Using NBA 2K20 to predict Orlando Magic vs. Miami Heat

We continue our Miami Heat NBA 2K20 simulation series with a preview of Monday night’s game versus the visiting Orlando Magic. What does NBA 2K have to say?

The Miami Heat weren’t able to pull out their 21st home win of the season against the battered Los Angeles Clippers, but they get another shot this Monday night against the Orlando Magic. A loss to the Heat would put Orlando within a half-game of the eighth-seeded Brooklyn Nets and ever so closer to a guaranteed first-round exit come playoff time. That eighth seed is not anywhere any team in the league wants to be with the powerhouse Milwaukee Bucks waiting for them.

Headed into Monday night’s action, the injury report is murky at best. Sun-Sentinel beat writer Ira Winderman reports that big guns Jimmy Butler, Kendrick Nunn, and Goran Dragic are listed as questionable. That same injury report also lists Bam Adebayo as probable.

Although Jimmy Butler’s status for the next game is in question, he’s been quoted saying he plans to play. He knows the trouble the Heat has had against the Orlando Magic and seems to take this in-state rival seriously. He may not confirm this, but I’m sure he watched last season from afar as Miami, his future team, missed the playoffs while going just 7-9 in the Southeast division and 1-3 against the Magic. That’s not going to happen on his watch if he can help it.

I bumped up the Heat’s rotation to 11 players by adding Dion Waiters and continued to distribute the minutes to mirror the action each player saw in Friday night’s loss to the Clippers. Afterward, I headed over to the coaching tab and moved up Coach Spoelstra’s run zone tendency from 5-percent to 50-percent. While on this pane, I finally decided to change more of the coaching tendencies. I designated the team’s top three scoring options to be Kendrick Nunn, Jimmy Butler, and Bam Adebayo in that order. I also changed Bam Adebayo’s secondary position to power forward since Meyers Leonard‘s positions look that way. Lastly, I edited Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, and Bam Adebayo’s vitals to allow them to initiate the offense.

NBA 2K20 had Head Coach Erik Spoelstra’s defensive rating an A while having his offensive rating at a D. I’ve put up with this for way too long, so I changed his defensive rating to a B-. I came about that rating by sorting all 30 NBA teams by points per game then divided 30 by the amount of letter grades that are available from F all the way up to A+ (13). This came out to about 2.3 teams being in each grade level with Miami hovering around a B to B-.

If you want to see the simulation for yourself, check out the latest video on my YouTube channel. There I’ll be showing you the adjustments I made.

Starting Lineup

Orlando Magic

Point guard, Markelle Fultz

Shooting guard, Evan Fournier

Small forward, Aaron Gordon

Power forward, Khem Birch

Center, Nikola Vucevic

Miami Heat

Point guard, Kendrick Nunn

Shooting guard, Duncan Robinson

Small forward, Jimmy Butler

Power forward, Bam Adebayo

Center, Meyers Leonard

Outcome

Orlando Magic 103, Miami Heat 131

Once again, the Heat started off slow, escaping the first quarter with a narrow 25-23 lead. The game got pretty out of hand in the second quarter when they started off with a 22-8 run en route to a 37 point second quarter. At the half, Miami held a commanding 62-44 lead but then had to attempt one of the hardest things in the NBA: Hold a lead.

Pausing the simulation at the halfway mark revealed something heat Nation might not be used to seeing. At this point, Miami had gone to the free-throw line 18 times with only one miss. Kendrick Nunn was 9-for-9 all by himself. Adebayo was doing Bam things pacing the team with 17 points and three successful trips to the charity stripe himself.

The third quarter provided another high octane performance, with both teams scoring 30 or more points. Essentially the Heat only gave up one point from their halftime lead, so there were no complaints to be had. Their job was done. When it came to winning time in American Airlines Arena, the Miami heat did not disappoint. With seven minutes reaming they delivered the killing blow on their way to a 17-4 run. The Magic were stunned and left in the dust. Game over.

Player stats

Orlando Magic

Aaron Gordon – 28 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists

Markelle Fultz – 22 points, 1 steal, 1 block

Evan Fournier – 14 points, 1 assist

Terrance Ross – 11 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist,

Mo Bamba – 9 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block

Miami Heat

Bam Adebayo – 27 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists

Kendrick Nunn – 24 points (13-14 FT), 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 steal

Jimmy Butler – 17 points, 4 rebounds, 10 assists, 3 steals, 1 block

Tyler Herro – 13 points, 4 rebounds

Goran Dragic – 12 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal

Honorable mention: Dion Waiters – 7 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals

Yes, we know what the injury report says, but perhaps Jimmy Butler’s drive to play plus the extra days rest that Goran Dragic and Kendrick Nunn have had are enough to overcome this division rival. If they’re not available to go, you’ll see the likes of Chris Silva, and Gabe Vincent as a part of his newly signed two-way contract.