CHICAGO — For their efforts Wednesday night at the United Center, the Miami Heat earned a likely return trip next Wednesday to the United Center.
No, it was not the outcome sought or desired, but one likely assured after Wednesday night’s 119-111 loss to the Chicago Bulls.
So play-in the hard way it will be for Erik Spoelstra’s team.
With the result making the Heat’s final two regular-season games all but moot, it appears 10th place in Eastern Conference it will be for a Heat team 20 months removed from the 2023 NBA Finals.
Presented the opportunity to move up in the play-in seedings and host a play-in game, the Heat likely instead will have to win consecutive play-in games to extend the team’s run of playoff appearances to six.
‘We all burned the boats, both teams, focusing on this game,” Spoelstra said, acknowledging the stakes and the cost. “My mindset was to get this game. And they played better than we did.”
Even with Andrew Wiggins back in the mix, the Heat again found themselves unable to solve Chicago, losing the season series 3-0 to the Bulls.
“They deserved it,” Spoelstra said, “and that’s the biggest takeaway from it.”
Unless, the Atlanta Hawks stumble out of the No. 8 East seed over their final three games, it will be Heat at Bulls in an elimination game next Wednesday.
And that result could come down to the Heat figuring out Bulls guard Josh Giddey, who closed this one with 28 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists, his seventh triple-double of the season, the most by a Chicago player since Michael Jordan had 15 in 1988-89.
That had the Heat again no better than second best on Wednesday night, with Tyler Herro scoring 30, Bam Adebayo 18 and Davion Mitchell 17.
“The journey’s going to be a little harder,” Wiggins said of the loss.
Five Degrees of Heat from Wednesday night’s game:
1. Closing time: The Heat led 32-27 after the first period, with the Bulls then taking a 58-52 lead into halftime.
“They just really took control of it right at the start,” Spoelstra said.
A 15-4 Chicago run early in the third period then put the Bulls up 14, with the Heat unable to keep pace with the Bulls’ transition game. That eventually had the Heat down 92-84 going into the fourth.
The Heat trimmed the deficit to five midway through the fourth, but the Bulls kept coming and were up 100-97 with 4:37 to play.
Still, after a steal, Herro pulled up for a 3-pointer with 38.4 seconds that could have pulled the Heat within two. The shot was off, ending the Heat’s hopes.
“I think we did some good-enough things in the first half and in the second half it was way more to their game,” Spoelstra said.
Of Herro going for the heroics with his pull-up 3-point attempt, Spoelstra said, “Tyler has a fearlessness that you can’t take for granted. It’s my job to now coach him in situational basketball.”
2. Play-in race: The Heat conclude their regular season with a Friday night road game against the New Orleans Pelicans and then Sunday’s season finale against the Washington Wizards at Kaseya Center.
At this point, the only way for the Heat to avoid the No. 10 play-in seed and get a play-in home game would be by winning their final two games and then having Chicago lose its remaining two games or the Atlanta Hawks lose two of their final three.
The Bulls close out against lottery dwellers Washington and Philadelphia, while the Hawks finishing off against lottery teams Brooklyn and Philadelphia, as well as Orlando, which is locked into No. 7 in the East and will have nothing to play for in that Sunday season finale except preparing for their home play-in opener two days later.
“We’re going to do whatever we need to do to seize that opportunity to get into the playoffs,” Spoelstra said.
3. Wiggins back: Wiggins made his first appearance since March 27, missing the previous six games due to right hamstring tendinopathy.
A pair of 3-pointers were his only first-half points, also with two rebounds and two assists over the opening two periods.
Spoelstra said pregame the team would be monitoring Wiggins’ minutes in his return, now likely with greater concern in getting him back up to speed for the play-in round.
At times it appeared Wiggins’ mobility was limited.
He closed with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, six rebounds and five assists.
“He was better in the second half,” Spoelstra said. “It’s not easy being out and all of a sudden going back.”
With the loss, the Heat dropped to 5-10 with Wiggins, Herro and Adebayo available.
“I felt solid,” Wiggins said.
4. Revolving door: The Heat’s revolving door of personnel took an unexpected spin immediately prior to Wednesday night’s game, when Pelle Larsson was ruled out after spraining his right ankle during pregame lifting.
Larsson had started the previous six games while Wiggins was out.
Larsson already was out of the starting lineup when his injury was announced, with the Heat opening with Wiggins, Adebayo, Herro, Kel’el Ware and Alec Burks.
Larsson’s energy could have helped in this one, with the Heat often appearing a step slow.
5. Adebayo’s threes: Adebayo extended his career-best streak to 11 consecutive games with a first-quarter 3-pointer and followed up with another later in the opening period, having made multiple 3-pointers in a career-best six consecutive games.
A game after sitting out with back spasms, he then was forced into extra duty with Ware forced to the bench with early foul trouble.
Adebayo closed 6 of 15 from the field, including 2 of 3 on 3-pointers, with six rebounds and three assists.
“You want to try to go into the play-in on a positive note.” Adebayo said of what has to come next.
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