What it has to do with the Miami Heat
This would make sense as far as the projections go too. To project out stat lines by team for the remainder of the 82 games, based on the games already actually played and then to compare them against a competitor’s projections according to the actual NBA schedule, that would give you a pretty solid data set that can be seen as somewhat dependable and realistic.
While there would be certain intricacies to account for, such as home, away, or simply a proneness to play better or worst against certain teams, it is something that can be done. In fact, it was done for our favorite NBA basketball team, our very own Miami Heat.
The Strat-O-Matic simulation of the balance of the unplayed season had the Heat closing at 50-32 and in a tie with Indiana for the No. 4 seed in the East, winning that on a tiebreaker. That had the Heat hosting Indiana in the first round.
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) April 15, 2020
Per the Twitter account of Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Miami Heat are projected to close with 50 wins exactly according to Strat-O-Matic and in a tie for the Eastern Conference’s four seed with the Indiana Pacers. Things just got really interesting.
As if at least one of them hasn’t already crossed your mind, here are three reasons why we would love to see this matchup in the first round of the playoffs. Here we go.
Jimmy Butler v. T.J. Warren
The blown kiss heard around the world, we were all set for part three of this epic clash, right before the season was suspended. A physical battle in the previous game, the Miami Heat would eventually take that game, as they had the one and only previous matchup of the season.
Once things started to overflow, boom, T.J. Warren and Jimmy Butler had to be separated. While we will just be overjoyed to get basketball back in general, the chance to revisit this epic back and forth is the first reason we would love to see a Pacers/Miami Heat first-round series.