The Miami Heat's improbable playoff run is showing no signs of stopping any time soon. After a dominant performance in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics, they are now up 3-0 in the series and one win away from a trip back to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2020.
They'll have a chance to get it on Tuesday night when they host Game 4. Ahead of the action, here's all you need to know:
(2) Boston Celtics vs. (8) Miami Heat
- Date: Tuesday, May 13 | Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Kaseya Center -- Miami, Florida
- TV channel: TNT | Live stream: TNT app
- Odds: Heat -1.5; O/U 216 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Storylines
Celtics: The Celtics' season has been full of ups and downs, all of which have been epitomized in the last week. From the elation of a Game 7 win at home against the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round, to facing a shocking 3-0 deficit to the No. 8 seed Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. While the Celtics maintain they are still the better team, and that is true on paper, they haven't shown it during this series. Now, they have no more margin for error and will need to be perfect the rest of the way if they want to become the first team in NBA history to come back from 3-0 down in a series.
Heat: The Heat were a few minutes from being eliminated in the play-in tournament, and now they're one win from the Finals. Such an unbelievable turnaround is hard to fathom or make logical sense of, but there's no denying the Heat are playing an incredible level right now. To wit, Caleb Martin and Gabe Vincent are both outscoring every single player on the Celtics save for Jayson Tatum. This team doesn't have the same amount of talent as the Celtics, but they have more belief, confidence and togetherness, and so far that's been more than enough.
Prediction
The Celtics obviously can win this game, but you have to pick the Heat here. They are finally favored in this series for a reason and appeared to break the Celtics' will in Game 3. Pick: Heat -1.5
