Celtics vs. Heat Game 5 Preview (Miami Leads 3-1)

Boston (-165) is favored by 3.5 points over Miami (+140) with the over/under set at 213 total points

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All-Pro Reels, Flickr

Quick-Hitters

  • The Miami Heat are knocking on the doorstep of the 2020 NBA Finals after sinking the Boston Celtics 112-109 in Game 4 to go up 3-1 in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics will be battling with their backs against the wall in Game 5.

  • Rookie Tyler Herro put together a fantastic effort Wednesday, pouring in 37 points, six rebounds, and three assists. Hall of Famer Magic Johnson was the only other 20-year-old to score that many points in a playoff game in the history of the NBA.

  • After the Heat dominated the majority of Game 4, the Celtics clawed back in the second half. Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum, who had scored zero first-half points, came alive with 28 second-half points to rally Boston. Jimmy Butler and Herro served as the closers for Miami.

  • Despite winning three of the first four games this series, the Heat have been listed as the underdogs for the fifth-consecutive time. Miami is 11-2 this postseason, both straight-up and against the spread (ATS). Their 11-2 record ranks as the best postseason start in team history.

  • Boston (-165) is favored over Miami (+140) with the over/under set at 213 total points. The Celtics are 3.5-point favorites. CLICK FOR LIVE GAME ODDS!

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Red Hot Heat

This game started ugly, but the Miami Heat seem to relish competing in dogfight games. After a sloppy, but close first quarter ended 24-23, the Heat started distancing themselves from the Boston Celtics. Boston got outscored 26-21 in the second frame, and Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum was held scoreless in the first half for the first time all season thanks to great defense by Jimmy Butler, Jae Crowder, and Andre Iguodala.

In a game of proverbial punches, 20-year-old rookie Tyler Herro delivered the most haymakers. His 37 points ranks as the most ever by a Heat rookie in a playoff game, and the second-most by a 20-year-old in NBA postseason history (first: Hall-of-Famer Magic Johnson with 42 for the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals). Herro made two shots in the first quarter, four in the second, two in the third, and six in the fourth. He’s fearless and absolutely deadly from long-range (5-of-10, while the rest of the team shot 5-of-27 from three).

Heat All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo combined to shoot 15-of-31 from the floor while grabbing 21 combined rebounds, dishing seven combined assists, and playing their textbook elite-level defense. Playoff darling Goran Dragic added 22 points and five assists and hit one of the most clutch open threes of the postseason in the fourth quarter to go up 105-98.

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Boston's Struggles

Tatum was an abysmal 0-6 in the first half, but he came roaring back to life (while giving Boston life) in the second half. He scored a whopping 28 second-half points on 10-of-16 from the field, and nearly put his team on his back in a comeback victory.

Every time Tatum and the Celtics would battle back, the Heat would make a clutch team play and hit a huge shot. Miami was moving the ball inside and out perfectly, making the extra pass every time the Celtics made the wrong read—and making them pay virtually every time.

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Coaching And Execution

It could be said that if the Heat were without Herro, the Celtics would've won this game. It could also be said that if the Celtics didn't have Tatum, they wouldn’t even be in this series in the first place. They certainly had no shot of coming out of the first half with a lead with Tatum not scoring, and they had little to no help beyond him and Jaylen Brown during long stretches in the second half.

Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart combined to shoot 9-of-26 from the floor for a combined total of 30 points. Walker was also a liability on defense, constantly getting smoked on penetration, in transition, and in unfortunate switches down low when the Celtics played small-ball. Plain and simple, Walker just hasn’t looked like the franchise player his mega-contract deemed him to be.

The Celtics have been thoroughly out-coached by Erik Spoelstra's use of the zone (on both sides of the court, really), and they've taken drastically worse care of the basketball than Miami. Boston had 19 turnovers in Game 4 to Miami’s eight, and the Heat have 19 fewer turnovers throughout the series.

The bottom line is that the Heat never drift too far away from their game, even when they experience poor shooting stretches. They're deep and have many different players who can step up and deliver a dagger (or in the case of Game 4, multiple daggers). Spoelstra and the Heat have made the best in-game and between-game adjustments, and they play more consistently from start to finish each game.