The Eastern Conference Finals continues to go back and forth.
Once again, the Celtics responded to a loss in impressive fashion, defeating the Heat by 20 points in Game 4 to tie the series at 2-2. Jayson Tatum led the way with 31 points while Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown and Robert Williams III each scored in double figures.
The series now returns to Miami for an important Game 5. Will the Heat or Celtics put themselves a win away from the NBA Finals?
Here are four things to watch in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The turnover battle
The Celtics have been a different team when they've taken care of the ball in this series.
In their two wins, the Celtics averaged 9.0 turnovers per game. Want to guess how many they averaged in their two losses? 19.5.
To rub salt in the wound, the Heat have taken advantage of those mistakes. In Game 1, the Celtics coughed the ball up 16 times, leading to 17 points for the Heat. Turnovers were an even bigger story in Game 3, as Miami scored 33 points (!) off of 23 Boston miscues.
The Heat deserve a lot of credit for making the Celtics uncomfortable by dialing up the pressure and playing them physically — Victor Oladipo was particularly disruptive in Game 3 — but Boston has been careless at times.
It's turnovers like these that the Celtics can't afford to make:
The Heat's offense
The Heat's starters, uh, struggled in Game 4.
Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, Jimmy Butler, P.J. Tucker and Bam Adebayo combined to score a total of 18 points in the Heat's loss. Oladipo outscored the five of them by himself, going off for 23 points.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, it's the first playoff game since 1970-71 that a player from a team's bench finished with more points than the entire starting lineup.
That's obviously not going to cut it against the Celtics.
Injuries may have something to do with that as Lowry (hamstring), Strus (hamstring), Butler (knee) and Tucker (knee) were each initially listed as questionable for Game 4. It didn't help that the Heat were also without Tyler Herro, who missed his first game of the postseason and is considered day-to-day with a left groin strain.
If the Celtics are able to limit their turnovers, are the Heat going to be able to manufacture enough scoring?
The Heat will need more from Adebayo in particular. He led the Heat in their Game 3 victory with 31 points. That's more than he scored in Games 1, 2 and 4 combined (25).
Marcus Smart's availability
The Celtics were without one of their key players in Game 4 as well.
While Smart was able to (somehow) return after spraining his ankle in Game 3, the injury sidelined him for Game 4. Celtics head coach Ime Udoka said between games that it was a "pretty bad sprain" and he is dealing with some swelling.
It goes without saying that the Celtics are a better team with Smart in the lineup. His offense comes and goes, but he's made a leap as a passer this season and he makes Boston even more versatile and disruptive defensively.
If Smart is unable to play in Game 5, Derrick White will likely start in his place once again. White struggled to fill in for Smart in Game 1 but gave them a boost in Game 4, scoring 10 of his 13 points in a first quarter that saw the Celtics jump out to a double-digit lead that proved to be insurmountable.
Jayson Tatum stepping up — again
This marks Tatum's third trip to the Eastern Conference Finals in his career. The first time, he fell to LeBron James and the Cavaliers in seven games. The second time, he lost to a Heat team similar to this one in six games.
Is the third time the charm?
It's been a solid series to date for Tatum. He struggled with turnovers in both of Miami's wins, but he finished with 27 points in its Game 2 win and 31 points in its Game 4 win, continuing his trend of bouncing back strong following losses.
Jayson Tatum is scoring 32.6 PPG after a loss this playoffs.
— StatMuse (@statmuse) May 24, 2022
The Celtics are 5-0 in those games. pic.twitter.com/2YZlVOgXYl
The Celtics now need Tatum to lead the charge as they look to steal another game in Miami.
The good news for Boston: Tatum has actually been better on the road (30.0 points per game on 46.8 percent shooting) than he has at home (24.8 points on 41.4 percent shooting) in these playoffs.
