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The Miami Heat meet the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs. The Heat wrapped up the top seed in the East and enter the postseason as championship contenders, while the Hawks played their way into the No. 8 seed through the play-in tournament. Here’s how the teams stack up against each other in this matchup.
No. 1 Heat vs. No. 8 Cavaliers Hawks
Head-to-head record: Heat 3-1
Overall record: Heat 53-29, Hawks 43-39
Leading scorer on Heat: Jimmy Butler
Leading scorer on Hawks:Trae Young
Odds to win series: Heat -370, Hawks +300
Just two years removed from their last NBA Finals appearance, Jimmy Butler and the Heat are poised to make another deep playoff run. Miami was the benchmark in the Eastern Conference for a lot of the season as they hovered consistently around that top spot. Led by Butler, Tyler Herro, and Bam Adebayo in scoring throughout the season, they’ll look for redemption after being swept by the Bucks in the first round of last year’s playoffs.
The Hawks leaned on their experience and superstar point guard to win their way into the No. 8 seed. Trae Young continues to show why he’s one of the top guards in the NBA, and his star performance in the play-in game is reminiscent of Ja Morant’s showing from last season. The Hawks are a dangerous No. 8 seed given their offensive potential and playoff experience from a season ago.