Heat vs. Celtics Game 5 Prediction
Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals will be played tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET when the Miami Heat attempt to eliminate the Boston Celtics. Will the Heat accomplish the feat or do the Celtics have at least one more win in them this season?
Game Snapshot
715 Miami Heat (+3.5) vs. 716 Boston Celtics (-3.5); o/u 213
NBA Eastern Conference Finals, Game 5
8:30 p.m. ET, September 25, 2020
Miami Heat DFS Spin
Bam Adebayo (left wrist) participated in the Heat’s optional practice Thursday and should be fine for Friday’s Game 5 vs. the Celtics. Adebayo hurt the wrist late in Miami’s Game 4 victory Wednesday night, but he remained in the game. According to Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press, the All-Star center iced the injury postgame and team sources declared him to be “fine.” Both Adebayo and Erik Spoelstra said the same after Thursday’s practice. The Game 4 injury was a re-aggravation of an injury Adebayo suffered during Game 3. Boston has struggled to find an answer for him defensively, one of the big reasons why the Heat hold a 3-1 series lead.
Boston Celtics DFS Spin
Jayson Tatum finished Wednesday’s Game 4 loss with 28 points (10-of-22 FGs, 4-of-4 FGs), nine rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Tatum didn’t score a single point in the first half tonight, which is the only time all season that’s happened. He made a 3-pointer halfway through the third quarter to get on the board, and proceeded to score 16 points in the quarter. He recently joined a club that includes Kobe Bryant and LeBron James as the only guys with 20+ points in at least 24 postseason games before they turned 23 years old (Tatum’s birthday is March 3) and tonight’s first-half struggles weren’t important in the long run. Tatum looks like a generational talent and fantasy managers are unlikely to obtain him outside of the first round next season.
Heat vs. Celtics Betting Prediction
The Heat are now 4-1 against the spread in their last five games versus the Celtics and are 11-2 against the number in their last 13 games overall. They’ve also covered in six of their last eight games as an underdog and are 8-2 against the number in their last 10 games coming off a win. Meanwhile, the Celtics are just 1-5 against the spread in their last six conference finals games, yet they continue to be favored. No matter – give me the points again with Miami.
NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE GAME 5 PREDICTION: MIAMI HEAT +3.5