NBA Playoff Preview First Round 2024: Boston Celtics v. Miami Heat

NBA Playoff Preview First Round 2024: Boston Celtics v. Miami Heat

This 2024 NBA Playoff Preview first-round matchup between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat tips off Sunday, April 21 at 1 p.m. EST on ABC. It will be a rematch of the Eastern Conference Finals from last year. This season the Celtics took the regular season series with a sweep, winning all three matchups. So, who comes out on top for the playoffs? Let’s get into it.

First, here’s the series schedule for this 2024 First Round playoff matchup:

What to know about the Boston Celtics:

Notable starters:

• G: Jrue Holiday
• G: Derrick White
• F: Jaylen Brown
• F: Jayson Tatum
• C: Kristaps Porzingis

Other players in playoff rotation:

• Al Horford
• Payton Pritchard
• Sam Hauser
• Xavier Tillman

Starting this NBA Playoff Preview with the 1st seed in the Eastern Conference has been led by star Jayson Tatum, but that’s obviously not all the star power they have. They acquired Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday this off-season, and already had Jaylen Brown on the roster.

This team is stacked in terms of firepower, but their rotational players are solid as well.

Derrick White has been a fan favorite since he was traded to the Celtics. The Spurs miss him, I know. Al Horford may not be the best big on their team, but coming off the bench and playing valuable minutes has worked wonders for him and the Celtics. Payton Pritchard has evolved into one of the best backup PGs you can have on a team. Xavier Tillman does a lot of dirty work for this team defending and rebounding. Sam Hauser is one of the best shooters on the team and help opens up the floor for the whole team.

This team fits very nicely with each other. There’s a reason why they have the best record in the NBA.

What to know about the Miami Heat:

Notable starters:

• G: Tyler Herro
• G: Duncan Robinson
• F: Jaime Jaquez Jr.
• F: Nikola Jovic
• C: Bam Adebayo

Other players in playoff rotation:

• Caleb Martin
• Kevin Love

The next team in this NBA Playoff Preview is the Miami Heat. The Heat lost the first game of the play-in and then won the 2nd game to become the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs. This team is riddled with injuries–most notably is Jimmy Butler, who has a sprained MCL and could be out several weeks; that basically means that the Heat will have to win against the top-seeded Celtics for Butler to probably play in these playoffs. Unlikely.

Terry Rozier and Josh Richardson got hurt in February and continue to be out. Josh Richardson is out indefinitely after having surgery on his right shoulder. There is a chance that Rozier could come back later in the series as he is considered week-to-week, but this series might not be long enough for that. That means Bam Adebayo is the de facto best player on the team and Tyler Herro right behind him. Those two will at least do what they can to keep this team in the series.

But, unfortunately, your three next-best players are Jaime Jaquez Jr., Duncan Robinson and Nikola Jovic. The Heat’s best players off the bench are Caleb Martin and old-ass Kevin Love. The Heat had really bad luck this time around, I would love to see this series if both teams were fully healthy but it just won’t happen this year.

Questions for this NBA Playoff Preview?

1.) Who will step up for the Heat?

I alluded to it earlier when talking about the Heat’s players. Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro will shoulder as much as they can for this team, but players will have to step up if the Heat are going to win any games in this series. This is definitely a baptism-by-fire type of situation. Out of Duncan Robinson, Nikola Jovic, and Jaime Jaquez Jr., Jaime is my pick to do that.

There are games where he has scored over 20 points and even a game where he scored 31 points against the 76ers. When given the opportunity, Jaime has shown that he will not let it go to waste. He will need a few of those games to keep the Heat competitive. However, the more the merrier for the Heat, they will all need to step up to do their part for the void that Jimmy Butler will leave with his recent injury.

2.) Can the Celtics sweep?

The best thing you can do in the playoffs is not play with your food. Win your matchup as soon as possible, get rest, stay healthy. The Celtics probably think they already won the series, which to be fair, I do too. However, the Celtics do need to take care of business. It sounds trivial but, letting the Heat get one game takes away a few days of rest and risks injuries by playing another game. The goal for the Celtics is to understand that this team is not in the same league as them and win in 4 games.

3.) How can the Heat limit the Celtics?

I think we all agree that the Celtics will win this series, but if the Heat have any chance to win a game or two and keep these games competitive, what should they do? I have a few ideas. Keep the ball out of KP and Tatum’s hands at all times. Those guys are the best scorers on the team and if you let them take over, they will. Jrue Holiday has never been known as a prolific scorer and there were allegations against Jaylen Brown not having a left hand. I mean use that, let Jrue Holiday and Jaylen Brown beat you.

Have someone on Jaylen’s right hip. Be ready to help on Tatum and KP every time they touch the ball. Sure, you might lose the game, but if Tatum and KP are contained, you at least you have a chance. Bam and KP should be a great matchup. Haywood Highsmith might see a lot of minutes if you are going to try to stop someone defensively. That might be the Heat’s best course of action.

Prediction: Celtics in 5.

Celtics will win, convincingly. However, I do think the Heat get hot one game and win narrowly. Maybe the Celtics took the night off that one game and the Heat steal the game. I don’t see a sweep. At least not for Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra. I think they get 1 game, but it will be nothing more than a gentlemen’s sweep for the Celtics.

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