Miami Overcome Atlanta in OT, Becomes First 10th Seed to Reach NBA Playoffs from Play-In Tournament

The Miami Heat continued their Play-In dominance and outplayed the Atlanta Hawks 123-114 in overtime on Friday night. The Heat clinched the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference and will take on the top seed, the Cavaliers, in the first round of the playoffs. With this win, Miami also set an NBA record.

Tyler Herro scripted a comeback win for the Heat with 30 points, including two 3-pointers in overtime. Davion Mitchell added three 3-pointers in overtime after managing only seven points in regulation. Trae Young led the Hawks with 29 points and 11 assists. Onyeka Okongwu added 28 points with 12 rebounds.

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Davion Mitchell’s Clutch Basket Helps Miami Heat Clinch No. 8 Seed in East

The Miami Heat finished No. 10 after the regular season, and they beat two better-ranked sides on the road to secure an NBA Playoff berth. Miami is now the first No. 10 seed in either conference to make the playoffs since the current play-in format was introduced.

After a dominant first quarter, Miami didn’t drop a lead and held an 86-77 lead heading to the final period. The Hawks had an 11-2 run to tie the game at 88, and Young’s 3-pointer gave Atlanta its first lead at 91-88. Trae Young dropped a lay-in with 1.3 seconds remaining, and Atlanta’s late 14-6 run tied the game at 106.

Davion Mitchell’s three 3-pointers and Tyler Herro’s two 3-pointers helped Miami to outscore Atlanta 17-8 in overtime. The Heat started the overtime with an 11-2 run in the first two and a half minutes and took all the control. The Heat became the first play-in team to qualify with two road wins.

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Miami are also the only play-in team to play the NBA Finals, and they can now believe in themselves to replicate 2023. The Heat have qualified for the playoffs as a play-in team three times, and they are 2-1 in the first round. It would be interesting to see how they respond to the Cavaliers in the opener of the playoffs on Sunday.

As per Saim Quinn, CBS Sports reporter, the Miami Heat have also held onto their unprotected picks in 2026 and 2028. The Heat will send the Hornets their lottery-protected pick in 2027 instead, though it becomes unprotected in 2028 if Miami keep it in 2027.

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