MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Bucks’ matchup with the Miami Heat scheduled for Thursday evening has been delayed by an hour, now set to commence at 7:30 p.m. instead of the originally planned 6:30 p.m. This adjustment was made due to complications arising from severe winter weather conditions in New Orleans, which prevented the Bucks from arriving on time.
The NBA confirmed the schedule change at 4:05 p.m. Central time, less than two hours prior to tip-off. The Bucks had been in New Orleans since Monday to prepare for a game against the Pelicans, which ended up being postponed. A significant winter storm dropped around a foot of snow on the area Tuesday, causing icy conditions on many roads that persisted, complicating travel plans.
“We’ve spent a lot of time stuck in the hotel since our arrival, which has been challenging,” said Coach Rivers during his pregame comments. “We left earlier than usual but were unable to practice when we got there. Yesterday, we missed our shootaround too, so it’s been a while since we’ve had any ball work. Nonetheless, we’re just glad to be here and play.”
The Bucks’ flight touched down in Milwaukee less than three hours before the newly scheduled game time. Rivers mentioned that the team arrived at the arena around two hours before the anticipated start.
He expressed that he would keep a close eye on the players at the beginning due to the lack of cardio workouts in the preceding days. Additionally, the coaching staff held a meeting on Thursday morning to prepare strategies, and individual matchups were discussed during the flight to Milwaukee, although they couldn’t engage in video analysis. “I reminded them of those AAU days where teams might play three games in one day,” Rivers remarked. “I told them this is going to feel similar. It’s all about being ready, there are no excuses.”
In contrast, the Miami Heat faced no weather-related difficulties and arrived in Milwaukee in time for their morning shootaround. “We’ve been fortunate not to encounter any weather issues,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra stated. “Everyone is relieved that we can still play tonight as it complicates things significantly if we have to delay this game.”
Rivers concurred that playing that evening was the best course of action, given the circumstances, especially since the Bucks are slated to have a busy schedule with numerous back-to-back games in the second half of the season. “We already have one game pending that needs to be rescheduled,” Rivers noted. “Adding another game to the calendar would not be prudent. I really advocated for us to play tonight.”
