Miami didn’t flinch when confirming at home after taking the first two games of the Eastern Conference Finals in Massachusetts. It is indeed a real tidal wave, all dressed in white, which fell on the formation of Joe Mazzulla, for, on arrival, a historic setback conceded by the Celtics.
Boston has failed in its first mission, to prevent Miami and its fans from igniting. After six minutes of play, Miami took control never to let go again, following a 9-1 fueled by 3-pointers from Gabe Vincent and Max Strus, a missile in transition that made explode the Kaseya Center for the first time (21-16).
It was then a 9-0 that set fire to the powder and complicated the task of the Celtics, martyred by Caleb Martin, author of two baskets in a row and an assist for Kyle Lowry to bring the mark to 30- 20.
The C’s were not at the end of their troubles since the Robinson-Adebayo tandem then put on a show, with an alley-oop between the two to start, then a monstrous dunk from Bam Adebayo, two actions punctuated each time by a 3-pointer from Duncan Robinson to gradually widen the gap (51-33).
The brief reaction of Derrick White and Grant Williams did not weigh much. The one-sided first half then ended with a counter by Cody Zeller on Derrick White and an “airball” from Jaylen Brown at 3-point, quite a symbol (61-46).
The start of the second half would decide the rest of the match. And again, Miami gave Boston no chance, quickly passing a 13-2 concluded by a 3-pointer from Max Strus, a new alley-oop slammed by Bam Adebayo then a 3-pointer from Gabe Vincent in transition ( 74-51). The Strus-Martin-Butler-Adebayo quartet finished the job in stride, bringing the gap to +33 4 minutes from the end of the third quarter (89-56). A third quarter finished with 63 small points for the Celtics (93-63)…
The pressure finally fell on the last 12 minutes, allowing Boston to heal its exit, despite the repeated shots of the Vincent-Robinson pair. The victory being acquired, the Florida public spent the last minutes chanting “We Want Haslem”, to which Erik Spoelstra simply replied with a broad smile. At 3-0 with such a convincing victory, 128 to 102, “the job is not finished yet”, but not far anyway…
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– A symbolic first quarter. His last match to date won in the playoffs, Boston won it by being propelled by an individual feat at 51 points. For its part, Miami stood out for the diversity of its weapons in the first two games of the conference final, a trend which was confirmed in the first quarter tonight. To get started, the Heat were able to count on a Caleb Martin at 3/3 shooting and a Vincent-Strus tandem sharper than ever, at 5 points each. In the first 12 minutes, the locals had already made the difference, all without having practically relied on their leaders in attack, with a single basket scored for Kyle Lowry, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
– When Max Strus makes the hole. Another symbolic action of this match captured in the first half: the total commitment of Max Strus against Jaylen Brown’s fatal second release. After penetrating the circle, Jaylen Brown found himself on the ground with his buttocks, raising his arms to ask the referees for a foul. But the game did not wait for him, allowing Jimmy Butler to find a Max Strus who arrived at the top of the racket to score at 3-pointers. Behind him, Jaylen Brown, who came back too late in defense, could only see the damage. It was the last time Boston was within a possession of the Heat in this game.
This play to me is why the Heat are winning this series. Martin hustles to save the ball, Jimmy cuts to the basket and Strus gets a clean three. Brown falls and complains asking for a call instead of getting back on defense. pic.twitter.com/iQMTy6fAZA
— Mo Dakhil (@MoDakhil_NBA) May 22, 2023
MATCH ACTION
Jaylen Brown’s ears must have been ringing loudly after this action that turned the Kaseya Center upside down. In isolation against JB, Bam Adebayo made a spin-move which completely confused the Celtics player. Bam Adebayo didn’t hesitate to end his action with a huge dunk, moments after a high altitude alley-oop on a serve from Duncan Robinson.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅Heat role players. From Max Strus to Caleb Martin via Duncan Robinson and of course Gabe Vincent, everyone played their part wonderfully, each in turn, to make the job of the team leaders easier. So much so that Boston was forced to surrender after less than six minutes in the third quarter, relegated to 27 points on a 3-pointer from Caleb Martin (83-56). The best of them will undoubtedly have been Gabe Vincent, author of an extraordinary match of efficiency and consistency to finish as the match’s top scorer, at 29 points!
✅ Bam Adebayo. The Miami pivot was spring-loaded tonight! Perfect in deterrence in defense, he punished each opposing gap with rare violence towards the circle! The circles are not about to forget it. From the very great Bam Adebayo…
✅ Jimmy Butler. An almost “quiet” match for him when you see what he has accomplished in the two previous matches. Despite everything, he was present throughout the meeting, as when he was sought for his 2 + 1 in front of Grant Williams then Derrick White as soon as he returned from the locker room to restart the machine.
⛔ The Brown-Tatum duo. We no longer recognize them! Plummeting shooting percentages, questionable choices on many possessions, lost balls, and a feeling of resignation that quickly gained their ranks. The Miami defense is giving them a real nightmare…
⛔ Malcolm Brogdon. Almost every player deserves mention, but Malcolm Brogdon commands attention because he went through the game like a ghost, finishing 0/6 in shooting for a +/- of -23 in just 18 minutes played , and especially because he was a valuable benchmark for the Celtics so far off the bench. But nothing is going well in Boston, and the free fall of Malcolm Brogdon is just one more illustration.
THE FOLLOWING
Game 4 in Miami overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday (2:30 a.m.).
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D= defensive rebound; T = Total Bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Points = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
