The Miami Heat turned an eight-point halftime deficit into an 11-point Game 1 victory over the Boston Celtics to take an early lead in the 2022 Eastern Conference finals, and look to take a commanding two-game lead Thursday at home in Game 2 (8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN).
The lessons from Game 1 are simple: If the Celtics continue to be short-handed, Jimmy Butler and the top-seeded Heat are the favorites in the series (which wasn't the case three days ago according to the bookmakers in Las Vegas).