The Miami Heat grew bigger after beating the Chicago Bulls.
Despite a challenging season from the chaotic Jimmy Butler Saga and historic struggles in the late season, the Ball Club refused to give up.
Finishing the regular season as the 10th seed of the Eastern Conference, the Miami Heat season continues, knocking out the Chicago Bulls (109-90) in the play-in tournament duel on April 16th.
It was Tyler Hero who fueled them with the hot game high 38 points, but the Heat saw a major X-factor play from one of the midseason standouts against the Bulls.
Davion Mitchell stood up at the most important opportunity. Mitchell, bought by the franchise from Butler’s trade, instantly became a major piece of heat.
For his tenacity and elite defensive position, he has earned praise from his teammates, nothing particularly came from Jaime Jaquez Jr.
Even head coach Eric Sperstra is amazed at what Mitchell brings to the table, comparing him to former heat star Kyle Lowry.
And with Miami calling for full effort to survive the season, Mitchell answered the team’s play-in call to win against Chicago.
Mitchell was extremely shocked at the heat coming out of the bench, dropping 15 points and nine assists in 33 productive minutes. However, his greatest contribution was in the defense, where he was in charge of housing Coby White.
The 26-year-old successfully conveyed the Hot Shot Bulls’ suffocating defense pressure on the star, limiting it to 17 points with a 20-5 shooting (3-3-3) and seven turnovers.
“I mean, everyone is watching,” Heat Leader Bam Adebayo said of Mitchell’s stellar defensive play against White.
“He should definitely be on someone else’s all defensive team, right?
“He does little things, and obviously, it’s not noticed because of who Davion is. But for us, he is an invaluable key to the way we do defense.”
Shutting down the Bulls’ senses completely is certainly a major job for Mitchell. But he has another important defensive challenge.
With the biggest challenges of the team’s most important game of the season, he will face star point guard Tray Young in the upcoming Doi or Die play-in game of the Heat against the Atlanta Hawks.
After losing to Orlando’s magic, Young definitely bounces back to keep the Hawks season alive as there was a sudden whisper about his future in Atlanta.
And for Mitchell, he fully embraces the challenge he has in trying to defend one of the NBA’s best floor generals, helping the fever take his final postseason seat in the East.
“We’re helping each other, we’re in the gaps. We know who the main guy is, I’m trying to slow him down,” Mitchell said.
“We know we don’t have zero points for him, but we’re going to slow him down, take him tough shots, have him see different looks and different players, and try to keep going from there.”
Mitchell and the Heat will clash with the young Hawks at State Farm Arena on April 18th.