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Tim BontempsESPN
BOSTON – Dwyane Wade's career almost ended Sunday.
Yes, Wade and his Miami Heat are still alive mathematically with two games to play in this last regular season of the Hall of Fame shooting career. But after Sunday's game, with Miami losing in overtime in Toronto, and Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets qualifying for the playoffs with victories on the road against privileged opponents, Miami's hopes for the playoffs playoffs only hold on to one thread.
Do not believe it? Just ask the Heat, who resigned Sunday to reserve guard Rodney McGruder, after his defeat in Toronto, to ensure he would avoid the luxury tax this season. The Heat did that instead of keeping McGruder for the chance that he could help them in the last two games of the regular season or playoffs, so Miami has the chance to succeed.
And, after Sunday, the Heat will need a lot of money to do it.
This is largely due to the game of Orlando and Brooklyn, who went on the road Sunday to win victories over the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers, respectively, to lock two of the Conference's three playoff spots from the East who were still in the running. catches when the day has begun.
For both teams, it was a day to savor. Orlando (41-40) has not participated in the playoffs for seven years. It was the third longest drought of the season in the league, behind the Sacramento Kings (2006) and Phoenix Suns (2010). After defeating the Detroit Pistons earlier in the day, the Charlotte Hornets appeared in Boston court knowing that a loss could leave them in a game to be played or dying in Charlotte on Wednesday in their finals. regular season.
"To be quite frank with all of you, I said I'll keep an eye on Detroit, et cetera, et cetera," said the magical guard, Evan Fournier. "But I think when we saw the Hornets win, it hit us a bit, like," S — "We have to win, and if we do not, that match in Charlotte is going to be very very hard for us. & # 39;
"So we gave everything tonight and I would not have done otherwise." Win in Boston [to qualify for the playoffs] is much better than the losing Hornets in Detroit. "
The magic was not easy, though. The Celtics used all their main players on Sunday, while coach Brad Stevens used the game as the final playoff spot. But Orlando still managed to win, turning a four-point deficit into a five-point lead after three points and a 14-point fourth-quarter lead, allowing it to resist a fierce race against the Celtics.
The way the Magic came back and won Sunday was a microcosm of the Orlando season, which saw the Magic sitting at 20-31 after a home defeat against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Jan. 29, at a time when the playoffs seemed much more fantastic than real.
But Orlando has won seven of its next eight games, including the last five, before the All-Star rest, and took advantage of that momentum to turn around. Sunday's win has pushed Orlando's record to 21-10 since this loss to the Thunder – including wins in ten of the last 12 games of the Magic series – in order to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since the negotiation with Dwight Howard.
"We have always had faith," said All-Star center Nikola Vucevic, one of the pieces that came to Orlando in exchange for Howard seven years ago. "What helped was that we had stretching and we played well all year round, it's not like we were going to play a good team and we were just out of nothing share.
"We knew that if we could reach a point where we were consistent with our game, we could do it, and we did it … the sequence before the break from the star game was important. 39, put in the head, "We could really do that."
A similar story occurred in Brooklyn, where the Nets found themselves shaky after their own home loss to the Thunder on Dec. 5, falling to 8-18. But Brooklyn have won wins in their next seven games – and nine of their next 10 – to return to the playoff mix, then stay there for the rest of the season.
The Nets officially booked their ticket Sunday after a win in Milwaukee on Saturday with another in Indiana. The Pacers, like the Celtics, were trying to win. But Brooklyn led most of the way and maintained a double-digit lead for most of the second half to secure the win.
"There was another level of concentration, another level of blocking," Nets coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters in Indianapolis after Brooklyn's victory. "They wanted it so much, there was extra energy in these last games."
Celtics goaltender Marcus Smart suffered a left-sided injury during Boston's loss to Orlando on Sunday night, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski told a source. Striker Jayson Tatum has definitely left the game after only six minutes because of a bruised shin.
Brooklyn secured a playoff spot by beating a team from Indiana who had won nine straight games against the Nets. Brooklyn dominated 108-96 on Sunday.
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Although the Magic and Nets teams are both in the playoffs, it remains to be seen where they will end in the East. If Brooklyn beats Miami at home on Wednesday night, the Nets will be sixth seeded. If Orlando wins in Charlotte and Brooklyn loses, Orlando will be sixth.
Defeat Sunday in Boston and Indiana also ensures that the top five teams in the East (Milwaukee Bucks, Raptors, Philadelphia 76ers, Celtics and Pacers) are now all in the trap, but only two teams, the Celtics and the Pacers, know they will be playing one against the other when the playoffs start next weekend.
And while there are still three teams – Detroit, Charlotte and Miami – who can clinch the eighth and final playoff spot in the East, Sunday's results have left Detroit in control.
Despite losing to Charlotte at home – thanks to 31 points, Kemba Walker – Detroit's eight rebounds and seven assists control his own destiny. Won its last two games – at home against the Memphis Grizzlies and on the road against the New York Knicks – and Detroit qualifies for the playoffs.
In order for the Heat to participate in the playoffs, the following events must occur:
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Win Tuesday at home against Philadelphia and Wednesday in Brooklyn
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Charlotte will lose in Cleveland on Tuesday or at home against Orlando on Wednesday
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Detroit will lose to Memphis Tuesday and New York Wednesday
Charlotte, meanwhile, must win both games and lose in Detroit one of his last two games to enter.
The Detroit match starting half an hour before Tuesday night in Miami, it is almost certain that the Heat will know it will still have a chance to play in the playoffs before the end of its match against the Sixers.
If Miami had even won one of their last four games – including a five-point loss against the Celtics and a two-point loss against both The Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday and the Raptors on Sunday – they would have control of their own destiny.
The heat, however, does not have. And, because of that, coupled with Sunday's results, the Miami season – and, with it, "One Last Dance" by Wade is on the support of life.
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