to watch this evening.
NBA NEWS & PLAYOFF COVERAGE: Chicago Bulls & Miami Heat Updates
Head coach Eric Spoelstra has also hinted at a lineup change coming in this game. That, along with a motivated Butler, should be enough to get the Heat over the hump and stave off the embarrassment of losing two home games in the Play-In Tournament. Miami will snap their losing streak against Chicago and advance to the postseason, sending the Bulls into the lottery.
Want the latest in NBA analysis, breaking news, and insider information? Click Here.
