PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia 76ers played host to the Miami Heat on Saturday continuing to play out the string in the 2024-25 season. Once again missing so many players and facing a Heat team needing a win to solidify their play-in tournament positioning, it was another predictable result for the Sixers.
The Heat used their size and physicality in order to wear the Sixers down late to walk away with a 118-95 win. Tyler Herro led Miami with 30 points and seven assists. The loss is Philadelphia's seventh straight and it also officially eliminated the Sixers from playoff contention as they will miss the postseason for the first time since the 2016-17 season.
Quentin Grimes had 15 points and four rebounds for the Sixers while Jared Butler had 19 points and 10 assists. Ricky Council IV had 13 points, four assists, and six rebounds, Adem Bona had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Justin Edwards added 17.
Here are the player grades following the loss:
Jared Butler: A
It was a solid offensive night for Butler. He started with a couple of triples and was able to run the two-man game with Bona in the half-court. There is a lot to like about Butler’s game as this team’s point guard due to his cerebral game and his understanding of how to run things. He was able to find seams in the defense and had a good back-and-forth battle with Heat guard, and former college teammate at Baylor, Davion Mitchell. Overall, he was efficient on the offensive end and was able to get his teammates involved as well. He had a terrific night.
Quentin Grimes: C-plus
Grimes was fantastic to start the night as he knocked down his first three triples including drawing a foul on one of his makes. He was aggressive with his offense—which is something the Sixers desperately need—and was able to convert to get the scoreboard moving for Philadelphia. After his hot start, he wasn’t able to do much as Miami began to tighten up its defense and force others to beat them. Grimes still has a long way to go before he can take on the responsibility he has had recently. He turned the ball over a bit too much in this one.
Justin Edwards: B-minus
The Heat seemed to pay a lot of attention to Edwards in this one. He faced a lot of defensive pressure when he had the ball, but to his credit, he found a way to be effective. He knocked down an early triple and was able to get into the teeth of Miami’s defense. He also made plays with his passing as he got teammates involved. As always, these reps he’s getting are going to be super important for him as time moves on.
Guerschon Yabusele: D
The Dancing Bear had a tough time with Heat rookie Kel’el Ware who stands at 7-feet tall. There were a handful of times when Ware would just reach over Yabusele for easy offensive rebounds and the Heat didn’t have much trouble converting in the paint. He wasn’t able to do much on the offensive end either as he struggled with his free throws and was unable to get going in terms of his field goal shooting either.
Adem Bona: A
The night for Bona started with him throwing down a lob in the pick-and-roll game with Butler. His constant movement and activity seemed to bother the Heat at times in this one and he deserves a lot of credit for being able to make things happen for Philadelphia. He was in the paint on both ends and deterred a lot of Miami’s drivers. As with Edwards, these reps he continues to get will help him take steps forward as ...
