Celtics vs. Heat Game 2 odds, expert picks: Boston looks to bounce back from Game 1 upset
Underestimate the Miami Heat at your own peril. Entering Game 1 as a significant game and series underdog to the Boston Celtics, Jimmy Butler and Co. pulled off the same magic act they have been engineering all postseason, riding a 46-point third quarter and clutch heroics across the board to a 123-116 victory that shocked the TD Garden.
The Celtics now have an uphill battle to regain their footing, which begins on Friday with Game 2 in Boston.
During the NBA Playoffs, The Athletic’s writers will make their straight-up picks. You’ll find picks, coverage and the latest odds here. Our in-depth NBA coverage is linked below the picks.
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No. 2 Celtics vs. No. 8 Heat
8:30 p.m. ET on TNT
What are the odds for the Celtics vs. Heat?
Series: Heat lead 1-0
Series odds: Celtics -225, Heat +175
Unsurprisingly, the Celtics are heavy favorites to bounce back, with a -8.5-point spread and -400 moneyline odds for Game 2. This is a team that, through its last two playoff runs, has fared better with its back against the wall, and staring down the prospect of a 2-0 deficit — with both losses coming at home — certainly qualifies.
Boston backers can take heart in the fact that it was only one quarter — that 46-25 third — that sunk the Celtics in a seven-point loss, and that each side’s 3-point shooting (16-for-31 from Miami compared to 10-for-29 for Boston) is ripe for regression.
But waiting on the eighth-seeded Heat to crash back to earth has proven folly in the past. They shot a scalding 45 percent from 3-point range in their first-round upset of the Milwaukee Bucks, and then, even converting a much lower percentage on jump shots, battened down the hatches defensively in the second round to oust the deep and well-rounded Knicks in six games.
It is a team that doesn’t beat itself and is coached perhaps better than any group in the league. At their worst, the Celtics fit neither of those descriptions, as evidenced by their crunch-time execution in this one.
Tracking their adjustments in Game 2 will be fascinating because Game 1 sprung many leaks. Jimmy Butler went for 35 points and seven assists 12-for-25 shooting, Bam Adebayo dropped 20 to go along with five dimes, and the Heat got three 3-pointers apiece (12 total) from Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin. It all culminated in one of the Celtics’ poorer defensive showings of the playoffs.
Leveling this series starts there. But this undead version of a Heat team that drastically underperformed in the regular season is nothing if not persistent.
