The Miami Heat retook homeport advantage with a win in Boston in Game 3, but at what cost? Both teams are pretty banged up, and now face a tough Game 4. Catch this game live on May 24, at 8:30 AM, Manila time.
Away: Miami Heat (2-1, 1-0 Away)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Kyle Lowry (questionable)
- SG: Max Strus (questionable)
- SF: Jimmy Butler (questionable)
- PF: PJ Tucker (questionable)
- C: Bam Adebayo
Led by Bam Adebayo, who had a stat line of 31 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, four steals and a block, the Miami Heat managed to hold onto a 109-103 win. This was in a game where they led by as much as 26 points, before the Celtics rallied a bit in the second half.
However, the Heat may have paid a high price, as four of their starters are now listed as day-to-day. Of the utmost importance, of course, is Jimmy Butler, who sat out the second half of Game 3 with knee inflammation. Butler has made it known that he intends to play in Game 4, but no one knows what shape he’ll actually be in come tipoff.
Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, PJ Tucker and Tyler Herro are also all questionable for Game 4, and which puts the Heat in a very precarious position against the Celtics. WIth the majority of their key rotation players potentially banged up, it’s likely that even more responsibility will fall onto Adebayo’s shoulders. Whether he can carry Miami alone against a talented team like the Celtics is a completely different story.
Home: Boston Celtic (1-2, 0-1 Home)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Marcus smart (questionable)
- SG: Jaylen Brown
- SF: Jayson Tatum (probable)
- PF: Al Horford
- C: Robert Williams III (questionable)
The Celtics aren’t in the best of health either. Marcus Smart, who missed Game 1 with an ankle injury, again rolled his foot in Game 3. He came back to play to the delight of the Boston crowd, but there’s no telling how badly that foot hurt after he’d finally gotten to sit down relax.
Robert Williams is also still dealing with a knee mishap, and may not be at his best. The fortunate thing for the Celtics is that Jayson Tatum is listed as probable, even though he had a shoulder injury scare near the end of Game 3.
Still, this all may come down to who is healthier, and that looks like it might be the Celtics this time around. They’ve still got Jalen Brown, who scored 40 points while making all of his two-point field goals, and Al Horford, who had 20 points, 14 rebounds and three assists. If Tatum’s feeling close to better, he also shouldn’t have a second bad shooting night in a row.
PREDICTION:
Spread: I think the Celtics show up a little healthier and manage to cover -6.5.
Over/Under: This could become a very ugly game, but I still think the score hits over 208.
