Miami Heat Now In Position To Focus On Homecourt In First Round Of Playoffs

By winning nine of 11 games, the Miami Heat are within striking distance of the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs

The Miami Heat have one game left in February before the season turns into the NBA's version of "March Madness." 

This is the time of the year where teams can start focusing on playoffs seeding. After winning nine of the last 11 games, the Heat have no problem occasionally checking the standings. 

"You can feel that the group is sensing an opportunity right now," Heat coach Spoelstra said after Tuesday's victory against the Portland Trail Blazers. "We have a bunch of competitors in our locker room, so I think as things out of the [All-Star] break start to really become about competing against teams that are fighting for playoff positioning, it just makes things come alive if you're a competitor. It's not that we're obsessed looking at the standings but we're all human." 

Last year they were 33-29 (No. 7 spot) in the Eastern Conference on this date. They then sputtered down the stretch that caused an appearance in the Play-In Tournament. 

The surging Heat are now in position to avoid a repeat. Things appear on the upward. They have won five straight. They are mostly healthy, only awaiting the return of Tyler Herro and Josh Richards. Both appear on the verge of coming back soon. 

It gives the Heat a legitimate chance of claiming the No. 4 seed by the time the season ends. With 24 games left, they trail the New York Knicks by 1.5 games. 

Catching them would mean hosting a playoff series in the first round. 

"It's something good about being hot at the right time," Heat guard Terry Rozier said. "I think we all understand that. This is a great time of basketball, a great time of the year. We feel like we can beat anybody. We're just going to take it game by game and see what happens later on."

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Shandel Richardson covers the Miami Heat for Inside The Heat, a Fan Nation channel for Sports Illustrated. He has covered the NBA since 2010.

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