Miami Heat

The Miami Heat achieved their goal of splitting New York and wresting home-court advantage from the Knicks. The series returns to Miami on Saturday for Game 3, and the Heat are reportedly optimistic that Jimmy Butler can play after missing Game 2 with a sprained ankle.

Is Butler will play in Game 3? If so, how effective is it? The Heat attempted to make up for Butler’s absence by shooting 3s in Game 2 (49 attempts), but the team hasn’t been excellent from long distance this season (except for the hot series with Milwaukee). Plus, Butler is one of the best foulers in the league. He made 11 of Miami’s 29 free throws in Game 1, making nine of them. In Game 2, Miami made just 12 free throws as a team. Those are the margins that make the difference in a tight series.

New York scored 55 points from Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle in Game 2. Brunson was 0 for seven from 3 in Game 1, making six of his ten 3-pointers. Josh Hart has been great since he arrived in New York and is short of a triple-double with one assist. But for me, RJ Barrett’s work is the key. He scored 24 points on 5-of-9 3-pointers. He’s aggressive and confident. Barrett has averaged 25 points per game in this series, and New York has a slight edge if he continues as the third option. The longer this series goes on, the more the Heat look like a team that barely made it out of the playoffs. I bet the Knicks get the points, especially with Jalen & Julius leading the charge, even on the road.

The longer this series goes on, the more the Heat look like a team that barely made it out of the playoffs. I bet the Knicks get the points, especially with Jalen & Julius leading the charge, even on the road. Miami is the best hope to win Game 3.