Heat beat Boston, will take on Lakers in NBA Finals
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. >> It was exactly one year ago Sunday when Jimmy Butler walked into the Miami Heat practice gym, took a seat on a makeshift stage and said he wanted to be part of the team’s next title run.
He’ll have that chance. The Heat are going to the NBA Finals — surprising many, perhaps, but not themselves. Bam Adebayo scored a season-high 32 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, Butler scored 22 points and the Heat won the Eastern Conference finals for the sixth time by topping the Boston Celtics 125-113 on Sunday night.
“This group, more than anything, they just love to compete,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said during the trophy celebration.
The Heat won the series 4-2 — and now, they’ll see LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers for the title.
So, for the first time — excluding the league’s inaugural season — two franchises that missed the playoffs the previous season will meet in the NBA Finals. Game 1 of Heat-Lak
ers is Wednesday night at Walt Disney World.
Tyler Herro scored 19 points, Duncan Robinson and Andre Iguodala each had 15, and Goran Dragic added 13 for the Heat.
Jaylen Brown scored 26 points, Jayson Tatum had 24 and a career-high 11 assists, and Marcus Smart and Kemba Walker each scored 20 points for Boston — which fell in the East finals for the third time in the past four seasons.
Miami was down by six early in the fourth before regaining control. A 6- 0
burst — Herro had the last five of those points, needing only 31 seconds to do so — tied it at 96. Boston took the lead twice more, with Adebayo answering both times, first with a dunk, then a go- ahead threepoint play with 6:16 left.
They never trailed again. Herro had a pair of baskets in a 9- 0 burst that put the Heat up by 10, Adebayo found Butler for a layup and a 116-102 lead everyone on the Heat bench was on their feet.
The Heat are the only NBA franchise with six Fi
nals appearances in the past 15 years. They’re seeking their fourth title, and this chance didn’t come easily.
The Heat had a 5-for- 5 stretch from 3-point range in the first quarter, but otherwise struggled again from beyond the arc in the first half. The Heat took a 62- 60 lead into halftime.
• Iguodala, a member of the Warriors’ three championship teams, has made the NBA Finals for a sixth consecutive season,
• The last Lakers’ championship was in 2010. James has been in the finals every year but once since.