The Miami Heat will finally be able to securely prepare to tip off their 2022 NBA Postseason.
With the Atlanta Hawks advancing to the first round of the NBA Playoffs, lassoing and wrangling the young Cleveland Cavaliers in the second half of their deciding NBA Play-In Game, they will head into FTX Arena on Sunday to test the Heat’s resolve.
Here are a few things to consider though. When all things are equal, the Heat are just the much better team, as they play both sides of the ball.
When things aren’t equal for the Heat, with them enduring injury and absence all season long, they might still be the better team when you consider what their depth has shown this season. However, when things aren’t equal for Atlanta, especially when you consider that this is a real-life scenario when talking about their center, Clint Capela, they can’t win big without him.
Clint Capela went to the locker room with an apparent leg injury after this foul on Evan Mobley. pic.twitter.com/hGv3O9KvSd
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 16, 2022
Well, anything can happen, but it becomes that much more of a task than it was to begin with.
The Miami Heat will welcome the electric Atlanta Hawks into FTX Arena Sunday. However, they’ll be missing some spark, with Clint Capela’s injury uncertainty.
According to reports, there is hope that he didn’t do any severe damage, but nothing really speaks to when, how soon, or if he can come back for this series or any other during the playoffs. Here is one of the latest bits of news on it all and how they are handling it.
There’s initial optimism that Atlanta Hawks center Clint Capela hasn’t suffered significant right knee damage, but an MRI on Saturday will determine extent of possible injury, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 16, 2022
For the Hawks, themselves, this is huge news for several reasons, as it impacts what they can do on both sides of the ball. They have guys that can rim protect and finish, similarly to what Capela does, but no one on their team can do all of what he can do at as high a level as he can do it at.
In example, he single-handedly mauled the Miami Heat on the glass in their last contest back on April 8th, accruing a double-double, or nearly, in the first half of action. Now, the Miami Heat would go on to win that game, but his impact is and was colossal.
As far as the Miami Heat, not having to deal with Capela should allow guys like Bam Adebayo, Dewayne Dedmon, Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, and anyone else who operates at the cup or in the paint to do so more effectively and efficiently. It’s really a huge deal for the Heat too.
Again, you don’t know the extent of the injury or how long it may keep him out, but it’s a big deal for both sides in this battle. Without another of their bigs, John Collins, in the mix as well, a guy who is also a phantom waiting to make his return any day now, things could get pretty bad before they get better for the Hawks.
Hopefully, that’s exactly the case in this opening round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs.