Erik Spoelstra put up a clinic against the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs. The Miami Heat ended up beating the Bucks in five games, reaching the conference semifinals for the second year in a row.
Before the Heat made history by defeating the No. 1 seed in the East, Milwaukee had a good chance to plan a play that would’ve given them the lead or helped them tie the game.
As Max Struss reveals, nobody understood what they did, including Spoelstra and his team.
“Honestly, we were all questioning it… Spo came into the huddle and he was like, ‘they didn’t call a timeout, what are they doing?'” Strus said on the Bucks not calling a timeout in the final 10 seconds of the game.
"Honestly, we were all questioning it…Spo came into the huddle and he was like 'they didn't call a timeout, what are they doing?'" – Max Strus on what it felt like as the Heat realized Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer wasn't going to call a timeout at the end of regulation. pic.twitter.com/8UTH7UbUrm
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) April 27, 2023
What followed this decision was Giannis Antetokounmpo driving to the basket before stopping and passing the ball to Khris Middleton, who found Grayson Allen. Allen couldn’t release the ball in time and the buzzer went off, marking the end of overtime and the Bucks’ season.
The series ended the same way it started for the Bucks, in a disastrous way. After Game 1, they couldn’t keep up with the Heat, and even though they won Game 2, the differences between these two teams were big.
Giannis Antetokounmpo explained that the Heat were focused on beating them while the Bucks were thinking of winning the NBA championship already. This mindset doesn’t help anybody and the Bucks proved that really well.
Spoelstra Tricked Budenholzer In The Play That Sent Game 5 To Overtime
The 2x NBA champion head coach also pulled some tricks to beat the Bucks, which led to a play for Jimmy Butler, who didn’t miss his chance to send the game into overtime.
The Heat have suffered big injuries this series, but they remain extremely competitive. If Jimmy Butler keeps this level, his team will have a big chance to beat the New York Knicks.
We could see a historical run from the Heat, who returned to the Finals in 2020 and have unfinished business with this series. It’s still too early to tell, but Miami could be in line to have a terrific playoffs run.
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