Tag: 2022 Eastern Conference finals

Celtics injury update: Miami Heat’s Tyler Herro to sit Game 4 vs. Boston with groin injury

Health (or a lack of it) is leaving its mark on both teams in this series.

The Miami Heat will be squaring off with the Boston Celtics down at least one key player, with the team announcing that it will sit guard Tyler Herro for Game 4 against the Celtics in their Eastern Conference finals series with Boston on Monday.

Herro sustained what is being described as a groin injury in the second half of Game 3 on Saturday, and exited the game early. With five other teammates listed on the injury report as questionable apart from the Heat guard, health for Miami has become a critical element to watch. Jimmy Butler, in particular, also exited Game 3 with knee inflammation but is expected to play in Game 4 per multiple sources.

“This is the time of the year everybody wants to play,” said Heat head coach Eric Spoelstra on Monday of Herro’s absence via USA TODAY’s Jeff Zillgitt.

“But there is also a responsibility to the athlete and their health and we have to be disciplined to that and sometimes these are tough decisions.”

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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‘That’s our mindset-handle our business,’ says Boston’s Al Horford of Celtics’ Game 4 mentality vs. Miami Heat

It doesn’t matter how many quarters you win if you lose the game.

The Boston Celtics have an opportunity to tie up their East finals series with the Miami Heat on their home court of TD Garden Monday night and intend to take advantage of it even if they may not be at full health with Marcus Smart and Robert Williams III questionable. “We have an opportunity to even the series,” offered Celtics big man Al Horford after practice Monday morning. “That’s our mindset — handle our business.”

“We just need to be better and do what we’ve been doing all year,” he added. “Defensively, on offense, playing Celtics basketball, and that’s what it’s going to take and that’s what I expect from our group tonight.”

“The biggest thing is for us having this opportunity here at home, so we understand what’s in front of us, and we embrace the challenge,” suggested Horford. “We’re excited about it.”

The Celtics will get their shot to knot things up in the series heading back to Florida for Game 5 on Wednesday and have not lost consecutive games yet in this postseason.

To put themselves in the best position to advance beyond the Heat, that trend will need to continue tonight.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Miami Heat at Boston Celtics: 2022 NBA playoffs Game 4 Eastern Conference finals (5/23)

Everything you need to know about Monday’s Game 4 matchup between Boston and Miami.

The Boston Celtics host the Miami Heat at TD Garden Monday night for Game 4 of their Eastern Conference finals series trailing the Heat 2-1 after dropping Game 3 to Miami on Saturday night and look to avoid finding themselves in a potential elimination scenario for Game 5 in Miami. The Heat of course will try to push their advantage, with both teams dealing with a number of injured players.

If you happen to be looking for a way to watch the action live on cable television or an online streaming service, keep reading while we get you up to speed on everything you need to know about the game.

Let’s begin with who ought to be available to play.

How can the Boston Celtics adjust their play to win Game 4 vs. the Miami Heat?

Boston needs to look at Game 4 as a must-win, even if it is technically not.

The Boston Celtics need to look at their Game 4 match with the Miami Heat in their 2022 NBA Eastern Conference semifinals series as a must-win, even if it is technically not one. With the need to avoid heading back to Florida in an elimination scenario for the rest of the series with the count so far currently at 2-1, the Celtics very much need to play better than they did in Game 3 on Saturday.

Some of that is simply taking better care of the ball, keeping it moving and staying communicative and connected defensively. Some of it is playing the opponent in front of them instead of those defeated in earlier rounds — or haunting them from previous losses.

But no matter which elements Boston decides to focus on, their margin of error is too thin for more flat performances as we saw in the two team’s previous meeting.

In the most recent episode of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast, host Justin Quinn joined USA TODAY’s Jeff Zilgitt to talk about how Boston might be a better version of themselves in Game 4.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Celtics injury update: Marcus Smart, Robert Williams III day-to-day for Game 4 vs. Heat; Miami’s Jimmy Butler expected to play

This series could very well come down to the team with the most healthy bodies by its end.

With the Boston Celtics down 2-3 in their Eastern Conference Finals series with the Miami Heat, the health of both teams is likely to play a critical part in the remainder of the series. The team shared some tentatively good news on that after practice on Sunday, with head coach Ime Udoka revealing that while Marcus Smart had indeed sprained his ankle again in Game 3, he “has some swelling in his ankle” and will get it worked on and treated.

“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow,” added the Celtics coach. Boston was also without Robert Williams III, who sat out with knee irritation but has improved since. “He feels better than he did yesterday,” related Udoka. “It’s day-to-day and we’ll test it out tomorrow, see how he feels at shootaround.”

On the other side of the series, Jimmy Butler’s knee injury that took him out of the game is reportedly not serious per multiple reports, and the Heat star is expected to suit up for Game 4.

Keep an eye out as to the availability of Miami sharpshooter Tyler Herro as well, with the Miami guard having hurt his quad late in Game 3 per ESPN’s Nick Friedell.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, and Jayson Tatum offer their view on what went wrong in Boston’s Game 3 loss to the Heat

A flat start and too many turnovers are just scratching the surface of the causes of an embarrassing home loss.

The Boston Celtics came out to play against the Miami Heat with a distinctly noticeable lack of hunger to match a desperate Heat assault to start Game 3, and quickly fell into a considerable deficit as a result, trailing by as much as 26 points in a game they lost wire to wire.

How did the Celtics not see this coming after smacking Miami so hard on their own court in Game 2 to even the series? How did they not know that such a disciplined team would not be planning to come out strong, particularly given they had said as much after Boston evened the series up on Thursday night?

After falling to the Heat 109-103 at TD Garden Saturday, a number of Celtics offered their perspective on what went wrong in game 3.

Celtics Lab 113: Assessing the East finals vs. Miami 3 games in with Jeff Zillgitt

Following a pattern not unlike the East semis vs. the Bucks, Boston now trails the Heat 2-1 in the East Finals; what adjustments can we expect from the Celtics moving forward?

The Boston Celtics are seeing a familiar pattern develop in their Eastern Conference finals series with the Miami Heat that in some ways resembles what unfolded in the last round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs with the Milwaukee Bucks, each team trading wins in the earlier part of the series.

But unlike the Bucks, the margins of victory in this series are substantial, and so far injuries — and players playing through them — have been an important factor as well. The health of Celtics like Robert Williams III and Marcus Smart, as well as Heat players like Jimmy Butler, PJ Tucker, and Kyle Lowry will be critical to winning Game 4 and beyond.

To make sense of the series so far and get a handle on what might be coming in the rest of the East Finals, host of the CLNS Media “Celtics Lab” podcast Justin Quinn is joined by USA TODAY’s Jeff Zillgitt to talk all things Eastern Conference finals.

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In this episode, we broke down what went into the Heat’s Game 3 win, how both teams might adjust, the importance of health, as well as a look across to the Western Conference finals series between the Golden State Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies.

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Check out the clip embedded above to get up to speed on how Boston can still beat the Heat.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Celtics highlights: Boston stumbles in Game 3, fall to Miami Heat 109-103

They’ll get their shot at redemption on Monday in Game 4.

The Boston Celtics got punked on their home floor of TD Garden in Game 3 of their series with the Miami Heat on Saturday night, falling 109-103 to the Heat after nearly digging their way out of a 26-point deficit in a game that saw both veteran point guard Marcus Smart and All-Star swingman Jayson Tatum exit the game temporarily due to injuries and Heat star forward Jimmy Butler (knee) for the remainder of the game in the second half.

The Celtics were led by star forward Jaylen Brown, who had 40 points and 9 boards to lead all scorers but also 7 turnovers as something of an emblem of what went wrong with the Celtics and their 23 turnovers to the Heat’s 8.

If you missed the game or just want another look at what went wrong for Boston, check out the highlight video embedded above put together by the folks at NBC Boston Sports.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Celtics, NBA Twitter react to Boston’s Game 3 win

This is what Celtics and NBA Twitter had to say about how Game 3 went down between Boston and Miami.

The Boston Celtics knew a serious effort was coming from the Miami Heat after embarrassing the Heat on their home court in Game 2 but came up lacking on their home court of TD Garden for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals series to lose the game 109-103 despite a furious effort to overcome an early 26-point deficit by the Celtics.

The Heat now take a 2-1 series lead in the East Finals series, but health looms as a major factor for both teams. Veteran point guard Marcus Smart turning his ankle and big man Robert Williams III missing the game with knee soreness, and Miami star forward Jimmy Butler exiting the contest early with knee irritation.

Let’s take a look at what NBA and Celtics Twitter had to say about the intense Game 3 battle on the league’s unofficial social media site.

Heat at Celtics: Boston falls behind early in Game 3, lose 109-103 to Miami

Some of the best plays of Game 3 captured in images.

The Boston Celtics trailed for the entire contest in Game 3 of their East finals series against the Miami Heat, falling to the Heat 109-103 after an intense contest that saw several players leave the game hurt and both veteran point guard Marcus Smart and reserve forward Grant Williams foul out. The Celtics fell into a 26-point deficit in the first half after coming out flat in the first half, and played catch-up for the rest of the game unsuccessfully, falling into a 2-1 series deficit as a result of their subpar effort.

Solid outings from Jaylen Brown (40 points, 9 rebounds, 7 turnovers), Al Horford (20 points, 14 boards, 3 blocks), and Marcus Smart (16 points, 7 assists) nearly got Boston across the finish line late, but with All-Star forward Jayson Tatum scoring just 10 points, and 6 rebounds, the game ended up tilt Miami’s way in the end.

Let’s take a look at some of the best plays of Game 3 captured in images.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!