Miami Heat (27-25) at Boston Celtics (33-18)
Friday, February 6, 2026
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #52 Home Game #25
TV: NBCSB, FDSN Sun, NBA-LP
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, WQAM 104.3 FM, Sirius XM
TD Garden
The Celtics host the Miami Heat for the third of 4 games between them this season. They won 129-116 in Boston on December 19. They won119-114 in Miami on January 15. They will play one more time in Miami on April 1. The Celtics won the series 3-1 last season. They won the two games played in Miami and won one and lost one in Boston. The Celtics are 88-54 overall all time against the Heat. They are 45-24 all time in games played in Boston.
The Celtics made several moves at the trade deadline. They traded Anfernee Simons to Chicago for Nikola Vucevic. They traded Chris Boucher to Utah for John Tonje, a two way player. They converted Amare Williams to a standard contract from two-way. They traded Josh Minott to Brooklyn and they traded Xavier Tillman to Charlotte. The Heat were one of 3 teams, along with the Rockets and Spurs, who stood pat at the deadline.
The Celtics are 3rd in the East, 4.5 games behind 1st place Detroit. They are tied with 2nd place New York, 2.5 games ahead of 4th place Cleveland, 3.5 games ahead of 5th place Philadelphia and 6th place Toronto and 6.5 games ahead of 7th place Miami. The Celtics are 22-12 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 16-8 at home and 7-3 in their last 10 games. They have won their last 4 games.
The Heat are 7th in the East, 11.5 games behind 1st place Detroit, 4 games behind 4th place Cleveland, 3 games behind 5th place Philadelphia and 6th place Toronto. They are half a game ahead of 8th place Orlando and 3.5 games ahead of 11th place Charlotte. They are 14-15 against Eastern Conference opponents. They are 11-15 on the road and 5-5 in their last 10 games. They are coming off a loss in their last game.
The Celtics just completed a 2 game road trip where they swept Dallas and Houston back to back. After this game against Miami, they will host New York and Chicago for a 3 game home stand, which will take them into the All Star Break. After the break, they will head out on a 4 game Western road trip through Golden State, Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix, and Denver.
This is the first of 2 road games for the Heat. After this game in Boston, they will play at Washington. They will then play Utah at home and New Orleans on the road before the All Star break. After the break, They will play at Atlanta and at home against Memphis before 2 games on the road at Milwaukee and Philadelphia.
The only players on the Celtics injury report at this time are Jayson Tatum as he rehabs from the torn Achilles and John Tonje who is awaiting the trade to be finalized. Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser and Nikola Vucevic are all currently not on the report. For Miami, Tyler Herro (ribs) and Terry Rozier III (not injury related) are both out.
Probable Starting Matchups
PG: Derrick White vs Davion Mitchell
Derrick White
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Davion Mitchell
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SG: Baylor Scheierman vs Pelle Larsson
Baylor Scheierman
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Pelle Larsson
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SF: Jaylen Brown vs Norman Powell
Jaylen Brown
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Norman Powell
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PF: Sam Hauser vs Andrew Wiggins
Sam Hauser
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Andrew Wiggins
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C: Neemias Queta vs Bam Adebayo
Neemias Queta
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Bam Adebayo
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Boston Celtics Reserves
Payton Pritchard
Jordan Walsh
Hugo Gonzalez
Luka Garza
Nikola Vucevic
Amari Williams
2-Way Players
Ron Harper, Jr
Max Shulga
John Tonje
Injuries/Out
Jayson Tatum (Achilles) out
John Tonje (trade) out
Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla
Miami Heat Reserves
Kasparas Jakucionis
Jaime Jaquez, Jr
Keshad Johnson
Nikola Jovic
Dru Smith
Kel’el Ware
Simone Fontecchio
2-Way Players
Myron Gardner
Vladislav Goldin
Jahmir Young
Injuries/Out
Tyler Herro (ribs) out
Terry Rozier III (not injury related) out
Head Coach
Erik Spoelstra
Key Matchups
Jaylen Brown vs Norman Powell
Powell is averaging 23points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He is shooting 47.2% from the field and 39.2% from beyond the arc. In 2 games against the Celtics so far this season, he averaged 22 points, 3.5 rebounds,2.5 assists and 1 steal while shooting 47.2% from the field and 14.3% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to defend him well as he is the Heat’s high scorer and can put up a lot of points in a hurry if left open.
Neemias Queta vs Bam Adebayo
Adebayo is averaging 18.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.0 steal per game. He is shooting 44.4% from the field and 34.6% from beyond the arc. In the first 2 games against the Celtics, he averaged 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists while shooting 43.8% from the field and 37.5% from beyond the arc. The Celtics need to keep him out of the paint and off the boards.
Honorable Mention
Sam Hauser vs Andrew Wiggins
Wiggins is averaging 15.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game. He is shooting 46.8% from the field and 38.4% from beyond the arc. He didn’t play in the first game against the Celtics but he finished the second game with 16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists while shooting 50% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. He is a good shooter and so the Celtics need to defend him well.
Keys to the Game
Defense - Defense will always be the biggest key to winning every single game. The Celtics are 11th with a defensive rating of 112.7. The Heat are 4th with a defensive rating of 112.1. The Celtics need to defend the perimeter since the Heat attempt 36.7 threes a game and shoot threes at 36.1%. They also have to defend the paint as the Heat are 3rd with 54.9 points in the paint per game. The Celtics need to work harder than the Heat on defense and make that their priority.
Rebound - Along with defense, rebounding is always a key to winning. As Pat Riley once said “No rebounds, no rings.” The Celtics average 42.5 rebounds per game (9th) while the Heat average 46.6 rebounds per game (2nd). The Celtics out-rebounded the #1 rebounding team, Houston, on Wednesday and they need to put the same effort into rebounding in this game. It takes effort and hustle to get rebounds and the Celtics need to give more effort than the Heat to grab rebounds if they want to win this game.
Effort and Focus for 48 Minutes- The Celtics have to play with extra effort overall for all 4 quarters. In most of their losses and even in some of their wins, they have allowed their opponents to play with more energy than them for periods of time during the game. They play well for stretches but let up and allow their opponents to surge ahead. The Heat are known for playing hard against all of their opponents. They have to stay focused for all 48 minutes and be ready for the heat to play harder in the second half and they need to match that effort and if the 3’s aren’t falling, get into the paint.
Move the Ball Carefully - The Celtics are best when they keep the ball moving and find the open man. They struggle when they try to do too much individually. The Celtics are 21-2 when they have 25 or more assists in a game. The Heat are 5th in the league with 20.3 points off turnovers per game so the Celtics have to make careful passes and be careful not to turn the ball over.
X-Factors
Home Game and Fatigue - The Celtics are at home and will have the crowd behind them to give them extra motivation. The Heat will be playing in front of a hostile crowd and in an unfamiliar arena. The Celtics are playing in the 3rd game in 4 nights and have been playing short handed so there may be some fatigue there.
Officiating - Officiating is always an x-factor in every game. Every crew officiates differently. Some call it tight, others let them play. The Celtics need to adjust to how the refs are calling the game and not allow bad calls or no calls to take away their focus from playing the game. The more aggressive team will usually get the benefit of the calls and so the Celtics need to be the more aggressive team.