Miami vs Boston Prediction: the Celtics to Repest the Success

Most recently, Miami and Boston met in the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Celtics were the stronger team in a seven-game series. The Heat will try to take revenge for that embarrassing defeat - can they do it?

Jimmy Butler's new haircut was almost the highlight of Miami's offseason. The club didn't make any significant acquisitions and lost P.J. Tucker, who played an essential role in the defensive scheme. Miami's head coach should be most concerned about the front line, but the competition in the backcourt is severe. Tyler Herro is already in the starting five, but Max Struz, Gabe Vincent, and Victor Oladipo can also play in his position, and Kyle Lowry is also as a starter. After a disappointing playoff run, Duncan Robinson is getting far less playing time now, and his role is hard to gauge. Omer Yurtseven and Victor Oladipo are on the injured reserve list, and the latter's participation in the game against Boston is still questionable.

During the preseason, Erik Spoelstra's wards won 4 out of 5 games, but at the beginning of the regular season, they lost to Chicago 108-116. The Heat could do nothing on defense against DeMar DeRozan, even though they had to do without Zach LaVine. Long-distance shots from Lowry, Robinson, and Martin were ineffective on the night, with Herro and Struz fouling out. Jimmy Butler scored 20+ points against the Bulls, while Bam Adebayo made just 5 of 15 shots from the field and finished with 12 points. The Heat would have had a chance if they hadn't lost the ball so often, and their poor rebounding gave their opponents more possessions.

The Celtics are poised to repeat last season's achievement and reach the finals again as the club strengthened the roster this summer with Danilo Gallinari and Malcolm Brogdon. While Gallinari is still out and the injury of Robert Williams makes things worse up front, there's also Grant Williams, who should be getting big playing minutes after a successful playoff run. Jason Tatum and Jalen Brown are style-makers for Boston, as they proved in the first game of the regular season, scoring 35 points each.

The 126-117 win over Philadelphia (126-117) was the 3rd win for Joe Mazzulla's team in their last five games. In the preseason, Boston came close to beating Toronto twice but lost in overtime each time. Against the Sixers, the Celtics had an incredible statistical performance, hitting 72.3% of their two-pointers! Grant Williams shot well beyond the arc, while Marcus Smart regularly fouled his opponent to make up for his missed shots.

Both teams rely heavily on their star players on the court right now, and we can't expect much action unless Herro, Tatum, or Brown can play. The Celtics have gotten stronger on defense with the addition of Brogdon, but Miami is struggling without P.J. Tucker. Against a weakened Chicago, the Heat did not look very confident, but now they will be facing a much more formidable opponent. 

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