Miami Heat

Jayson Tatum had a pain in the neck after Game 3 instead of being one to the Miami Heat. After a subpar performance, the host Boston Celtics badly need ...

Celtics: Outrebounded Miami 20-8 in the first quarter. Starting in place of Smart, White scored the game's first seven points as Boston took an 8-0 lead. Each game in this series has featured a lead of at least 20 points, and none has been close down the stretch. The Heat didn't get their first points until Adebayo's free throw at the 7:56 mark. Victor Oladipo led the Heat with 23 points. Heat: Shot 33% (30 of 90). ... Finished with 64 bench points. It quickly grew to 18-1, with Miami misfiring on its first 14 shots. We never could get any kind of grip on the game.'' They all sat out the fourth quarter. Can't always just flip the mindset when we come off a loss and get a little desperate.'' Miami missed 15 of its first 16 shots as this bizarre series produced another game that was all but over after 12 minutes. ''Just got to muster that same energy when we came off a win as well as a loss,'' Udoka said.

The Miami Heat will be short-handed, without Tyler Herro and perhaps Jimmy Butler, against the Boston Celtics in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

In fact, it wouldn’t entirely be surprising if the Heat followed suit and elected to sit Jimmy as well. Winning in Boston, specifically in Game 4, was already going to be a tall task for the Heat. Even if they were completely healthy. That means, if the Heat is going to take a 3-1 series lead over Boston, they’re going to have to do it short-handed.

Got a prediction for how the next three games play out? Jimmy the Greek couldn't handicap this. The weather is more predictable. In Game 1, Miami, behind a 39– ...

In Game 5, the Celtics were more careful. Robert Williams limped off the floor in the third quarter. In Game 4, Boston kicked the ball around. They committed three turnovers in the first half. That’s the lowest output by any team in a playoff game in the last quarter century. The Heat finished the game shooting 33.3% from the floor and 38.9% from three. He chipped in a steal. He had three points in Game 1, a monster performance when compared to the goose egg he put up in 14 minutes in Game 2. He scored 105 points in three games after losses to Milwaukee last round. In Game 2, Boston led by as many as 34 before settling for a 25-point win. He took a charge. In Game 1, Miami, behind a 39–14 third quarter, won by 11.

The Celtics scored the first eight points of Monday's Game 4 and never looked back, cruising to a wire-to-wire blowout win against the Heat to even the ...

"I think we have to have that mindset going into Game 5 that it is a must-win game, because tonight was essentially something like that. The Celtics, meanwhile, played like the desperate team from the jump -- helping themselves improve to 5-0 coming off of losses in these playoffs as a result. "Last game, even though I didn't play, I noticed the slip-ups that we had on the defensive end, and that's where we hang our hat at. "We understood we have to be more aggressive and physical on the defensive end. "That was a focal point coming into this game, to just have a sense of urgency on both ends of the floor, from start to finish. In a series that has seen each game swing wildly from one direction to the other, it took about 10 seconds to realize Game 4 would follow a similar pattern.

Jayson Tatum scored 31 points and the Boston Celtics pounded the Miami Heat early, jumping out to a 26-4 lead and cruising to a 102-82 victory.

The Celtics took a 29-11 lead into the second quarter and led 57-33 at the half. Butler was in the starting lineup after missing the second half of Game 3 with swelling in his right knee. Miami missed 15 of their first 16 shots in the second straight game that was all but over after 12 minutes.

The Miami Heat got destroyed in Boston in Game 4 on Monday night. Their offense let them down, but the disparity in officiating is disturbing too.

That just didn’t seem to be the case in, either, Game 3 or 4, though Miami Heat were able to pull Game 3 out. There is a major discrepancy in the way that this thing is being officiated. This might not be the answer either, but what it points to is this. The part that really sticks out is the part about selling it more. And all of that can be true. All of that is true.