Caleb Martin shines as Heat become first No. 8 seed since 1999 to reach NBA Finals
Miami avoided becoming the first team in NBA history to blow a 3-0 series lead in large part due to the contributions of Caleb Martin and in the process became only the second No. 8 seed in league history to reach the NBA Finals.
The Heat blew the Celtics out 103-84 Monday night, avoiding an epic collapse and setting up a finals matchup with the West's No. 1 seed, the Denver Nuggets, that tips off Thursday.
Jimmy Butler led Miami with 28 points and was named Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player, but it was Martin who generated a spark in the closing moments of the third quarter and early in the fourth with eight consecutive points that pushed the Miami lead from 71-64 to 79-66.
Boston never got any closer.
For the series, Martin averaged 19.3 points while shooting 60.2% from the field and 48.9% from three.
Former Nets front office executive Bobby Marks gave a rundown of how remarkable Martin's run to his big game was.
Martin was a fan-favorite online with multiple people rushing to Twitter to praise his effort.
StatMuse posted a couple of stats to highlight the absurdity of Martin's productivity. The undrafted East Finals star has four 20-point games this postseason after recording that many in the regular season.
And in the series, he outplayed Celtics star Jaylen Brown, a former No. 3 overall draft pick.
Butler is the clear leader for Miami, but as Game 7 in Boston showed, if it stuns the world again in the NBA Finals, it will be due to unsung heroes like Martin continuing to punch above their weight.
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