The Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat will meet in the Play-In Tournament for the third consecutive season. Despite the Bulls winning their first-round affairs in the past two seasons, Miami has derailed Chicago's postseason hopes in back-to-back seasons—defeating the Bulls 102-91 in 2023 and 112-91 in 2024 in the final round of the Play-In.
However, there's a different feel this time around. For starters, Miami no longer employs Jimmy Butler, the team's best player this decade. Furthermore, the Heat finished the regular season 37-45, in 10th place in the Eastern Conference. Miami has never entered the Play-In Tournament as anything but an eighth-seed. Thus, the Heat are in a win-or-go-home predicament—a scenario the Bulls have dealt with for three consecutive campaigns.
Given the Bulls' record this season against Miami (3-0) and their phenomenal late-season turnaround, they are favored to knock off the Erik Spoelstra-led squad. Moreover, optimism should be at an all-time high following a recent development from one of Chicago's breakout stars.
Josh Giddey will be available as Chicago takes on Miami
After missing three of the Bulls' final four regular-season contests, Josh Giddey's game status was up in the air ahead of Wednesday's contest with what's been deemed "right flexor carpi ulnaris tendinopathy," or in layman's terms, the inflammation or degeneration of the tendon that's located on the pinky side of Giddey's right hand/wrist.
The 22-year-old guard has been sporting a wrist brace to curtail the pain, although he has noted that the issue affects his hand, not his wrist. While painful, Giddey has already played through the pain once before. He recorded perhaps the best game of his young career against the Heat on April 9 as he dealt with the injury. Giddey dropped 28 points to go along with 16 rebounds, 11 assists, two steals, and three blocks.
Nonetheless, after missing the last two games of the season, Giddey will be back in the lineup for the Play-In Tournament. The 6-foot-8 playmaker announced he'll be in the lineup and Head Coach Billy Donovan doubled down. Donovan bluntly stated, [he's] going to have to deal with it."
“It’s just about managing the pain.”
— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) April 15, 2025
Giddey Said it’s a hard injury to heal and will address it fully in offseason. Said it’s a muscle issue in his hand, not his wrist. https://t.co/Ij2BLQ3028
The Bulls' Head Coach needs Giddey now more than ever. Following a rocky start to the season after coming over from Oklahoma City, Giddey has solidified himself as Chicago's point guard of the future. Giddey's averages skyrocketed from 12.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 6.4 assists pre-All-Star to 21.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 9.3 assists post-All-Star.
He's played extraordinarily well as of late and even better against the Bulls' Play-In opponent. Giddey has averaged 26.0 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 10.0 assists in three games versus Miami. He's achieved an impressive plus/minus of plus-19.3 and a net rating of 19.7.
Missing Giddey would be substantial—grounds for transitioning from favorite to the underdog. The Bulls already lack guard depth, with Ayo Dosunmu out for the season and Lonzo Ball and Tre Jones nursing injuries of their own. Without Giddey, an enormous amount of weight would be placed on Coby White to shoulder an already taxing scoring burden. Fortunately, Giddey will be in the lineup to keep the Bulls' playoff hopes alive.