Welcome to Bulletin Board Material, the Miami Herald’s weekday roundup covering everything in the South Florida sports scene. A lot to discuss. Let’s get right to it.
Heat's playoff hopes
The Miami Heat opens the 2018 NBA Playoffs as an underdog - a heavy underdog. Bovada lists the Heat's odds of winning the NBA Championship at 125/1, the worst among the 16 teams in the field. What's more? Miami has to open against arguably the hottest team in the league in the Philadelphia 76ers, winners of their last 16 games.
If the Heat wants to pull off the first-round upset, it will have to utilize the one aspect of the game where it has a clear advantage: Experience.