The Miami Heat are once again calling their shot.
Andy Slater of FOX Sports 640 South Florida reported on Friday that the Heat, who are playing the Chicago Bulls in the second Eastern Conference play-in game later in the day, have already booked a flight to Boston (per FAA records). The Heat are scheduled to fly to Boston at 1 PM local time Saturday, Slater notes.
The implication is that the Heat are fully expecting to defeat the Bulls on Friday, which would set up a first-round playoff matchup against the rival Boston Celtics (the first game of that series would be on Sunday). Against Chicago, Miami will be without their leader Jimmy Butler (who suffered a concerning knee injury in the first-play in game against Philadelphia) and top trade deadline acquisition Terry Rozier (who is dealing with neck spasms). But their confidence clearly has not waned one bit.
Indeed, the Heat still have to be feeling good about their chances as they played 22 games without Butler during the regular season and are famous for having unheralded role players step up in big moments, especially come the postseason. Plus, if this flight move seems familiar for Miami, that is because it is. They did the exact same thing in last year’s playoffs too.
