For the fourth time in the last five seasons, the two franchises will square off in the playoffs. This will be meeting number seven overall, with the Heat carrying a 4-2 series advantage. The last time Boston played Miami in the first round was in 2010, where the Celtics won four games to one.
The teams have split the last two Eastern Conference Finals and the Celtics will be looking to exact some revenge for last season's exit. Miami entered as the no. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, swooped ahead with a 3-0 series lead, and defeated the no. 2 Celtics (after a furious comeback) in Game 7.
In 2023-24, the Celtics seemingly breezed through the regular season to secure the league's best record at 64-18. Boston had one of their finest regular seasons in the last two decades. An efficient offense relied on three-point shooting but, unlike previous seasons, were able to overcome cold shooting nights to pick up victories. And they were powered by a defense that used a complete team effort to control the action inside and out.
It was a season in which Boston did not lose three straight. Only four times did the Celtics lose two in row, three of which came in March and April. High expectations are on the table as Boston searches for title banner no. 18 to raise to the rafters, with no slouch awaiting them in round one.
Boston Celtics
Boasting one of the best starting five in '23-24, the Celtics also have a deep bench that contributes in a variety of ways. Veteran Al Horford (8.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg) is solid in all areas and can still shoot at a decent clip (51.1 percent from the field, 41.9 on three-point attempts). With the aid of Payton Pritchard (9.6 ppg) and Sam Hauser, the Celtics easily go eight deep in their rotation.
Pritchard played in all 82 games, closing the season with 69 points and 23 assists in the last two games. Hauser, too, had his best season as a pro and shot 42.4 percent from deep.
It is the starting five, however, who will carry this Celtics team and determine how far the team goes.
Success starts at the top with the dynamic duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Both have grown in the game this season, providing leadership and doing what it takes to win. While both saw their points dip, Tatum and Brown improved in other areas and had some of the best shooting percentages of their respective careers.
Tatum led the team with 26.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, tossing in 4.9 assists for good measure. He shot 47.1 percent from the field while Brown delivered a career-best 49.9 percent on field goal attempts. Brown showed more of a penchant to drive and averaged 23 points per game.
The trio behind these two in the starting lineup added a much-needed presence to the Celtics lineup. Derrick White continued to grow into a star in his own right, averaging 15.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game. White picks his moments to explode on offense and is a focal point on defense, where he is one of the best shot-blocking guards in the game.
The arrival of Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday gave the Celtics added scoring punch and defensive presence. Porzingis played in 57 games, averaging 20.1 points and 7.2 rebounds. And Holiday can fill up a stat sheet, averaging 12.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists, all while shooting 42.9 percent from deep.
The Celtics averaged 120.6 points per game, good for second in the league. Helping boost this offense was a 48.7 percent clip from the field and 38.8 on three-point attempts. Boston spreads the ball around (26.9 assists) and can rebound with the best at 46.3 per game.
Boston won all three matchups with Miami in the regular season, including a 33-point victory in Miami. Tatum had 74 points, 26 rebounds, and 18 assists against the Heat this season. In each game, the Celtics had their regular lineup in place. White scored 28 in the first meeting, with Brown adding 27.
In the second meeting, the Celtics shot 63.7 percent from the field and Holiday nearly had a triple-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and 7 assists. And in the four-point Boston victory in meeting no. 3, Porzingis had 25 points and nine rebounds.
The Celtics seem primed to walk away with an easy first round but the Heat, even with injuries piling up, have proven time and time again to be a dangerous playoff team.
Miami Heat
A season after making a run to the NBA Finals, the Miami Heat (46-36) faced their share of adversity in '23-24. Injuries beset this team at times and it seemed like they rarely got to play with their best possible lineup.
Injuries will again play a factor in the matchup against the Celtics. All-Star Jimmy Butler hurt his knee in a play-in game loss to the Celtics and likely won't appear in this series. Terry Rozier is dealing with neck issues and is out for Game 1 for sure. And Josh Richardson has been out since February, when he had season-ending shoulder surgery.
Still, it's a fully capable lineup and reached this point thanks to a 112-91 victory over the Chicago Bulls in Friday night's play-in game.
Miami ended the regular season averaging 110.1 points per game with 25.8 assists and 42.3 rebounds. The Heat shot 46.5 percent from the field, connecting on 37 percent from deep.
Bam Adebayo will likely be Boston's biggest focus. Adebayo had a 27-point, 7-rebound performance in the season's first meeting between the teams, and finished with 22 and 13, respectively, in the third meeting.
Butler missed the final meeting and only had 33 points combined in the first two meetings with Boston. Tyler Herro, who has stepped up in recent weeks, also had fine outings against Boston. Herro scored 71 points in the three meetings and has the ability to fill up the box score.
Playing in only 42 games, Herro tied with Butler for the team lead in scoring at 20.8 points per game. Herro also averaged 5.3 points and 4.5 assists per game.
Butler played in 60 games, averaging 5.3 rebounds and five assists.
Adebayo is a double-double machine, averaging 19.3 and 10.4 rebounds per game.
Herro and Adebayo will have to shoulder more responsibility this series but the Heat do have plenty around these two. It's simply a matter if players like Caleb Martin (10 ppg) and Duncan Robinson (12.9 ppg) can contribute with consistency. (Both have had huge games when it comes to playing the Celtics in recent years.)
Kevin Love can be effective and Jaime Jaquez Jr. was the team leader in games with 75, averaging 11.9 points per contest.
Final thoughts
The Boston Celtics have had some time off and their top six rotation players sat out the last two regular season games. There were a few hiccups in closing out games prior and it's not hard to imagine Miami snaking a game in the early going.
But Boston has a defined instinct this season. This team is on a mission and Miami doesn't quite have the firepower to compete, though they will make things interesting.
Opening round: Celtics in five
Celtics vs Heat. 4/21 - Game 1 on ABC. 1 p.m. (ET)
Other Eastern Conference first-round matchups:
- (4) Cleveland Cavaliers lead series 1-0 against (5) Orlando Magic. (Prediction: Cavs in 6)
- (2) New York Knicks lead series 1-0 against (7) Philadelphia 76ers (Prediction: Knicks in 7)
- (6) Indiana Pacers vs (3) Milwaukee Bucks (Prediction: Bucks in 6)
photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
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