NBA 2018-19: 3 Talking Points from Boston Celtics vs Miami Heat

The Boston Celtics visited the Miami Heat after having won the encounter between the two teams a couple of nights before at the TD Garden. The Celtics again emerged victorious by a scoreline of 112-102.

This match was again a close affair. But the Celtics pulled away in the final minutes to get the win. Hayward scored 25 points for the Celtics and Irving scored 23 points.

With the win, the Celtics hang on to their fourth spot in the Eastern Conference playoff standings. They have a 47-32 record this season.

The Heat have dropped out of the playoffs spot. They occupy the ninth place at the moment and are 0.5 games behind the eighth-placed Orlando Magic. Orlando's resurgence since the All-Star break has made it a really interesting battle for the playoffs spot in the Eastern Conference.

Let's have a look at the key talking points from the match:

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#3 Poor offensive night for the Miami Heat

Wade could not will his team to victory

The Miami Heat are not known for their offense. They are ranked 26th in the league in points scored per game and 17th in the league in assists. Their defense has been the main reason which has kept them afloat this season.

They again struggled on the offensive end in this match. The Heat shot 41% from the floor compared to the 47.5% shooting from the Boston Celtics. The Celtics also shot better than them from the 3PT line. The Heat only managed to shoot 33% from beyond the arc.

Dion Waiters top-scored for the Heat with 21 points on 8-22 shooting from the field. Goran Dragic struggled throughout the match and could only manage 11 points on 3-15 shooting from the field. Dwyane Wade finished the match with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists and is still looking like the Heat's best player in the final season of his career.

#2 Good team contribution from the Boston Celtics

The Celtics are one of the deepest rosters in the NBA

The Celtics are one of the deepest rosters in the NBA. Despite playing without Jaylen Brown for the second consecutive match, the Celtics got great contribution from other players.

The Celtics opened the last match against the Heat with a 17-2 run. They again had a great start and opened with a 9-0 run. The Heat fought back to take a 31-29 lead after the first quarter. The Heat trailed by only 2 points entering the fourth quarter but the Celtics proved too much for them in the dying minutes.

Kyrie Irving is having a great individual season for the Celtics. He again dropped 23 points. Horford also chipped in with 21 points on a very efficient 10-16 shooting from the field.

Horford averages 14 points per game for the Celtics and has been great for them on the defensive end of the floor.

#1 Gordon Hayward returning back to form

Hayward is finally delivering for the Celtics

Gordon Hayward is playing his best basketball of the season right now. He has now finished with double digits scoring in six consecutive games.

Hayward finished the match with 25 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists on 5-10 shooting from the field. He also shot 3-5 from beyond the arc and 12-13 from the Free Throw line.

Hayward has been a liability for the Celtics for much of the season. They have tried to adjust him in the lineup since his return from injury. He has finally started delivering for the team and the time couldn't be any better.

On paper, the Celtics are one of the best rosters to challenge the Golden State Warriors for the championship this season. If Hayward keeps delivering like this, the Celtics will be a very tough team to beat in the playoffs.