Outlining the Heat's potential path to another miracle NBA Finals run
If the Miami Heat are going to repeat as Eastern Conference champions, here's how they'll have to do it.
Round 3: Boston Celtics
In each of Miami's Eastern Conference finals appearances since Jimmy Butler has joined, the Boston Celtics have always been on the other side. If the Heat manage to make it back to the East finals and there's no reason to think this year would be different.
Boston has always been Miami's toughest challenge, but a possible fourth meeting would undoubtedly be the biggest obstacle for the Heat. The Celtics are the only team in the association to reach over 60 wins, and are the only team besides the Oklahoma City Thunder to rank top five in offensive and defensive rating.
The Jrue Holiday addition in the offseason cannot be overlooked, but the acquisition of Kristaps Porzingis added a layer to the Celtics offense they never had. Compared to previous builds where the Celtics had Al Horford and Robert Williams as their two frontcourt pieces, Boston was limited offensively at that spot with Robert Williams mainly being a lob threat and Al Horford not being the offensive threat he once was. With Porzingis now in the fold, Boston can now run offense through Porzingis in a multitude of ways with defenses having to account for him in all areas of the court.
If Miami wants to make another finals appearance, there is a strong chance that they would have to beat the best version of the Boston Celtics. Miami caught a good piece of Boston's buzz saw this season, dropping all three games against the Celtics highlighted by a 143-110 loss on January 25. It's always gratifying to make the NBA Finals, but to defeat this version of the Celtics given they have been a huge favorite to come represent the Eastern Conference would be the most satisfying out of all of their Eastern Conference trophies during the Jimmy Butler era.
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