Miami Heat's Season Ends With A Third Straight Disappointing Performance Against Boston Celtics

Shandel Richardson | May 1, 2024

May 1, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) looks for a way against Miami Heat's Tyler Herro - Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports / Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

In the end, the Miami Heat were just overmatched.

They talked about playing with a sense of urgency entering Wednesday's elimination game against the Boston Celtics. They talked about winning so they could play one more game in front of the hometown fans. They talked about possibly rallying from a 3-1 deficit.

But none of it ever happened.

The Heat were once again beaten from start to finish in a 118-84 loss that ended their season. They can now look forward to the NBA draft, free agency and next season.

It's not as if the Heat have anything to be upset about it. They lost to the No. 1 seed in the league while playing without key players. Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier did not play the series because of injuries. On Tuesday, they then learned rookie Jaime Jaquez would not play in Game 5 because of a hip issue.

That left the Heat with an even more depleted roster that had no chance against the Celtics, who avenged last year's loss in the conference finals. Now, the Heat are left with an unfortunate dilemma. Do they finally break up the roster after failing to win a title with basically the same core since 2020? Or do they finally make a serious move in the offseason to put them in position to get over the hump?

While center Bam Adebayo proved he can be counted upon in a primary role, guard Tyler Herro struggled in his opportunity. The Heat have a few months to decide on what's next.