Milwaukee Bucks vs Miami Heat Preview: South Beach Showdown

The weather is cold but the Milwaukee Bucks are heating up and that will be put to the test with their trip down to Miami. The Bucks and the Heat have recent history, with Miami eliminating Milwaukee in the fraudulent bubble. The Bucks got their payback the next year sweeping Miami en route to their title. Whenever we see these two teams play, shenanigans occur. There’s been rock fights and record-breaking shooting performances. What will happen tonight is anybody’s guess.

Where We’re At

The Bucks have not played the prettiest basketball since their 9-0 start. Even when they win, they have it be in the ugliest fashion possible. The Bucks are on game three of their road trip after beating the New York Knicks on Monday and the Atlanta Hawks last night. The main culprit of the Bucks’ turgidity is the frequent turnovers and inconsistent defense, but we’ve seen signs of improvement on both ends of the floor this week. Grayson Allen is out after his ankle injury he suffered last night, Serge Ibaka is still out for personal reasons, and Khris Middleton is out with knee soreness, but his return might be soon.

The Miami Heat are not having the season many, including themselves, were hoping for. The Heat are 22-20 sitting in 8th in the East. Their defense has been good but their offense is the root cause of their struggle. Miami is fresh off a last-second win against the Thunder where they took a not suspicious 40 free throws and made it all 40 as well. The Heat will be down some key contributors.

Player to Watch

Jimmy Butler may have questionable hairstyle choices, but he has been important in keeping this injury-ridden Heat group together. The wing player is averaging 22.1 points per game and has made a series of clutch plays including the winning And-1 against OKC on Tuesday and late buckets against the Brooklyn Nets. Butler is likely to win the inaugural “Clutch player of the year award” which congrats I guess.