Heat rising, Celtics disappearing as Miami takes commanding 2-0 lead in NBA Eastern finals | Opinion
The Boston Celtics are shrinking right before our eyes. Disappearing. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown -- all of them.
The Miami Heat is helping it happen.
Friday night in Boston was pretty amazing.
It didn’t take four overtimes like the Florida Panthers’ 3-2 marathon win in Carolina the night before.
This one just took a fourth-quarter domination -- the Heat rising while the Celtics shriveled when it mattered most.
The 111-105 Heat victory gives Miami a 2-0 best-of-seven series lead in the NBA Eastern Conference finals heading to Miami for Game 3 Sunday night.
Boston infamously has not been a good home team in the playoffs lately -- now 11-12 in the past 23 .games. The Celtics also have been notoriously bad in close games, with Friday night the latest evidence. And has rookie coach Joe Mazzulla already slipped irrevocably into Beantown infamy?
Miami overcame a 12-point deficit, making this the sixth comeback win this postseason when down by 10 or more points.
“Desperation” is an overrated intangible, presupposing the team ahead in a series doesn’t want to win just as badly.
Boston had the desperation Friday night. Miami had that, and Jimmy Butler, and Bam Adebayo and Caleb Martin (yes, Caleb Martin).
Butler was not quite vintage Playoff Jimmy but still too much for Boston, with 27 points. Martin, undrafted and undaunted, had 25. Adebayo had 22 with 17 rebounds.
A key for injury-depleted Miami is someone beside Butler or Adebayo stepping up each game. This time it was Martin.
As for Butler, his influence doesn’t always show on the stat sheets. Protecting a 103-100 late lead, he took a charge by Tatum. He went nose-to-nose with Robert Williams III, both jawing, to fire up his team.
Oh, and Grant Williams: Who are you and what are you doing, poking the Playoff Jimmy bear? Heat trailed by nine points with six minutes left when Williams got in Butler’s face, after which Playoff Jimmy appeared and the game changed.
“I like that,” Butler said. “I’m all for that. It makes me smile.”
All of that helped the Heat in a home invasion steal the game with an 18-4 late run and finish it on a 24-9 run.
“We got some dogs,” Butler said afterward. “Guys never quit. We never give up.”
Said Coach Erik Spoelstra: “We showed that grit and perseverance to hang in there. Jimmy and Bam really anchored us offensively. Some very timely, big shots in the fourth quarter. They shoulder massive responsibilities for us. We follow them.”
Here now is Miami’s historical advantage with a 2-0 series lead, what Boston was desperate to avoid but could not:
In NBA history in seven-game series since the current format kicked in in 1984, teams up 2-0 are 226-22 on advancing -- or 91.1 percent. The Heat in its history is 17-0 when up 2-0, 13-0 under Spoelstra. Never blown that lead. Not once.
At 1-1 heading home it would have been a coin flip.
Now, Miami has snatched Boston’s home-court advantage, with three of the last five possible games in the Heat’s house.
Mirroring the Panthers’ unexpected playoff run in hockey, the Heat’s run has been remarkable: From a No. 8 seed to now two wins away from the NBA Finals.
Starter Tyler Herro and key rotation reserve Victor Oladipo both remain out injured, and yet the underdog Heat keep surprising all who doubt them against teams favored to beat them.
Whether the Panthers or the Heat are having the more astounding postseason run for South Florida fans is open to debate.
Right now the argument is a delight, with no losing side.
This story was originally published May 19, 2023 at 11:27 PM.
