The Miami Heat shocked the Boston Celtics with a 111-101 victory in Game 2 of the first round Wednesday night, evening the series at one game apiece. The eighth-seeded Heat earned the upset without two top scorers, making 23 three-pointers in a stunningly efficient showing.

Celtics star Jayson Tatum, who scored 28 points in the contest, didn’t have much explanation for his team’s performance but vowed to make the necessary changes for Game 3 on Saturday.

“We gotta be more creative,” Tatum said after the game. The playoffs are about making adjustments game-to-game, and they did that. They’re not just going to let us catch the ball. Our job is to react in real-time as well as make our adjustments going game-to-game.”

While Tatum and fellow Celtics leader Jaylen Brown had solid individual performances, scoring 61 combined points, the two did not contribute to Boston’s strong overall performance. Star big man Kristaps Porzingis received limited looks down low and scored just six points.

Boston’s facilitating struggles were painfully apparent alongside the Heat, who played flawlessly despite taking the floor shorthanded. With Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier out with injuries, Miami shot 53.5% from beyond the arc and turned to center Bam Adebayo and guard Tyler Herro to lead the team instead.

Adebayo, a vital member of the team’s run to the Finals last season, limited Porzingis on defense and held his own at the rim, scoring 21 points with ten rebounds. Meanwhile, Herro stepped up to lead the team at guard, scoring 24 points with 14 assists.

As a result of these unlikely heroics in Game 2, the Heat are now better poised to spring a playoff upset on the first-seeded Celtics, one year after the team accomplished the same feat in the Eastern Conference Final. For all of the Celtics’ improvements in the 2023-24 season, the team proved Wednesday that it may still have some of the same postseason struggles.

In all likelihood, Boston will still defeat Miami in the first round, as Butler is unlikely to return, and the Heat had to play perfectly to get this far. Still, earning a predictable sweep and cruising to the next round would be far more encouraging for a team that dominated the Eastern Conference throughout the regular season. It is clear now that Miami does not intend to go so quietly.

The Miami Heat have made one of the biggest trades before the NBA trade deadline, acquiring star guard Victor Oladipo.

On Thursday, just minutes before the trade deadline, the Houston Rockets agreed to a deal that sent Oladipo to South Beach. The Rockets traded Oladipo to Miami in exchange for Avery Bradley, Kelly Olynyk and 2022 first-round pick swap rights. The trade deadline was on Thursday at 3 p.m., and the Oladipo trade talks continued up until the deadline hour.

The Rockets acquired Oladipo from the four-team trade that sent James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets. Because Oladipo is currently in his final contract season, the team had to offer a contract extension if they wanted him to return. Houston was interested in retaining the All-Star guard with the hopes of him becoming the team’s new franchise player, but it was not a mutual feeling. The guard declined the team’s offer of a two-year deal worth $45 million. As a result, Houston turned towards shopping the 28-year-old in order to at least get assets or players in return rather than losing him for nothing to free agency.

The trade brings Oladipo to a team that he wanted to join. The addition of the 28-year-old strengthens the Heats’ chances at making another deep playoff run. So far this season, the guard has averaged 20.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists. Miami now adds a very talented guard to their deep backcourt rotation that includes Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and Goran Dragic.

Meanwhile, the Rockets get a solid stretch forward in Olynyk, who is averaging 10.0 and 6.1 rebounds this season. The forward will become a free agent after this season. Bradley has not played much this season due to COVID-19 and a calf injury. He is averaging just 8.5 points per game.

This trade indicates that Houston has gone into full-blown rebuild mode while the Heat are viewing this season as championship or bust. It will be interesting to see if the acquisition of Oladopo will push Miami past Philadelphia, Brooklyn and Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference.

As we approach the NBA trade deadline on Thursday, various teams are taking the opportunity to deal players away. The current hot trade topic is the Toronto Raptors and their loyal franchise player Kyle Lowry along with sharpshooter Norman Powell.

The season has not been kind to the Raptors, who are in the middle of a nine-game losing streak that has left them in 11th place in the Eastern Conference. At this point, the team’s hopes of a playoff run are bleak, so it makes sense for Toronto to start rebuilding. To kick it off, the team is exploring options to trade both Lowry and Powell.

Lowry has been one of the cornerstone players of the franchise for many years. The six-time All-Star guard has been loyal to the team during their ups and downs. His loyalty was rewarded when the Raptors won their first championship in 2019. Now it looks like the All-Star could be headed to another team ahead of the deadline.

The current frontrunners for landing the guard are the Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers. It is believed that the soon-to-be 35-year-old All-Star prefers a trade to Miami. However, one of the issues is the contract of the veteran player. Lowry is currently in his final year and is due $30.5 million this year. In order for a trade to be done, the Heat will have to give up some of their young talent and a player like Goran Dragic, who has a big contract.

Toronto has made it clear to Miami that a trade for their star would involve Miami sending them either Tyler Herro or Duncan Robinson in the deal. Toronto wants either one of the aforementioned players. Herro impressed fans last season as a rookie for his scoring and three-point shooting. He has emerged as one of the future players for Miami, so it is no surprise that Toronto wants the young promising player to join their core. Not far behind Herro is fellow teammate Robinson, who emerged as one of the league’s best catch-and-shoot players from beyond the arc.

On the other hand, the 76ers are also interested in the Toronto star and in Powell. Powell is currently having a career-year, averaging 19.5 points per game and shooting 49.5 percent from the field. The guard-forward is expected to decline his player option to become a free agent this offseason. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Raptors want some assets before Powell leaves.

The Raptors have until Thursday to get a deal done. Stay tuned for more updates.

With just a three-game slate tonight, it will be critical to craft the perfect lineup. It will also be more difficult to find value plays. Of the three games, the Raptors-Bucks matchup has the highest projected point total (235.5) followed by the Nets-Lakers (232) and the Heat-Kings (226.5). All three games have close spreads, so stars should play heavy minutes. Although the Heat-Kings have the lowest implied total of the three games, that is the game that I’m targeting the most. Not only are many of the players in that matchup undervalued, but each team is also dealing with some key injuries. That will open up opportunities for the rest of the players on those two teams.  

Check out the top plays at each of the five main positions.

Point Guard

De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings (DK: $8,500) Vs. MIA

Fox has been on an absolute tare recently. He is scorching hot and hasn’t failed to score at least 19 points in each of the Kings’ games in February. The electrifying and speedy point guard is averaging 28.6 points, 2.3 triples, 8.9 assists, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.0 steals over seven games this month. That equates to just over 48 DraftKings points per contest. Over that same span, Fox is shooting 50 percent from the field and converting 77 percent of his attempts from the charity stripe. He is showing no signs of slowing down and although the lineup around him is being shuffled by head coach Luke Walton, Fox’s upside remains extremely high.  

Other Options: James Harden, Dennis Schroder, Kendrick Nunn

Shooting Guard

Tyler Herro, Miami Heat (DK: $5,900) @ SAC

Although Herro is coming off his worst shooting night of the season, he still managed to produce a second consecutive outing with 43.3 fantasy points due to season highs in rebounds (15) and blocks (3). Over his last two games, Herro has swatted five shots — the most in any two-game span of his short career. In his last two games, Herro has played a whopping 40 minutes per game, producing 19.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.5 blocks, and 0.5 steals. He will continue to see plenty of minutes and get tons of touches with Goran Dragic still nursing an injury. It doesn’t hurt that the Kings rank dead-last in the league at defending shooting guards and allow more fantasy points per game than any other team in the league to the position. Fire up Herro with confidence. He’s in for a stellar night.

Other Options: Fred VanVleet, Tyrese Haliburton, Donte DiVincenzo

Small Forward

Buddy Hield, Sacramento Kings (DK: $6,600) Vs. MIA

I like LeBron James a lot tonight with Anthony Davis sidelined. I also like Jimmy Butler, who is coming off of back-to-back triple doubles. However, you have to save some cap space for some of the other studs on tonight’s slate. And with Richaun Holmes and Harrison Barnes ruled out, Hield is going to be asked to shoulder a heavy load on offense. Plus, Miami is allowing the second-most fantasy points per game to opposing shooting guards, which is Held’s primary position. Hield has attempted at least eight three pointers in each of his last 11 games. And on Monday, he converted six-of-nine shots from beyond the arc. Expect the sharpshooter to continue to fire away in what should be a tightly contested matchup.

Other Options: LeBron James, Jimmy Butler, Joe Harris

Power Forward

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks (DK: $10,900) Vs. TOR

The Greek Freak has been simply unstoppable this season, particularly over his last four games. The reigning back-to-back MVP is averaging 33.5 points, 13.3 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 2.8 steals, and 1.8 blocks over that span. He has gone for at least 65 DK points in each of those contests, averaging a ridiculous 70.9 fantasy points per game. Just two days ago against these same Raptors, Antetokounmpo posted 34 points (11-20 from the field and 10-14 from the line), two triples, 10 rebounds, eight assists, five steals and two blocks. He contributes in literally every single category. It also doesn’t hurt that he will want revenge after the Raptors defeated the Bucks 124-113 on Tuesday. If I had to pick one stud on tonight’s slate, it would be Giannis, who is playing in the game with the highest implied total.

Other Options: Pascal Siakam, Kyle Kuzma, Kelly Olynyk

Center

Chris Boucher, Toronto Raptors (DK: $6,300) @ MIL

With Kyle Lowry considered questionable for tonight’s outing, Boucher may be asked to take on a larger role on offense. Even if Lowry suits up, the big man has been playing valuable minutes recently, finishing with 34.5 fantasy points in 30 minutes against the Bucks earlier this week. Over his last six outings, Boucher has three double-doubles and is averaging 34.9 fantasy points per game over that stretch. He has also blocked five shots in two of those games. His shot blocking ability makes him a strong upside play and his price tag is reasonable. The Bucks aren’t great at defending opposing centers, ranking in the bottom half of the league. Look for Boucher to build on his momentum and provide a solid return on your investment.  

Other Options: Montrezl Harrell, Marvin Bagley III, Hassan Whiteside