Miami Heat to Miss 5-Time All-Star Ahead of Play-In Game Against Atlanta Hawks
The Miami Heat will take on the Atlanta Hawks in the final play-in Game of the Eastern Conference’s 2024-25 season. The bracket is ready with the winner between the Heat and Hawks ready to face the top-seed Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round. But Erik Spoelstra’s team is hit with a major update that could alter the plans.
As per reports from Ira Winderman, the Miami Heat Beat reporter, Kevin Love will miss the game due to family reasons. While his return date is not confirmed yet, this will be his 14th consecutive game that the 2016 NBA champion will miss this season. He has played in only 23 games so far, last taking the floor on March 21 against the Houston Rockets.
In his third season with the Heat, Love averaged 5.3 points and 4.1 rebounds in around 11 minutes of game time. Although his production on the court might not be flashy, he took over the mentor role from Udonis Haslem. Love has been vocal about his mental health issues, and this is seen as one of the reasons for his absence. Luckily for Miami, though, Nikola Jovic and Pelle Larson could return for the side after missing out due to injury.
Miami Heat vs Atlanta Hawks: Slight Advantage to Erik Spoelstra’s Side Despite Roster Issues?
The Miami Heat has been struggling with various issues throughout the season. Though they received a heavy package in return for Jimmy Butler, they needed time to settle into Miami’s gameplay. Tyler Herro’s rise and Bam Adebayo’s consistency helped the Heat to finish ninth in the competitive Eastern Conference.
Also Read: “Combination Has Not Been Great”- Steve Kerr’s Words Hint at Uncertain Future for Jonathan Kuminga.
As for the Hawks, the team is still in between rebuild mode. They lost their second-best player and looked to engineer their roster to be a much younger side around Trae Young. They have very little to lose in the match-up against Miami, the side will go all in. In their recent regular season matchups, both sides won two games each with an average point difference of 13.5 points.
Heat won the latest two matches with Tyler Herro leading the offence for them. Though they will miss, Kevin Love’s guidance from the bench, the side could just get over the final hump to enter the postseason.
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