The Celtics and Heat are set to face off in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since the 2012 postseason. The Celtics went 2-1 against the Heat during the regular season, but those matchups mean little now since just one came after the trade deadline and neither came with either team at close to full strength. We already broke down the Heat offense vs. Celtics defense this morning so let's turn the tables and zero in on how the Celtics offense can succeed against a good but not great Miami defense.
Heat Basics
- Offensive rating: 111.9 (seventh) | Playoffs: 112.9 (fifth)
- Defensive rating: 109.3 (12th) | Playoffs: 105.4 (fourth)
- Pace: 27th
Celtics Basics
- Offensive rating: 112.8 (fourth) | Playoffs: 111.2 (seventh)
- Defensive rating: 106.5 (fourth) | Playoffs: 102.7 (first)
- Pace: 17th
HEAT DEFENSIVE STRENGTHS
Rebounding:
Bam Adebayo
Jae Crowder
Jimmy Butler.
Kelly Olynyk
Daniel Theis.
Tyler Herro
Goran Dragic
Rob Williams
Enes Kanter
Zone defense:
Erik Spoelstra
Defending the 3:
Andre Iguodala
HEAT DEFENSIVE WEAKNESSES
Letting teams get to the line:
Daniel Theis
Duncan Robinson
Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown
Jayson Tatum
Forcing turnovers:
Kyle Lowry
Fred VanVleet
Defensive weak links:
Erik Spoelstra