Dwyane Wade drops ecstatic 4-word reaction as 10th-seeded Heat advance to playoffs

Dwyane Wade was fired up after seeing the Miami Heat — the franchise he led to three championships — climb from the No. 10 seed to No. 8 by winning two straight play-in games, setting up a first-round matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Heat punched their playoff ticket with a gritty 123-114 overtime win over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, knocking them out of the postseason race in the final battle for the No. 8 seed. The Hawks had entered the play-in as the eighth seed but dropped both games to miss the playoffs entirely.

Tyler Herro and Davion Mitchell came up clutch in crunch time, burying key 3s to hold off Atlanta’s rally. Herro led all scorers with 30 points, adding eight rebounds, seven assists and five 3-pointers, while Mitchell scored 16 and knocked down three triples in overtime — drawing praise from Wade.

“HERRO!!!! MITCHELL!!! Straight hooping!” Wade tweeted.

With the win, Miami made history, becoming the first No. 10 seed ever to advance to the playoffs via the Play-In Tournament. Just two seasons ago, they made a Finals run as a play-in team, though they eventually fell to the Denver Nuggets.

Beyond Herro and Mitchell, Andrew Wiggins and Bam Adebayo also delivered, combining for 37 points, 19 rebounds and 13 assists. For the Hawks, Trae Young had 29 points and 11 dimes, while Onyeka Okongwu chipped in 28 points and 12 boards.

First Round Preview: Heat vs. Cavaliers

The Miami Heat now prepare to take on the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Game 1 and Game 2 will be played in Cleveland on Sunday and Wednesday, with Games 3 and 4 shifting to Miami on April 26 and 28.

These teams clashed three times during the regular season. Miami took the first meeting 122-113, with Tyler Herro dropping 34 and Duncan Robinson adding 23. Bam Adebayo chipped in with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

Cleveland bounced back to take the next two matchups. In January, the Cavs dominated 126-106 behind 34 points from Donovan Mitchell and a combined 35 points from Ty Jerome and Georges Niang off the bench.

Their third and final clash came in March, post-Heat trade of Jimmy Butler. Cleveland edged out Miami 112-107, with Mitchell scoring 26 and Evan Mobley posting 16 points and 13 rebounds. Bam Adebayo had a big night for the Heat with 34 points and 12 rebounds, though Miami hit just 36.1% from beyond the arc.

About the author

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alt=”John Ezekiel Hirro” height=”72″ width=”72″>

John Ezekiel Hirro is an experienced NBA and WNBA journalist at Sportskeeda, with over five years in the field as a news correspondent, sports writer, and Editor-in-Chief. His sports writing career began in high school, where he garnered numerous accolades, including being named the national sports writing champion in 2016.

He earned his journalism degree from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines in 2024 and served as the Editor-in-Chief of The Varsitarian, the university’s official student publication, for four years—the longest in history.

A passionate basketball enthusiast, he became a fan of the OKC Thunder during the Russ-KD-Harden era. Russell Westbrook, his all-time favorite athlete, impressed him by stepping up as MVP after Kevin Durant’s departure. His current favorite players include Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren, who he believes are the future of the OKC franchise.

He excels in game analysis and rapid news story turnaround, drawing inspiration from the journalistic styles of Woj and Shams. He emphasizes thorough research to ensure accuracy in his articles. One of his most memorable moments is Russell Westbrook breaking Oscar Robertson’s record with his 42nd triple-double and securing a 106-105 victory over the Denver Nuggets with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer. Outside of writing, he enjoys listening to music and creating Spotify playlists.

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