MIAMI — This is exactly what the Miami Heat wanted, the very type of thing that brought a smile to the face of forward Jimmy Butler after Monday’s practice at FTX Arena.
No, not mere homecourt advantage, which will be the case against the Boston Celtics in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals that open Tuesday at 8:30 p.m.
No, not carrying the No. 1 seed into the proceedings.
But, rather, the seeds of doubt.
As in the lower seed, the road team, the Celtics being favored by almost all bookmakers.
As in various power ratings giving the Celtics the far greater chance to emerge as 2022 NBA champion.
“What I love about this team the most,” Butler said, “is ain’t nobody paying attention to what anybody else picks, because we know we can win. Those are guys that I want to go to war with.
“We’re gonna fight, and we’re gonna come out on top. I think this is going to be really fun and really interesting.”
Considering it is Celtics-Heat, it likely has little other option, be it the teams’ dramatic 2020 Eastern Conference finals the Heat won in the Disney World quarantine bubble, to LeBron James going into TD Garden and stealing the Celtics’ souls with his 45-point performance in Game 6 of the 2012 East finals, to Heat president Pat Riley telling former Celtics general manager Danny Ainge to STFU, because, well, just because he could.
“I’ve heard a few times throughout the year about the thing with Boston,” veteran Heat power forward P.J. Tucker said of his impending first taste of Heat-Celtics. “But we have that anyway, no matter who we’re going to play, that fight, that desire to win. We worked hard all year to get to his moment.”
Because of that, coach Erik Spoelstra doesn’t want these next two weeks to be about historical perspective, but rather what has already been accomplished ... and what still remains.
“We have a big goal,” he said, “and along the way on those goals you’re going to be playing against really good competition and that’s what Boston is. They’ve really established a strong culture, really good habits, both ends of the court.
“They’ve earned eight wins, just like us. And if you have eight wins at this point, you’ve done some really good things.”
For the Heat, it has meant pushing past the Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers. For the Celtics, it has meant eliminating the Brooklyn Nets and defending champion Milwaukee Bucks, with a Sunday Game 7 victory in that East semifinal.
For both teams, it has meant a grinding, enduring, committed defensive effort that along the way has sidelined the likes of Trae Young, Joel Embiid and James Harden by the Heat, and Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Giannis Antetokounmpo by the Celtics.
“Pat probably is really going to enjoy this,” Spoelstra said of the defensive culture Riley established with the franchise more than a quarter century ago. “This is like a throwback series. And both teams are really on top of their games.
“This shouldn’t be a series where either team is scoring 130 points. Both teams hang their hats on rock-solid team defense.”
No, Spoelstra said, nothing like Heat-Knicks, during the days when Riley still was patrolling the Heat sidelines.
“It’s different; the game is different,” Spoelstra said. “I would never compare it to the physicality of those series. That was closer to football; this will be basketball.”
But, yes, arguably a higher quality of competition than either team has experienced to this stage.
“We were the two best teams in the East most of the season,” Spoelstra said, “and it’s fitting that we’re meeting in the conference finals.”
So, yes, a higher-seeded underdog.
It’s as if Spoelstra could not have asked for a better scenario — the opposition favored, the Heat with Game 7 at home, need be.
“Our guys love competition and love being challenged,” Spoelstra understated, “love taking on big challenges. And that’s what we’re facing in Boston.”
