Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Heat say they haven’t lost footing in series
MIAMI — To put into perspective how upside down the NBA Eastern Conference finals stand at the moment is to appreciate the convoluted betting lines posted Friday.
That’s when BetOnLine posted odds that had the Miami Heat the favorites to win the best-of-seven series they lead 3-2 over the Boston Celtics . . . but also posted odds that give the Celtics the better shot to win the NBA title.
Make sense? Not really, but then again, what has in this series the Heat led 3-0 but now appear in a tenuous spot heading into Saturday’s 8:30 p.m. Game 6 at Kaseya Center? They know in NBA history, teams have gone 150-0 in series after taking 3-0 leads in a best-of-seven playoff series.
So even as the Celtics stand for the third consecutive game with their backs against the wall, it is the Heat who are being questioned about being on life support after consecutive losses by an average of 15 points.
All of which Heat center Bam Adebayo finds as perplexing as the series itself.
“Why would we lose confidence?” he said of a No. 8 seed that already has pushed past the No. 1 Milwaukee Bucks and No. 5 New York Knicks this postseason and now looks to finish off a No. 2 seed.
“When we started this journey, nobody believed in us. Everybody thought we were going to be out in the first round. Everybody thought we were going to be out in the second round. And now we are here one game away.
“For us, we’ve always had confidence. And that’s not going to go away.”
Indeed, as the Celtics exhibit swagger while still in win-or-gohome mode, Heat hubris remains in place, albeit perhaps not fully intact.
“We are always going to stay positive, knowing that we can, and we will, win this series,” forward Jimmy Butler said. “We’ll just have to close it out at home.”
What has gone sour the past two games Butler termed “easily correctable.”
“Wearegoingtokeepitvery,very, veryconsistent,knowingthatweare going to win next game,” he vowed.
Desperation, veteran forward Kevin Love said, has yet to enter the Heat locker room, smiling when asked if Saturday would feel like a Game 7.
“No, it feels like a Game 6,” he said. “But they’re a hungry team.
“And being down 3-0 and getting a win at our place and then getting a win [in Boston], you can tell they’re fighting for everything, clawing for everything, and now both teams are going to be feeling that. So we need to come out and have a great showing and set the tone at home.”
A Game 7, if needed, would be Monday at 8:30 p.m. at TD Garden. The Celtics won their previous round by overcoming a 3-2 deficit against the Philadelphia 76ers, including a Game 7 home blowout victory.
Only three teams of the previous 150 down 0-3 have come back to force a Game 7.
The Heat exited TD Garden late Thursday night following their 110-97 loss more stoic than somber.
“Who cares about mood?” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We have a gnarly group. I think so much of that is overrated.
“It’s a competitive series. You always expect things to be challenging in the conference finals. One game doesn’t lead to the next game. Based on all the experience that we’ve had, it doesn’t matter in the playoffs. It doesn’t matter if you lose by whatever.
“We beat them by whatever in Game 3 (128-102). It just doesn’t matter. It’s about collectively preparing and putting together a great game. We’ll play much better on Saturday. That’s all we just have to focus on right now.”
Injury report
Heat guard Gabe Vincent, who missed Game 5 with a sprained left ankle sustained in the fourth quarter of Tuesday night’s Game 4, was listed Friday as questionable for Saturday night.
Kyle Lowry started Thursday in place of Vincent, Lowry’s first start since Feb. 2.
Otherwise the Heat injury report continues to list guard Tyler Herro (hand) and Victor Oladipo (knee) as out, with center Adebayo (shoulder) and Cody Zeller (nasal fracture) listed as available.
For the Celtics, guard Malcolm Brogdon (forearm strain) is listed as questionable. Brogdon did not play in Thursday’s second half.