The Boston Celtics try to stay alive in the Eastern Conference finals when they host the Miami Heat in Game 5 on Thursday night. Boston staved off elimination with a road win in Game 4 but still trails 3-1 in the series.
Miami is 2-0 on the road in this series and wants to try to finish off the Celtics as soon as possible to advance to the NBA Finals against the Denver Nuggets. This is the only game on the NBA schedule for Thursday, so let’s take a closer look and determine our best Heat vs Celtics prediction for your betting.
Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics Odds
Heat vs. Celtics Information
Miami Heat vs Boston Celtics
Location of the game: TD Garden, Boston, MA.
Date & Time: Thursday, May 25. 8:30 pm ET.
How to watch: TNT
Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics Recent Scores
The road team is 3-1 in this series, which is much like the regular-season series between these two teams, which saw the road team go 2-2. Miami will have plenty of confidence playing in TD Garden, as it has a 3-1 record at the venue this season.
Miami Heat at Boston Celtics Betting Analysis
Heat Must Get More From Bam
The Miami Heat’s schedule has been to play every other day in this series. So, they want to try to end this series as soon as possible to get rest before playing Denver Nuggets in the Finals. To be able to get the win on the road on Thursday. They need more aggressive play offensively from center Bam Adebayo.
The All-Star center isn’t at the top of the NBA player stats in most categories, but when he’s taking the ball to the hoop aggressively, Miami becomes a much more dangerous team. Adebayo took just seven shots and finished with 10 points in the Game 4 loss to Boston after he averaged 18.3 points in the first three contests.
Of course, forward Jimmy Butler also sets the tone for Miami with his confident play on both ends of the floor. Butler had 29 points, nine rebounds and five assists in the Game 4 loss on Tuesday, and he’ll need that same kind of production if the Heat are going to get the road victory.
Celtics Taking It One Game At A Time
The Boston Celtics are hoping to give Beantown a repeat of the 2004 Boston Red Sox comeback from an 0-3 deficit against the New York Yankees. The Boston Celtics’ stats on defense ranked near the top of the league. Boston was fifth in NBA team stats for scoring defense in the regular season and must continue in Game 5.
Forward Jayson Tatum was the leader of the Celtics’ effort in Game 4. Finishing with 33 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and two blocks. Tatum has scored 30 or more points in four of the last five games, and he should have that same kind of scoring success in this one.
Guard Jaylen Brown has been off on his scoring numbers in this series, scoring 17 or fewer points in the last three games. He’s still averaging 22.8 points per game in the postseason. Boston would be served well if he can have a breakout scoring game in this one.
Key Injuries
A pair of guards are listed as game-time decisions for this game, one from each team. Heat guard Gabe Vincent is dealing with a left ankle sprain suffered in Game 4.
Meanwhile, Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon has been playing with a partially torn tendon in his right elbow. Despite the injuries, both players should be on the floor for Game 5 and their statuses shouldn’t affect your NBA predictions.
Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics Betting Preview
Moneyline: If your Heat vs Celtics prediction is going to be on the moneyline, you can get Boston at -310, while Miami is listed at +256.
Spread: Bookmakers have found their confidence in the Celtics, as Boston is giving eight points on a point-spread bet for Game 5. No matter which team you take on that wager, you’ll get -110 odds.
Over/Under: The over/under is set at 215.5 points, with -110 odds available on either side of that wager.
Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics Betting Prediction
This series looked to be a complete blowout before the Celtics showed some life in Game 5.
- Our Heat vs Celtics prediction for the series is still for Miami to advance, but we like Boston to win this contest, though we don’t see it covering the eight-point spread.
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