All of the frustration from the Game 1 defeat was visible towards the end of Sunday’s game when Caleb Martin tried to take out Jayson Tatum. The Heat were thoroughly dominated 114-94, they’ve had a lot of time to think about that defeat and about the adjustments they’ll make for Game 2. One issue that will need to be addressed is definitely the three-point shooting. I am looking specifically at Tyler Herro who had a sub-par performance shooting just 4-for-13 in Game 1, well below expectations. Especially since we know he averaged over 20 points per game in the last 5 games against the Celtics in the regular season. Miami took good care of the ball committing just 9 turnovers, but they’ll need to force the Celtics to turn the ball over more than the 10 times they did on Sunday.
Everything went according to plan for Boston Celtics in the series opener, but that doesn’t mean they should relax against this Miami Heat team. Jayson Tatum notched a triple-double in the win with 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, highlighting just how much the Heat miss their leader and best defender Jimmy Butler. The biggest thing that worries me from the Cs perspective is their head coach Joe Mazzulla. He’s in just his 2nd season with the team, so obviously the experience advantage is on Miami’s side here. If it comes to a close game in Game 2 I would have more faith in what the Heat draw up, so the Celtics would be wise to try and start strongly here, just like they did on Sunday. Boston has 16 wins in 17 home games, they’re also 16-4 SU in their last 20 games overall.
