Free NBA Pick: Heat vs. Celtics NBA Odds
Looking for Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics free NBA picks & NBA odds? NBA betting sees the Heat taking on the Celtics on Monday, May 23rd, 2022 at TD Garden. Cappers Picks provides complimentary expert handicapping picks on all NBA basketball matchups so stay tuned for more FREE daily NBA hoops predictions like this Heat Celtics matchup.
2022 NBA Playoffs Handicapping Eastern Conference Finals
(2-1) Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics (1-2)
Date: Monday, May 23rd
Time: 8:30 PM EST
Venue: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
NBA Moneyline Odds: Heat +235 | Celtics -251 (Bet Now!)
NBA Betting Odds: Celtics -6.5
NBA Betting Total: 207.5
The Eastern Conference Finals continue in Bean Town with the second-seeded Boston Celtics hosting the top-seeded Miami Heat. On Monday, May 23rd, Game 4 of the series occurs with the Heat leading the series 2-1.
This series has been mired by injury with both teams dealing with stars being in and out of the lineup and that won’t change moving forward as several stars tweaked injuries or experienced new ones in Game 3.
Miami will host *Game 5, Wednesday, May 25th, and *Game 7, Sunday, May 29th while Boston will host *Game 6, Friday, May 27th (*if necessary).
Boston won the season series 2-1 and the all-time advantage having won 78 times of the club’s 129 regular-season meetings. This is the fifth occasion these clubs have met in the postseason with the Heat owning the advantage of winning three of the four prior series.
In fact, the last two occasions the squads met also occurred in the Conference Finals with the most recent occasion in 2020 when Miami won 4-2 inside the Orlando bubble.
Miami Heat
In the aftermath of Game 2, Jimmy Butler made it clear how unhappy he and his teammates were by the rout they just experienced and would let that motivate their Game 3 effort.
It did, although Butler wasn’t able to take the court in the second half due to a recurrence of swelling in his knee. Fortunately, it didn’t matter as his teammates hung on to defeat the Celtics and the refs.
Kyle Lowry was back and made an immediate positive impact pushing the pace, providing lockdown defense and arguably making the play of the game on a steal late to seal the victory. Lowry finished with 11 points, six assists, and four steals.
PJ Tucker who was questionable played and chipped in 17 points, Max Strus scored 16 while Tyler Herro struggled scoring eight points on 4 of 15, and sat the fourth due to injury.
Bam Adebayo had his best game of the series registering a double-double of 31 points with 10 rebounds six assists, and four steals.
The x-factor was Victor Oladipo who didn’t play until the second half but had arguably his best defensive effort since the injury that sidelined him on and off for two seasons.
Five key contributors are questionable for Monday including Butler (knee), Tyler Herro (groin), Lowry (hamstring), Tucker (knee), and Max Strus (hamstring.
Boston Celtics
Injuries played a factor for the Celtics as Robert Williams III was out with swelling in his surgically repaired knee and his absence contributed to Adebayo’s big night.
Marcus Smart (ankle) and Jayson Tatum (neck stinger) also suffered injuries in the game but were able to continue playing after a brief exit to the locker room.
Regardless, the Celtics didn’t look prepared, and despite the overtly friendly whistle weren’t able to capitalize. Jaylen Brown was the best Celtic on the court offering 40 points and nine rebounds.
Al Horford offered a stellar effort registering a double-double of 20 points with 14 rebounds. Smart chipped in 16 points while Tatum struggled (3-14) scoring 10 points.
Like the Heat, several Celtics are questionable for Monday including Smart (ankle), Williams (knee), and Sam Hauser (shoulder) while Tatum (cervical strain) is probable.
NBA Betting Trends:
- Miami is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games.
- Boston is 13-5 ATS in their last 18 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Miami’s last 6 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Boston’s last 7 games.
Free Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics NBA Prediction:
In a postseason of horrible officiating, Game 3 in Boston was one of the most blatantly biased. Calls were made against Miami and the exact same infractions were ignored on the other side of the court.
At the half, Boston had taken 18 free throws to three for the Heat. With 1:07 remaining in the match the Heat had taken 5 free throws. The final tally was 14 to 30 (meaning 64% of the Heat’s free throws happened in the closing minute with Boston purposely fouling)).
While the Heat suffered from turnovers in Game 2, it was the Celtics’ turn as they coughed up the ball 24 times leading to 33 Heat points. Miami forced 19 steals and controlled the ball with just nine turnovers for nine points.
The other keys were paint (48-34) and bench scoring (26-16) with the Heat winning both.
Injuries will impact both sides with Butler’s absence being the most critical although he says he’ll play (as of late Sunday). Smart’s ankle may swell up preventing him from playing and Williams’ presence would definitely help Boston paint protection.
Based on the trend of the whistle I suspect Boston will once again be the benefactor with core Heat players being in early foul trouble. I’d love to be wrong about the ref part but we’ll have to wait and see.
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