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From Tuesday evening, the fight for supremacy in the east will begin. It’s a surprise poster because it was the Celtics and the Heat, respectively third and fifth at the end of the regular season, who validated their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.
The journey of the two teams
Boston arrives in the conference final after two opposing series in the intensity they must have put there and in the level of their opponents. The men in green first overpowered a Philadelphia team in need of solutions. The Boston collective settled the Sixers case in four games. A validated sweep to quickly project towards a more hooked conference semi-final.
It was until the last minutes of Game Seven that this series was played against the reigning champions Raptors. A series in seven games that followed strong trends for both teams. Boston led first 2-0 then 3-2, Toronto has always glued. But, in the deciding game, the Celtics executed their game plan to perfection and managed to get rid of the defending champions.
Where their opponents had to fight hard to reach the conference finals. Miami has shipped its first two rounds. An 8-1 record over both series. An almost perfect course that started with poor Pacers. One sweep and the next.
A big piece of Greek salad for the Heat in the conference semi-finals. Despite their first place in the regular season, a reigning MVP and DPOY, the Bucks have served as a mainstay for the Heat. They then arrive in the conference final with, as always, a desire to win instilled by their executives and also with a little more rest.
.@JimmyButler turns 31 today.
He’s been a machine in the playoffs for the Heat:
???? 21.8 PPG
???? 5.6 RPG
???? 4.2 APG
???? 8-1 W-L pic.twitter.com/1CjErseDIc– ESPN (@espn) September 14, 2020
Jimmy Buckets (who turned 31 on Monday) and his comrades in arms finished their second round last Tuesday. They have a whole week of rest. As for the Celtics, in addition to having had “only” four days off. They had to whip in their semi-final. In particular in match 6 (double overtime) where all the players of the five major played almost 50 minutes each.
The forces involved
The two teams are spared from injuries, only Gordon Hayward in the major players is missing for Game 1. So the two coaches will have all the cards in hand to make the difference. They are masters in the playoffs game, out-of-time systems that are as precise as possible, adjustments that are always very fair. The poster is beautiful and promises us a great game of poker.
Part in which Brad Stevens will have the opportunity to play his all-out: Gordon Hayward (announced OUT for the first match). We saw him warm up before match 7 of the semi-finals, the former Jazz is about to return. When exactly? We don’t know that and Brad Stevens too, he said for Boston.com: “I think he can come back for the series against the Heat but I don’t know for which game.”
Is it appropriate to integrate him into an already well-oiled group which managed to reach the conference finals without him? What is certain is that Boston can count on him in this series and they can be happy. They will have an additional, experienced weapon that could be an x factor in the series.
Speaking of which, there are a few players who can be instrumental in the series. Among them is Jae Crowder, who produced good defense against the Bucks. Above all, he was able to take award-winning shots at crucial moments. Miami will need a good Jae Crowder in this series, a Celtics 2017 Jae Crowder in short. On the other hand, Kemba Walker will be a big part of whether or not the Celtics are successful in this series. He was very irregular in the shoot against the Raptors (42% FG – 27% 3ptFG). The former Hornets will have to work harder if he wants to help his own for his first conference finals. It would be a real plus for the Celtics.
We will have the opportunity to check this from Tuesday night to Wednesday at 12:30 am. What is certain, however, is that it will be a hotly contested series that could even drag on for our greatest pleasure.
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