Celtics vs. Heat Game 4 Preview and Prediction

CELTICS VS. HEAT GAME 4 PREVIEW AND PREDICTION – The NBA Conference Finals are coming to a close, and the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics face off in Game 4 on Tuesday with the Heat one win away from an NBA Finals trip. 

Here’s a look at the odds and predictions for this game. 

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The Odds

Matchup	Open	Spread	Total	Moneyline
Boston Celtics (0-3 SU in Series)	O214.5	+1.5	O216.5	+100
Miami Heat (3-0 SU in Series)	-1.5	-1.5	U216.5	-120

Tipoff

When: Tuesday, May 23, 2023, 8:30 PM ET 

Where: Kaseya Center, Miami, Florida

TV: TNT

Public Money: Heat, 74%

Public Bets: Celtics, 55%

Odds courtesy of DraftKings as of May 23, 2023

How We Got Here 

The Celtics came back down 3-2 to the Philadelphia 76ers and all eyes seemed set on a return trip to the NBA Finals. However, that hasn’t been the case at all, and the Celtics are one loss away from a sweep to the 8-seed in the Eastern Conference. 

The Heat have continued their unreal postseason run, one in which they defeated the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks to get to this point. This series, it has been the Jimmy Butler Show. 

But, Game 3 saw another surprising Heat player step up as Gabe Vincent scored 29 points to lead the team and hit six three-pointers. Duncan Robinson added 22 off the bench and Caleb Martin scored 18. 

In Game 2, Bam Adebayo and Butler combined for 49 points with 25 rebounds and 15 assists, but Martin scored 25 off the bench and Robinson added 15 off the bench as well. Game 1 saw another 55 combined from Bam and Butler but 15 from Martin and 15 from Lowry. 

All in all, while Butler has led the way, other Heat role players have stepped up and come to play with everything on the line, and that has been the difference. 

From Boston’s standpoint, the first two losses were by single digits before getting blown out in Game 3. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have played well, except for poor shooting in Game 3, but the rest of the team has yet to step up and Joe Mazzulla’s name is being thrown out in rumors after a disappointing ECF.

The Picks

Over/Under 

The O/U line is set at 216.5, which seems just about right given these two teams. On the other hand, two of the three games have gone over that number with Game 2 being exactly at 216 points. 

Still, I’m leaning towards the OVER here. It’s Game 4, and the Celtics are in a do-or-die situation, meaning they will give everything they got until they can’t push anymore. The Heat are playing at home, and there’s no telling which player will step up this time. 

Prediction 

The Denver Nuggets just completed a sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night, and now the Heat can do the same, albeit in much different circumstances. 

The situation in Boston is not going well, and a four-game sweep in the ECF as the 2-seed to the 8-seed surely won’t have fans pleased. However, that’s what’s going to happen. 

The Heat have played well all postseason long, and the Celtics look all out of whack after a seven-game series against the 76ers. Sure, Jayson Tatum could drop 50-plus points and Jaylen Brown could go off, but the Heat play in Miami, and the only playoff game they have lost in the postseason came to the Atlanta Hawks in the Play-In Tournament. 

The Heat move on, cover the spread and go to face the top-seed Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals.

James’s Picks

OVER 216.5 Points Heat -1.5

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