After Derrick White‘s game-winner in Game 6 against the Miami Heat brought the Celtics all the way back from a 3-0 deficit, it felt like this series was for Boston’s taking.
The Celtics were headed back home, in front of a sold-out crowd, to accomplish what 150 teams had failed to do.
Momentum was finally in their favor.
It felt like fate.
It felt like they had to do it.
The Heat were in trouble.
Yet, somehow they fell extremely short.
And in the process, the Miami Heat managed to play their most complete game of the postseason, saving themselves from embarrassment.
There are three main reasons they were able to do that. Below, I will outline each of them.
3 Reasons the Heat Stole Game 7 in Boston
1. Defense Wins Championships
Even though Jayson Tatum rolled his ankle on the first play of the game, Boston still had so many offensive threats, such as Jaylen Brown and Derrick White.
However, the Miami Heat defense showed up prepared.
Yes, that same Miami Heat zone defense that had been torched the prior few games.
Jaylen Brown was forced into a career-high 8 turnovers while shooting just 31 percent.
Outside of defending Brown, the Heat forced Celtics into 15 turnovers and applied constant pressure.
In fact, the Celtics were limited to just 84 points.
Those 84 points were the least the Celtics have scored in a game all season.
To put that remarkable stat into perspective, keep in mind that the Celtics averaged 117.9 PPG across the regular season.
Haywood Highsmith was simply phenomenal when guarding an injured Jayson Tatum, making it hard for him to take quality shots all throughout the first half.
This was a masterclass from the Heat defense.
2. Celtics Shot Poorly From Deep Early and Never Recovered
Starting 0-12 from three should be a sign to switch things up and find buckets inside.
Yet, the Celtics did the opposite.
In fact, they kept shooting threes at the same pace.
At the end of the first half, they were just 4-21 from deep.
While they met their season average with 43 three-point attempts per game, the Celtics hit just nine, good for 21.4 percent.
For a team who finds much of their identity from deep, they struggled all night to hit shots.
In fact, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown were a combined 2-13 from three in Game 7.
They struggled to establish a rhythm from beyond all night, and it came at a costly time, as the Heat shot 14-28 from three.
3. For the Heat, Caleb Martin and, of course, Jimmy Butler shined.
Caleb Martin was the unsung hero of this series, and in Game 7, once again.
You could make an argument that he was the Eastern Conference Finals MVP.
Across the series, Martin averaged 19.3 points on 22-45 shooting from deep.
In Game 7, he shined with 26 points on 11 of 16 shooting.
Then, there’s Jimmy Butler, or, as they say, Jimmy Buckets.
The Jimmy Butler of the first two games of this series returned just in time.
In this game, Butler posted a 28/6/7 line with three steals.
After almost blowing a 3-0 lead, the Heat recovered just in time to pour in their most complete performance of the playoffs.
As a result, their magical season stays alive, as they face the Denver Nuggets Thursday in Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Finals.
