NBA Playoffs 2014: Miami Heat vs. Charlotte Bobcats series preview

The Miami Heat (54-28) breezed through another regular season and that has drawn concern from some pundits. After all, the two-time defending champs were a league-best 66-16 last season and this year, they will not have home court advantage in a potential Eastern Conference Finals matchup with the Indiana Pacers and will also have to hit the road if they play any of the top three seeds in the Western Conference (San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder & Los Angeles Clippers) in the NBA Finals.

The Charlotte Bobcats (43-39) were arguably the most improved team, going from 21 wins last season to 43 this season.

Series Schedule: 

Game 1 in Miami: Sunday, April 20, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC Miami Heat tickets
Game 2 in Miami: Wednesday, April 23, 7 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 3 in Charlotte: Saturday, April 26, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN
Game 4 in Charlotte: Monday, April 28, 7 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 5 in Miami (if necessary): Wednesday, April 30
Game 6 in Charlotte (if necessary): Friday, May 2
Game 7 in Miami (if necessary): Sunday, May 4

Season Series: Heat won 4-0

The Bobcats have had an extremely impressive turnaround behind the signing of Al Jefferson and the hiring of Steve Clifford as head coach. Kemba Walker’s improvement has also played a huge part in their success. Still, the Miami Heat are considered a heavy favorite and should make pretty quick work of the Bobcats.