Miami Heat (63-33) vs. Boston Celtics (60-36)
May 23, 2022 8:33 pm EDT
The Line: Boston Celtics -7; Over/Under: 208.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Miami Heat and Boston Celtics meet Monday in game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at the TD Garden. The Miami Heat have a chance to take a commanding 3-1 series lead. The Boston Celtics need a victory here to even up the series at 2-2.
The Miami Heat are averaging 107.6 points on 46.5 percent shooting and allowing 100.6 points on 45.1 percent shooting. Jimmy Butler is averaging 28.1 points and 7.2 rebounds, while Bam Adebayo is averaging 14.9 points and 7.7 rebounds. Tyler Herro is the third double-digit scorer and Max Strus is grabbing 4.4 rebounds. The Miami Heat are shooting 32.1 percent from beyond the arc and 80.7 percent from the free throw line. The Miami Heat are allowing 34.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 40.7 rebounds per game.
The Boston Celtics are averaging 109.3 points on 46 percent shooting and allowing 103.5 points on 44.8 percent shooting. Jayson Tatum is averaging 26.9 points and 5.8 rebounds, while Jaylen Brown is averaging 23.7 points and 3.5 assists. Marcus Smart is the third double-digit scorer and Al Horford is grabbing 9.2 rebounds. The Boston Celtics are shooting 37.7 percent from beyond the arc and 80.4 percent from the free throw line. The Boston Celtics are allowing 32.7 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 41.4 rebounds per game.
The Heat are 13-5-1 ATS in their last 19 road games and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The Celtics are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 Monday games and 12-5-1 ATS in their last 18 games overall. The under is 9-4 in Heat last 13 overall. The over is 5-2 in Celtics last 7 overall. The Heat are 4-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings in Boston.
It’s going to be important to look at the injury report before betting this game, as both teams are really banged up. Lowry, Tucker, Herro and Butler are dealing with injuries for the Heat, and that includes Butler not playing in the second half of game 3. Smart injured his ankle and Tatum hurt his shoulder, and they’re currently questionable. Knowing that, I have to grab the free points. The Heat have far and away more depth, and they’re used to having that next man up mentality. The Heat can dig deep defensively and grind games down, and if Adebayo plays the way he did on Saturday, they’ll have a chance to steal this game outright. The Boston Celtics rely tons on their top guys, and if two of them aren’t right, this becomes a dangerous situation for the leprechauns. Give me the points.
