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In an interesting quirk of the NBA schedule, the Miami Heat will host the Milwaukee Bucks twice in the next three days. Miami will welcome Milwaukee to south Florida this Thursday night before a nationally televised tilt on Saturday afternoon that is sure to draw millions of viewers prior to the first weekend of the NFL Playoffs. The Heat are a four-point favorite by the NBA betting odds on Thursday night with a total of 216.5 points, but the basketball betting line should be lower when these teams square off on Saturday. Milwaukee is playing back-to-back road games after last night’s win over the Atlanta Hawks, and this will be their third road game in four days.
The Miami Heat are 12-9 at home ahead of their two-game tango with the Milwaukee Bucks. The second game between these postseason contenders will take place on Saturday, January 14, 2023, at 1 p.m. ET on ABC from the soon-to-be renamed FTX Arena in Miami, Florida.
Milwaukee Bucks at Miami Heat Betting Odds at BetRivers Sportsbook
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Milwaukee Bucks at Miami Heat Preview
These two games against Milwaukee will cap off a four-game homestand for Miami. The Heat were unable to beat the Brooklyn Nets last weekend, but they successfully squeaked past the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night. Miami set a record in the victory over Oklahoma City, as the Heat went 40 for 40 from the free throw line in the game, and it turned out they needed every single one of those free throws.
Miami might not have Kyle Lowry available for this game due to a knee injury. Lowry will miss two games with the injury prior to Saturday, and his absence would be a substantial loss for the Heat considering he is the third-best player on the team. He is averaging 13.1 PPG, 4.4 RPG, and 5.6 APG, and someone will have to eat up his minutes if he is unavailable.
Dewayne Dedmon should be able to return after serving a one-game suspension caused by him throwing a massage gun on the court on Tuesday night though. Dedmon is averaging 5.9 PPG and 3.7 RPG as a reserve, but he should see more action on Saturday night as Miami needs to throw tall bodies at Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Heat are led by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. Butler is having another fine season for Miami, even though he is making just 32.2% of his threes. He leads the team with 22.1 PPG while making 50.9% of his field goals, and he is also averaging 6.4 RPG, 5.5 APG, and 2.2 SPG as a well-rounded player.
Adebayo is dealing with a wrist injury, but he is expected to play on Thursday and Saturday. The 6’9 center has played above his height throughout his six seasons in the NBA, and he is averaging 21.4 PPG and 9.9 RPG. Adebayo has improved as a shooter too, making 53.8% of his field goals.
Antetokounmpo is one of the four frontrunners to be named NBA MVP at the end of the season. He is almost single-handedly keeping the Bucks within striking distance of the Celtics and Heat, averaging 31.0 PPG, 11.9 RPG, and 5.3 APG while knocking down 52.4% of his field goals on the year. His play has been important considering Khris Middleton has only played in seven games due to a knee injury this season, depriving the Bucks of their second-best player.
One of the keys to this game will be the play of Jrue Holiday. The 32-year-old guard is still stuffing the stat sheet and playing solid defense for the Bucks. Holiday is averaging 18.4 PPG, 5.0 RPG, and 7.1 APG on the season, and he will likely draw the job of defending Tyler Herro on the perimeter. Herro can be a deadeye shooter when healthy, yet he is dealing with an Achilles’ heel injury, so his explosiveness is likely to be limited if he does indeed take the court.
Milwaukee Bucks at Miami Heat Prediction
It’s smart to go with Miami on Thursday night considering the Bucks are in a bad spot due to the schedule. However, the Bucks are the play on Saturday after both teams receive a day off.
