Miami Heat Fans Chant 'We Want Boston!' During Play-In Win Against Chicago. They Really Shouldn't Have

Miami Heat fans may have just branded themselves the most overconfident fan base in the NBA this year.

About halfway through the fourth quarter of their play-in tournament game against the Chicago Bulls, the Heat held a commanding 29-point lead (they would win the game 112-91). With the victory all but secured, fans at the Kaseya Center started chanting out "We Want Boston!" Evidently, they’re excited about getting their first-round series with the Celtics started.

But even though they’re confident that the Heat can hang with the Celtics, they really shouldn’t be.

Of course, the Heat did advance to last year’s NBA Finals at the Celtics' expense. After nearly blowing a three games to none series lead, Miami mauled Boston on their home court in Game 7 to advance.

The Heat - and their fans - are confident that, based on last year’s triumph, they can handle the task of beating the Celtics once again. However, they haven’t done much to prove that this season.

In three regular season games this season, the Heat failed to register a win. Two of those losses were by less than 10 points (which is certainly close), but one of them was a 143-110 drubbing - in Miami.

Jayson Tatum (left) and Tyler Herro (right) will begin seven-game series against each other on Sunday. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

Oh, by the way, all of this was with their star player, Jimmy Butler, playing valuable minutes. For at least part of the series in Boston, their go-to player will likely be out with an MCL sprain. So that doesn't help anything. 

It's not just who Miami doesn’t have for this series that should intimidate Heat fans, it’s who the Celtics do have. Last year, Boston didn’t have Kristaps Porzingis or Jrue Holiday on their roster. Porzingis can do anything from anywhere on offense, and Holiday can shut down almost anyone on defense.

Throw in the shooting ability of Derrick Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown, and you’ve got headaches aplenty for Erik Spoelstra & Co. Of course, Miami could find a way to exploit the Celtics’ weakness, and give their fans an opportunity to support their team for more than just a single round in the postseason.

But I wouldn’t count on it.