Boston Celtics at Miami Heat Betting Preview/Prop Picks

Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals will go down tonight. The Boston Celtics are already behind in this series 0-1 after a poor performance in Game 1. In hopes to remedy their recent outing, they'll stay in Miami and try to get a win on the road.

However, this could be tough with all of the players they're missing. One thing is certain; they can't afford to play the way they did.

The Miami Heat had exactly the game they were looking for in Game 1. Still, just because they finished strong in one doesn't mean they can relax tonight. Tonight, they'll need to continue to put pressure on the Celtics' defense.

If they can continue to create gaps in Boston's defense, they'll win this series easily. Let's look at both teams and make our pick for Thursday night.

Boston Celtics: Defense is their strong point, they need to use it

One area where many believe the Celtics have the edge over Miami is on defense. However, in Game 1 of this series, that proved to not be the case.

The Celtics allowed the Heat to score 118 points that game and allowed Jimmy Butler to score 41. If the Celtics want any shot at winning this series, they'll need to tighten down on defense. However, they could have a problem.

One issue we're seeing is that the injury list is continuing to grow for Boston. At the moment, two players are on the day-to-day list, while one has been ruled out.

The two players that are questionable are Al Horford and Marcus Smart. Each of these players serves a vital role on both sides of the ball. Without them, the Celtics' defense will definitely suffer in Game 2.

Miami Heat: Things are looking good for the Heat right now

With one more game at home before heading to Boston, the Heat are going for a 2-0 lead. Boston suffering a few injuries also gives the Heat an advantage coming into tonight's game.

After their win over Boston in Game 1, the Heat are 2-1 against the Celtics in their last three meetings. Momentum is on the side of Miami, and they'll look to use it again in tonight's game.

Game 2 won't be easy, though, and Miami's offense needs to be ready. The Celtics will likely have a plan for Jimmy Butler, so other Heat players need to step up.

Tyler Herro came off the bench in Game 1 and put up 18 points, the second-highest on the team. P.J. Tucker had a disappointing five points with only six rebounds. Tucker will need to do better than that.

Boston Celtics at Miami Heat Betting Pick 

After looking at each of these teams, the Heat stands out as the much better option. They only come in as 3.5-point favorites tonight, a relatively small spread to cover.

They easily dispatched the Celtics in Game 1, and Boston is still without some key players. Look for Miami to get an early lead and keep it to close the game tonight.

In terms of the total, we'll take the under here. At the time of writing, the total is set at 208, and we expect it to go well under that. Although the last game went over the total, we think Boston might tighten down on defense slightly more today.

DunkelIndex Free Pick: Miami Heat -3.5, UNDER

Prop Picks

Boston (-120) UNDER 102.5 Points

Miami is allowing 105.6 points per game on defense, which ranks No. 4 in the league, while holding teams to 33.9 percent from 3-point range, which ranks No. 2. Scores have gone UNDER in nine of Miami’s last 11 playoff games as a favorite.

With Dunkel predicting a Miami victory by the score of 107-95, take the Celtics (-120) to finish UNDER their Vegas team total of 102.5 points against the Heat.

Marcus Smart (-110) UNDER 13.5 Points

Smart averaged 12.1 points per game in 71 games during the regular season, which ranked No. 4 on the Celtics. That average decreased to 11.9 points per game on the road and 11.7 points per game in three contests versus Miami.

With Dunkel predicting a Miami home win with the point total staying UNDER the Vegas total, take Smart (-110) to finish UNDER his Vegas point total of 13.5 points against the Heat.

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