The Miami Heat’s postseason run has been remarkable thus far.
While we’re only two games into the NBA Finals, the Heat have now gone further than any other No. 8 seed in NBA history.
The Heat picked up their 13th win this postseason on Sunday night with a 111-108 win over the Denver Nuggets. That win at Ball Arena tied up the Finals 1-1 ahead of Game 3 in Miami on Wednesday night.
That win officially surpassed the New York Knicks’ previous mark of 12 wins, which they set during the 1999 postseason. Those Knicks went just 27-23 in the regular season — that year was shortened due to a lockout and didn’t start play until February — and entered as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference. After sneaking past the Heat in the opening round, the Knicks made it all the way to the Finals before falling to the San Antonio Spurs 4-1.
Most wins by an 8-seed in a single postseason:
— Basketball Reference (@bball_ref) June 5, 2023
13 — Miami Heat (2023)
12 — New York Knicks (1999)
7 — Philadelphia 76ers (2012)
7 — Memphis Grizzlies (2011)
6 — Denver Nuggets (1994)#Heat | #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/Crx1cyLqN8
That Knicks team, however, is the only other No. 8 seed to advance in the postseason beyond the second round.
If the Heat can pull the win off, they’d be the lowest seed by far to ever win the NBA Finals. The 1994-95 Houston Rockets won their championship that season as the No. 6 seed, and still hold that record.
That would give the Heat 16 wins in the postseason — or 17, if you count their play-in win over the Chicago Bulls — and push the record for a No. 8 seed to the maximum.
