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The Miami Heat fell to the Boston Celtics 143-110 Thursday, extending their losing streak to five games.
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) January 26, 2024
Brewing Rivalry
Facing off in two of the last three Eastern Conference Finals, the Heat and Celtics are no strangers to each other. Last season, the Heat defeated the Celtics in seven games to advance to another NBA Finals. This season, Boston seems to have Miami’s number early.
This Season
In their two matchups this season, the Celtics have won both. In the opening week of the season, the Celtics won by eight at home as Derrick White hit five 3’s with 28 points, while Herro led the way for the Heat with 28. Thursday night, the Celtics dominated Miami as they outperformed the Heat on both sides of the ball.
The Heat were unable to gain any momentum defensively, as the Celtics shot 55% from beyond the arc, and 63.7% from the field. The silver lining for the Heat was their improvement in shooting percentage, scoring over 100 points after being held below that mark in four of their last five games.
Familiar Territory
Through 44 games last season, the Heat were seventh in the East at 24-20. This year, at 24-21, the Heat stand in seventh in the conference. Despite an unimpressive regular season and finishing in the play-in tournament, the Heat were able to flip another switch and go on a run to make the finals last year. This has been the story for Miami in the Jimmy Butler era, outperforming expectations and winning in gritty and unfavorable situations.
At some point, the postseason success might not be able hide the Heat’s flaws.
Keep thinking back to Riley comment in October: "You get to a point where, does it run its course?" In past 4 years, elite defense (now gone) and otherworldly playoff Jimmy masked areas where they weren't as good as other teams. This is nothing marginal trades will solve https://t.co/wVBeL3TUbo
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) January 26, 2024
Mutual Struggles
Miami is 28th in average points scored in the NBA and 23rd in field goal percentage. They’ve struggled offensively as of late, and they hope their recent acquisition of Terry Rozier will provide another dimension of scoring as they look to rebound offensively. The Heat traded for the former Hornets point guard early in the week, sending Kyle Lowry and a first round pick to Charlotte.
Thursday, while the offense had a stronger performance, the defense did not, giving up 143 points to Boston. The Celtics passed the Heat average in points allowed of 111.3 by the end of the third quarter.
Up Next
Trying to stop a five-game skid, the Heat’s schedule doesn’t get any easier as they take on the Knicks Saturday at Madison Square Garden before hosting the Suns and Kings at home. They hope to get both Jaime Jacquez Jr. (groin injury) and Kevin Love (illness) back soon.
