Getty Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo strips the ball away from Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo in Game 2 of their playoff series.
The Miami Heat will increase fan capacity from 8,600 seats to 17,000 seats on Thursday night for Game 3. The first-round matchup is shifting to AmericanAirlines Arena with the Milwaukee Bucks leading the series, 2-0.
In a special COVID-19 twist, any fan attending the game can get a shot of the Moderna vaccine upon entrance. The Heat is lifting social distancing rules, but there is still a mask mandate in place along with a new food and beverage policy and enhanced cleaning. Fans must also answer a brief questionnaire before being permitted entry into the arena.
On Tuesday, Jimmy Butler was asked what the return of fans might mean to the Heat’s chances of digging out of their 0-2 playoff hole. First, he said nothing because it starts with playing better basketball. Then the star forward admitted it would probably feel a little “bit better” and a little “bit different” with Heat Nation in the building.
“We love playing in front of our home crowd, on our home floor, but we’ve still got to go out there and play basketball the right way — compete and do what we say we’re going to do before the game, what we say we’re going to do after the game,” Butler said. “But, yeah, I guess it’ll feel a little bit better a little bit different at home, but we still gotta go out there and handle business.”
We’ve increased seating capacity to 17K for the playoffs! 🙌 Be a part of the action – t.co/7r3T3rw5VE
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Miami Herald Columnist Makes Plea
The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson wrote a well-timed column about the need for a raucous atmosphere in Game 3. It read more like a plea than a request. The Heat needs their fans to help turn the tide against the Bucks before it’s too late.
Tyler Herro, just now: “We’re built for this challenge.” Heat, down 0-2, tips off around 7:45 p.m. against Bucks tonight, with up to 17,000 in attendance
Miami is 1-8 all-time in playoff series that began with the Heat down 0-2. Jackson wrote:
Miami will permit a near-capacity 17,000 fans in the building Thursday night. It will feel and look the most like a pre-pandemic home crowd than we have seen since COVID-19 entered our lives 14 months ago. The atmosphere will be well-timed to buoy a Heat team that must now win two games in a row and four of the next five — all in the wake of a lopsided, rather embarrassing defeat … Home now. It’s where the heart is. It better be where the Heat is, at its best, ready to be lifted by its fans, ready to rally and make a long series of this.
🦌 BUCKS 🆚 HEAT 🔥
@Bucks took a 2-0 series lead behind Giannis’ 31 PTS, 13 REB, 6 AST in Game 2… who will win Game 3 TONIGHT at 7:30 PM ET on TNT? #NBAPlayoffs
Duncan Robinson: ‘Never Count That Man Out’
Duncan Robinson scored 24 points — all on three-pointers, 7-of-13 from deep — in Game 1 to lead all Heat scorers. He’s averaging 17 points per game for the series. While Robinson has been a bright spot, Butler has been struggling mightily to find his rhythm through two games. He’s shooting a dismal 8-of-32 from the field while combining for 27 points (13.5 per game). It hasn’t been good enough. He knows it. His teammates know it. Expect that to change in Game 3.
Duncan Robinson: “You guys know Jimmy, he’s as persistent as it gets. Despite what happened in Games 1 and 2, I’ll never count that man out. He’s going to continue to be who he is.”
“You miss shots. You got days like that. That’s OK,” Butler said after Game 1. “The whole thing is you just got to bounce back, figure out ways you can be better, not just on offense but on defense as well.”
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