Best Heat vs Celtics NBA player prop bets for today 5/17: Bam Adebayo gets off to hot start

Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat
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Germantas Kneita

NBA

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Like most Lithuanians, I started watching basketball from the age of six. I'm based out in London and played basketball at the University of Lincoln here in the UK. I had always had an interest in the NBA but things really took off in the summer of 2010. That year Linas Kleiza led Lithuania to 3rd place at the World Championships and signed with the Toronto Raptors to replace the departing Chris Bosh. I've been a Raptors fan since that day and I've not missed a game since. I've been handicapping games for more than a decade, specializing in player props. For Germantas Kneita media enquiries, please email contact@pickswise.com.
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The NBA’s conference finals tipped off last night with the Denver Nuggets taking down the Los Angeles Lakers at home. Tonight the Eastern Conference finals begin with the Boston Celtics hosting the Miami Heat. These teams have become familiar foes in the NBA playoffs over recent years and will be renewing their rivalry once more. The Celtics had the best of it last season but the Heat will be confident they can keep their amazing run going.

You can check out our NBA picks on the side and total for today’s game, but for now, let’s dive into my favorite NBA player prop bets for tonight.

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Bam Adebayo over 18.5 points (+102)

Bam Adebayo had plenty of success scoring against the Boston Celtics in the regular season. Though 4 games he averaged 25 points per game, not scoring fewer than 19 in any contest. He has been in good scoring form recently too, surpassing the 19-point mark in 2 of his last 3 games. While his efficiency has dropped off this postseason to 49.7% shooting from the field, he should have a great opportunity to improve on that tonight and he made 57% of his shots against the Celtics this season.

Adebayo is going to be a major part of the Heat offense in this series. Going up against Al Horford, they will need their center to be aggressive looking for his own shot. He should have a clear speed advantage over his counterpart while also not being intimidated by Horford’s size. Tyler Herro has been a crucial scorer when these teams met in recent years and someone is going to have to take his share of the offensive burden. With his success this season, Adebayo should be that player and I expect him to comfortably surpass the 20-point mark.

Check out our Heat vs Celtics Same Game Parlay

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Caleb Martin over 13.5 points + rebounds (+102)

The Miami Heat opted to go with Kevin Love in the starting lineup in the conference semifinals against the New York Knicks to match up against their 2-big starting lineup. That is unlikely to be the case against the Celtics, with Jayson Tatum playing as the power forward. He would be an incredibly tough matchup for Love, which should see more minutes for wing players such as Caleb Martin. With Martin having the best defensive rating of any Heat player averaging at least 20 minutes of playing time this season, he should see a larger role tonight.

Martin has been effective in this postseason, averaging 10.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. I am expecting him to exceed the 27.5 minutes he has been averaging so far, which should give him plenty of time on the floor to reach those numbers. With Horford spacing the floor, Adebayo should be pulled away from the rim. That should leave a rebounding void in the paint which Martin should help to fill. Look for him to put together a strong line as a result.

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