Heat vs Celtics Conference Final Odds: Butler Breaks Boston Hearts

Heat Playing Bully Ball Without Apology

Celtics Hope for Change of Fortune on Road

The Miami Heat return to South Beach boasting a 2-0 series lead over the heavily favoured Boston Celtics ahead of Game 3 at the Kaseya Center. Let’s take a look at the Heat vs Celtics Conference Final Odds as the visitors try to steal one back on the road.

The Celtics once again let a double-digit lead slip away in Game 2 and were once again out worked by a seemingly more determined Miami team. Coach Joe Mazzulla made some changes to the lineup to start the second half and while it worked well in helping them open up a commanding lead they simply didn’t have the presence to close the game in front of a nervy TD Garden crowd.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler continues to write his own story as he again showed why he might be one the best playoff performers in the NBA right now. The visitors also got huge contributions from Bam Adebayo and Caleb Martin as the trio combined for 74 points on an impressive 30-for-58 (52%) from the field.

Despite Miami’s impressive efforts in this series, Boston has still opened up as favorites for Game 3. The Heat vs Celtics odds show Boston at -3.0 points while the full game total has been set at 214.0 points.

Heat Showing Strength in Numbers

Miami’s ability to extract value from all its players is undeniably its biggest strength right now and coach Erik Spoelstra continues to find ways to utilize what he has at his disposal this series.

Coach Spo is already considered one of the sharpest minds in basketball and he continues to push all the right buttons to frustrate Boston at both ends of the floor.

Their ability to stretch the floor on offense when the Celtics run a two-big lineup is nullifying Boston’s elite defensive presence in the half court, while their zone defense is also doing a terrific job of keeping the Celtics outside threat in check.

While Butler is understandably getting all the plaudits its the contributions from those around him that has been most impressive in helping them to a 2-0 series lead. Bam Adebayo has arguably been the second-best player on the floor so far this series and in Game 2 they had three players score 20+ points while Jayson Tatum was the only NBA player able to do so for the Celtics.

If Miami can continue to get positive minutes from their rotations players they’ll go a long way to taking a 3-0 series lead and will all but cement their place in the NBA Finals once again.

Celtics Ready for One More Push

If there’s one thing we know about Boston however, it’s that they play their best basketball when their backs are against the wall.

Tatum spoke after NBA Game 2 about the fact the players are the ones responsible for this situation and not head coach Joe Mazzulla. If the Celtics can channel their frustration into being the best versions of themselves on the court then this series is far from over.

According to Shot Quality data, the Celtics were expected to win both games so far in this series. They had a 74% expected win percentage in both Game 1 and Game 2 based on the shots taken by both teams, but right now things simply aren’t falling for Boston the way they are for Miami.

We’ve seen this team show mental toughness on the road in the NBA playoffs time and time again. The core group understands the task at hand and they aren’t one to shy away from the challenge.

The numbers say that things will flip for them, it might just come down to whether they have the mental resolve to push through one more time.

While the value arguably remains on a Miami team playing the better team basketball right now I’m still inclined to believe that Boston’s talent is too good to not make this a competitive series. Our NBA expert picks have been consistent these playoffs and now I’m riding with the most inconsistent team remaining – lay the points with the Celtics in this one.

That’s all for our Heat vs Celtics Conference Final Odds preview for Game 3. Be sure to check out all our analyses and predictions throughout the NBA Finals.

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