The Boston Celtics will attempt to advance to the second round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs Wednesday night when they host the Miami Heat in Game 5. The Celtics won both games in South Beach to set up this opportunity to close out the series, while the Heat have been unable to carry over any of their performance from Game 2. They’ll attempt to send this series back to Miami for Game 6.
Here’s a look at some of our favorite player prop bets to target for Game 5 Wednesday, with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Jaylen Brown over 23.5 points (-105)
The Celtics forward has actually gone under this line in three of the four games but he’s been much more efficient shooting the ball at home on the season. The most stark difference comes from behind the three-point line, where Brown is nearly eight percent better at home on the season. The Celtics have relied on the perimeter shot to create separation from their opponents all season, and I think Brown has a big evening in a closeout situation. I’ll take him to go over this line.
Tyler Herro under 5.5 assists (-125)
Part of this is Miami’s lackluster offensive showings outside of Game 2, where Herro tallied 14 assists. He’s gone under this line in each of the other games, and I don’t see why that changes in Game 5 tonight. The Heat shooting guard is more likely to be aggressive himself when it comes to scoring, which would theoretically lead to less opportunities for others. Also, his teammates haven’t exactly done a great job hitting shots. I think Herro has a good scoring night but fails to distribute the ball enough to get over this line.
Al Horford under 7.5 rebounds (+114)
It might be tempting to take the over on Horford’s rebounding line with Kristaps Porzingis ruled out. However, the veteran big man only averaged 6.4 rebounds per game all season long. In his 33 starts, Horford averaged 6.7 rebounds per game. The Celtics have some excellent rebounding guards, and Jayson Tatum has shown a major interest in dominating the boards. That puts Horford in a tough spot when it comes to this prop. I think he goes under this line.
Jrue Holiday under 1.5 3-pointers (+110)
Holiday has made at least one triple in each game but he only hit a second triple once in the series opener. The veteran point guard isn’t being asked to do much offensively, and that means limited shots overall. He’s only taken 15 shots from deep over the four games and even though he shot 42.9% from behind the arc during the regular season, I don’t think he suddenly becomes more involved in this offense. I’ll take him to go under this mark for a fourth game in a row.