Miami Heat vs Boston Celtics Prediction, 5/19/2023 Preview and Pick

Game: Miami Heat vs Boston Celtics

Date: Friday, May 19, 2023

Location: TD Garden in Boston, MA

TV: TNT

Odds/Point Spread: Miami (+9)

The Boston Celtics will go up against the Miami Heat at TD Garden on Friday in Game 2 of their series. Miami leads 1-0. Boston opens this matchup as 9-point favorites. The over/under has been set at 215.5.

The Heat took home the win by a score of 123-116 in Game 1. In the matter of personal fouls, the Heat ended up with 22 while the Celtics finished the game with 18 personal fouls. They made 10 out of their 29 attempts from beyond the perimeter. Boston ended up shooting 75.9% from the charity stripe by knocking down 22 of 29 shots. Additionally, Boston grabbed 34 rebounds (9 offensive, 25 defensive) and earned 3 rejections. Boston recorded 22 dimes and had 6 steals for this game. In regard to defending, Miami allowed 51.9% from the floor on 42 out of 81 shooting. They also dished out 20 assists for the game while forcing the other team into 15 turnovers and getting 12 steals. When discussing grabbing rebounds, they earned 35 with 7 of them being on the offensive end. At the charity stripe, the Heat made 15 of 19 shots for a percentage of 78.9%. Miami finished the contest with a 54.1% FG percentage (46 of 85) and knocked down 16 out of their 31 three-point attempts.

Jimmy Butler is a player who came through for the game. Butler ended up shooting 48.0% from the floor and totaled 7 assists. He was on the court for 43 minutes played and collected 5 rebounds. He walked away with 35 points on 12 of 25 shooting.

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Miami enters this one with a mark of 44-38 for the season. They turn it over 13.5 times per game and as a team are committing 18.5 fouls per game. As a team, Miami is snagging 40.6 rebounds per game and is sitting with 1,955 dimes on the campaign, which is 25th in basketball in terms of passing the ball. The Heat are shooting 34.4% from downtown (980 of 2,852) and 83.1% from the free throw line. They average 109.5 points per outing (30th in the NBA) while connecting on 46.0% from the field.

When they are on the defensive end, the Heat have forced 15.7 turnovers every game and they draw 20.0 personal fouls. They rank 14th in the NBA in giving up assists to the opposition with 2,097 conceded for the season. The Heat are giving up a FG percentage of 48.2% (3,288 of 6,822) and they surrender 41.8 boards per game as a basketball team. They give up 36.7% on shots from distance and they rank 2nd in basketball in points per game from their opponents (109.8).

When discussing how they rebounded in Game 1, Boston allowed Miami to grab 35 in total (7 offensive). They finished the game shooting 51.6% from distance by connecting on 16 out of 31 and finished the game at 15 of 19 at the charity stripe (78.9%). The Celtics permitted the Heat to convert 46 out of 85 attempts from the floor which had them sitting at 54.1% for the matchup. When all was said and done, the Celtics went 42 for 81 from the field which gave them a percentage of 51.9%. In regard to shooting from 3-point land, Boston made 10 of 29 tries (34.5%). They were able to bury 22 of them for a percentage of 75.9%. The Heat were called for 22 fouls for this contest which got the Celtics to the charity stripe for 29 attempts. They also coughed it up 15 times, while recording 6 steals for the game. The Celtics collected 25 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards for a total of 34 for the matchup.

Jayson Tatum ended up having an impact for the Celtics in the matchup. Tatum totaled 30 points in his 41 mins of playing time and had 1 assist in this contest. He made 9 of 17 in this contest for a field goal rate of 52.9%, and accounted for 7 rebounds.

Boston has a record of 57-25 this year. The Celtics have committed 18.8 fouls per contest while shooting 81.2% from the charity stripe. Their rate of dishing out assists is at 26.7 times per contest (7th in the NBA) and they are losing possession via turnover 13.4 times per game. Boston has totaled 9,671 points this season (117.9 per contest) and they pull in 45.3 boards per game. As an offense, the Celtics are shooting 47.5% from the field, which ranks 14th in the league.

The Celtics on the defensive side of the court are 5th in the NBA in PPG given up with 111.4. They have forced 12.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 46.3% from the floor (5th in the NBA). The Boston defense concedes 34.5% on shots from beyond the arc (954 of 2,763) and opponents are converting on 76.9% of their foul shots. They relinquish 23.1 dimes and 44.0 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is ranked 2nd and 18th in basketball.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Miami (+9)

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