After A Day Of Uncertainty, The Miami Heat Can Go Back To Focusing On The Second Round
A day after facing the possibility of the season being canceled, the Miami Heat can once again turn their attention to the postseason.
The league will continue the NBA playoffs, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. The Heat, who swept the Indiana Pacers in the first round, now await to winner of the series between the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic. The Bucks lead 3-1.
On Wednesday, the Bucks decided to skip Game 5 of the series in protest of the police shooting of Jacob Blake in nearby Kenosha, Wisc. The league then canceled the remaining playoff games of the day, creating a ripple effect. Thursday's games will likely also be scratched, delaying a season that has already endured a four-month suspension because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to reports, the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers were the only teams remaining in the bubble that voted to spike the rest of the season. The NBA Board of Governors held a meeting this morning to find a solution and players came to the conclusion to resume the season.
"We're in a tough situation, mentally just being here," Heat forward Andre Iguodala said, the vice president of the players union. "There's a lot on our plate that I don't think is really being accounted for in terms of things that are happenings in our communities across the country and our duties as basketball players to go out there and win games and satisfy all those requirements as well."
After Wednesday's practice, the Heat were undecided if they wanted to participate in the protest. By 11 p.m., the organization was fully on board.
"We have all witnessed the disparity in how the police treat unarmed Black men and women vs armed White men," the Heat said in a statement. "This unequal treatment of Black people at the hands of police has to stop. Now. We stand firmly with the players and support their decision to protest."
FACEBOOK: Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/MiamiHeatSI
TWITTER: @ShandelRich
