The Miami Heat are facing an incredible amount of pressure tonight. Thanks to a buzzer beating tip in from Derrick White in Game 6, they are forced to return to Boston once more. There the Celtics will be looking to complete one of the most improbable comebacks in NBA Playoff history. The Heat have however already picked up 2 wins on the road during this series. Do not expect them to have given up hope o f reaching the NBA Finals just yet.
Check out my first-basket scorer pick for Heat vs Celtics below and you can also read our NBA predictions'for picks on the sides and total.
A trend has started to emerge for the Heat. They are struggling to win games if Bam Adebayo does not have it going offensively. He was able to drop 20 or more points in each of the first 2 games in the series. Since then, he has not scored more than 16 in the following 4. The Heat offence has struggled in 3 of those games as a result, surprisingly catching fire in the other. The team is not so flush with scoring talent that they can afford to consistently get little contribution from the big man on that end. As a result, I expect him to get the ball into him early so that he can find his touch and build on from that.
The center has done a great job of getting the Heat the opening possession too. He has now won the opening tip against Al Horford in 3 straight games. Considering that he does have a size and athleticism advantage over his counterpart, look for that to continue here. The Celtics have gone on to make the first basket in each of those last 3 games. However, it seems about time the Heat and Adebayo buck that trend. Back him to open the scoring here.