Celtics' Fallen Rival Now a Dark-Horse Threat to Reigning Champions

Mostly all of the Boston Celtics rivals made significant moves this summer in efforts to claw the 2024 reigning NBA champs down from the mountaintop.

The Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks added the elite swingmen they needed to get to the next level in Paul George and Mikal Bridges. The Milwaukee Bucks rejuvenated themselves with new weapons on bargain contracts like Gary Trent Jr. to supplement Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. 

But there is one all-time rival to the Celtics, that test them as much as any opponent and has exposed them before. Despite their playoff battles, this opponent seems to be getting dismissed too easily.

The hard-nosed, discipline-culture driven Miami Heat.

The 2023 Eastern Conference Finals winner, who went through Boston to do so, underperformed throughout 2023-24, thanks to the likes of injuries and inconsistencies regarding players like Jimmy Butler and Tyler Herro. Even with Miami’s postseason prowess, the Celtics pummeled them in five games in a revenge series where the Heat were without Jimmy Butler due to an MCL sprain suffered in their play-in matchup in Philadelphia.

Miami had 22-13 record since Jan. 30 to finish the second half of the season. Butler had played 28 games, while Herro suited up in just 14. The project has been in place to make the Heat Bam Adebayo’s ball club as the main building block, eluding to Butler’s lack of consistency on the floor through the season’s longevity. The former 76er also turns 35 in September. Duncan Robinson’s contract continues to be a disaster as well.

What Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley’s teams have always hung their hat on is the defensive end of the floor. After the All-Star break last season, they had the No. 2 defense in the league. However, their offense was at the bottom-half of the Association, largely thanks to lackluster three-point shooting.

The organization added an infusion of skill and athleticism, with Jaime Jaquez Jr. having an outstanding rookie season, along with an underrated addition in former Celtic Terry Rozier III, who was inactive in the playoffs as well. Nikola Jovic also showed promise as a versatile big. The Heat lost Caleb Martin, but they brought in an interesting scoring threat for the second unit in Alec Burks.

Rozier has put up 19.7 points per contest for the last five seasons on a 55.3 true-shooting percentage. Miami's general manager, Andy Elisburg, stated in an interview on SiriusXM earlier in the summer that the acquisition of the former Celtic represents their big offseason move. Injuries prevent the Heat from getting much of a look at their reshaped starting five.

Furthermore, Adebayo displayed the elevation of his game throughout Olympic play. Butler needs to be on the floor throughout the regular season consistently. It's an issue Pat Riley has spoken publicly about. And as the five-time All-Star seeks his next contract, there's added fuel for him to prove himself again in his age-35 campaign.

So, while it's easy to sleep on Miami, the Heat have the pieces, coaching, and a culture that often maximizes their roster. They have the capabilities to pose a greater threat to the Celtics than many are envisioning.