With just one regular season remaining, there are only two scenarios left for the Miami Heat before the Play-In Tournament. They will either finish as the 9th or 10th seed; that means the Heat will need to win two games in the Play-In Tournament to officially qualify for the NBA Playoffs.
Miami has officially been mathematically eliminated from finishing (in the regular season) as the 8th seed or higher in the Eastern Conference. Not only does it mean that the Heat will have to win two Play-In Tournament games (perhaps even both on the road, if they finish as the 10th seed) to qualify for the official playoff field, but it also means that Miami can only qualify for the 8th seed.
If the Heat does end up earning its way into the postseason field, Miami will face off against the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
Heat's remaining Play-In Tournament scenarios
If Miami beats the Atlanta Hawks on the final game of the regular season, and the Charlotte Hornets lose to the New York Knicks, the Heat would clinch the 9th seed. However, if the Hornets beat the Knicks, or the Heat loses to the Hawks, Miami would fall into the 10th slot.
If both teams lose, the Heat would be 10th as well.
Why does this matter if the Heat would still need to win two Play-In Tournament games to make the playoffs? Well, because if the Heat is 9th, they'd host the Hornets in that first tournament game. If they are 10th, they'd have to go on the road.
The Heat have an uphill battle on their hands
Considering how bad (17-24) the Heat have been on the road this season, winning back-to-back road games could be too much to ask at this point. Especially considering the last time the Heat won back-to-back road games was in mid-February.
Either way, whether the Heat begins their path to the playoffs on the road or at home, it's clear that they're going to have an uphill battle on their hands. Even if both games were at home, winning back-to-back games is going to be an incredibly tough task for a team that has struggled with consistency for the majority of this season.
Even more so considering the Heat have dropped 10 of their last 14 games.
Does the Heat still have one more gasp of competitiveness left in them? We will be able to find out over the next few days now that their Play-In Tournament path is pretty much set in stone.