Miami HEAT at Boston Celtics Game Preview

The Miami HEAT face the Boston Celtics Monday night at TD Garden. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM, and television coverage is on FOX Sports Sun. You can also listen to the action live on 790 The Ticket.

1: How were the HEAT able to come back for a win in New York?

Couper Moorhead: It was all about their defense. After trailing by as much as 12 in the first half, Miami held the Knicks to just 18 points in the third quarter and, even better, 13 points in the fourth. This current version of the Knicks is lacking in offensive firepower, so once the HEAT locked in and started playing their brand of defense, there just wasn’t anywhere the Knicks could turn to generate an open look of any kind. The game stayed relatively close for a while with Miami struggling to shoot (and missing Justise Winslow and Josh Richardson), but Dion Waiters kept the offense trucking along long enough for Dwyane Wade and Hassan Whiteside to carry them to the finish.

It was not a game worth remembering for too long, but it was an important one nevertheless with every other team in the East playoff race winning on the same night.

Joe Beguiristain: As Coup mentioned above, the HEAT picked up their defensive pressure in the second half and stifled the Knicks after the break. In fact, Miami held New York to just 33.3 percent shooting in the last two quarters, as Hassan Whiteside protected the rim quite well and contested nine shots on the evening.  

Speaking of Whiteside, the big fella almost outscored the Knicks by himself in the fourth. Thanks to taking advantage of mismatches inside and being ready for the catch in the post, Whiteside scored 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the final period. New York, meanwhile, totaled 13 points on 5-of-21 shooting.

And on a night where Dion Waiters scored from everywhere on the floor en route to a season-high 28 points, that was all the difference.

2: What have we learned from the two previous games against Boston?

Couper: What the rest of the league has learned playing the Celtics, which is that you never quite know which version of them you’re going to be playing on a given night. The Boston team that showed up in Miami in early January was effectively out of that game by halftime as Miami led by as much as 26 and only some hot Marcus Smart shooting kept the game looking closer than it felt. The HEAT had more energy, better execution and they shot nearly 50 percent from three in as thorough a victory as they’ve had all year.

A couple weeks later in Boston, it was a different story. This time the Celtics led by as much as 22 with their starters working with precision and the perimeter shots – Boston has a similar offensive profile to the Warriors with their reliance on jumpers – falling. The HEAT had a comeback bid led by their bench units fall short, but Boston was just as much in control as Miami the first time these teams met.

So what did we learn? Not much, in the end. Miami has the bodies to bother Boston’s outside-in offense, but the Celtics have so much talent up and down the roster that they’re capable of beating just about anyone, by any number, on the right night. The nights just haven’t been too right, lately, as they’ve lost five of their last seven.

One thing to note is that the Celtics will likely be playing all their guys (only Al Horford is listed as probable with left knee soreness) since they’re neck-and-neck with the Indiana Pacers for home-court in the first round of their 4-5 playoff series.

Joe: We’ve learned that they’re a tough team to figure out.

After coming through with a strong 2017-18 regular season and an inspired playoff run to the Eastern Conference Finals without Kyrie Irving, the Celtics have had an up-and-down year. Then again, perhaps the addition of new players to the rotation caused some of the struggles early on.

Despite all that, though, Boston still owns the sixth-best net rating in the league at plus-4.1. And we saw that strong two-way play first hand in the Celtics’ 107-99 victory over the HEAT in their last meeting on Jan. 21. Not only did Irving, Jayson Tatum, Marcus Morris and Al Horford all score in double-figures, but each of them also shot over 54 percent from the field. And on the flip side of the ball, Boston held Miami in check even though Waiters found some success attacking the basket.

We’ll see if “Philly Cheese” can do that again and keep up his hot play of late with a bunch of guys out for the HEAT.

3: What are the playoff implications Monday night?

Couper: Significant, as always. The HEAT got the wins they needed to get against two lottery bound teams in Dallas and New York, but now is where the real action begins. Six games left, a half-game lead for the No. 8 seed, only one game back of the No. 6 seed and five of these last six against Eastern playoff squads. Just about anything could happen, but there’s little doubt that every win or loss could tilt the scales for or against the HEAT depending on what the teams around them do. The good news is that Charlotte is two games back of Miami in the loss column so what is still a five-team race could quickly become a four-team race as we get closer and closer to the end.

The HEAT shouldn’t have to win out to make the tournament, but their approach should be to try to do so as best they can. As long as they’re a game up in the loss column, they control their own destiny.

Joe: It should be another fun night in the East, with the Pistons, Nets, Magic and Hornets all playing as well. As it stands now, the HEAT are a half game up on the Magic for the No. 8 seed and just a game behind the Pistons for No. 6.

And as we’ve mentioned before, the order of these teams will likely change a few times in the next week and a half. All Miami can do is forge ahead and continue its push for the second season.

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