Heat draft position gains some clarity. Where things stand heading into play-in
Unless the Heat gets lucky in the lottery, Miami likely will select 12th or 13th in June’s NBA Draft, provided it misses the playoffs.
That was determined on Sunday when Miami beat Atlanta, 143-117 - a game that didn’t help the Heat’s playoff positioning but potentially damaged its lottery odds, though only slightly.
Charlotte’s 110-96 win against the Knicks locked the Heat into the 10th seed, meaning Miami (43-39) will need to win two road play-in games to make the playoffs. The first of those two games will be in Charlotte at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
The Heat played to win Sunday, knowing it could move to ninth in the East if the Hornets lost against the Knicks. But with Charlotte winning, the Heat’s victory had no tangible benefit but could prove to be a bit costly from a draft standpoint.
If Miami had lost, it could have kept alive the possibility of moving as high as 11th in the draft if it didn’t get lucky and land a top-four pick in the lottery. A loss by the Heat and wins by Portland and the Clippers later on Sunday night would have given Miami a 7.1 percent or 9.4 percent chance to snag a top-four pick, depending on which Western Conference teams lose in the play-in. (Both Portland and the Clippers won.)
Instead, the Heat will either have a 4.8 percent or 7.1 percent chance to land a top-four selection.
If the Heat misses the playoffs and the Phoenix Suns make the playoffs, Miami would be the 13th lottery seed and have a 4.8 percent chance of a top-four pick and a one percent chance of landing the No. 1 pick. In that scenario, Miami would select ahead of the other Eastern Conference team that misses the playoffs.
If the Heat misses the playoffs and the Phoenix Suns also miss the playoffs, Miami would be the 12th lottery seed and have a 1.5 percent chance at landing the No. 1 pick and a 7.1 percent chance of snagging the fourth pick.
The reason for that: If the Suns and Heat miss the playoffs, two lottery teams would have better records than the Heat -- Phoenix and the other Eastern Conference team (besides Miami) that misses the playoffs. Those teams would be 13th and 14th, meaning Miami would be slotted 12th.
The May 10 draft lottery determines only the top four picks. Every other pick is based on inverse order of records.
So if the Heat misses the playoffs, it could pick only first, second, third, fourth, 12th, 13th or (unlikely) 14th.
If the Heat wins two play-in games and makes the playoffs, it would pick 16th or 17th, depending on which Western Conference teams advance from the play-in to the playoffs.
If the Heat loses in Charlotte, it would clinch a top 13 pick. If it wins in Charlotte, it would play on the road on Friday night against the loser of Wednesday’s Orlando-at-Philadelphia play-in game. The winner of that Friday play-in game would be the eighth seed and open the playoffs on Sunday at No. 1-seeded Detroit.
Final TV telecast
Sunday marked the final Heat telecast ever on FanDuel Sports Sun, which is expected to shutter in the weeks ahead. The network began as Sunshine Network back in 1988.
Heat games next season likely will be offered on a streaming service. Some games also could be made available on an over-the-air station such as WPLG-Channel 10, which simulcast select games this season.
On Sunday evening, Heat TV voice Eric Reid said “goodbye” to FanDuel Sports. “We’ll be somewhere else next year,” he said. “We’ll let you know in the offseason the Heat TV home next season.”
The FanDuel regional networks ultimately were doomed by financial problems that have burdened their parent company, Main Street Sports.
National rights-holders have exclusivity to all play-in and playoff games this season. Amazon Prime will carry all six play-in games, including Heat at Hornets on Tuesday.
Scoring feats
The Heat finished the season averaging 120.9 points, the most in franchise history and second in the league behind Denver. Miami became the 17th team in NBA history to score 9900 points; its point total was the 15th highest in league history.
Miami scored at least 140 points in 12 games this season and at least 130 points in 19 games. Both are franchise records.
This story was originally published April 12, 2026 at 8:15 PM.
