What: Miami Heat at Boston Celtics NBA Picks
When: Monday, December 2, 7:30 PM
Where: TD Garden
Watch: NBA League Pass
In Monday’s NBA picks, the Miami Heat are completing their quick two-game road trip with a Monday showdown at TD Garden Arena against the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics. Miami was opening this away sojourn with a loss to the Raptors at Toronto.
In this clash of Eastern Conference rivals, oddsmakers are setting Boston as prohibitive 10.5-point home favorites to handle the Heat in the Monday NBA picks.
 | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Heat | +10.5 (-110) | +390 | O 222.0 (-110) |
| Boston Celtics | -10.5 (-110) | -550 | U 222.0 (-110) |
Among four games on tap on the Monday NBA slate, this is the game we are choosing to highlight in our NBA picks and best bets.
Prior to making any bets on your NBA picks, you definitely should be checking out the latest NBA Vegas odds. You can also assess the latest developments in NBA prop bets. You should also be taking advantage of these Vegas betting site bonuses to make the most of your NBA betting.
Boston owns 3-0, 5-2 and 7-3 straight up advantages over Miami in recent meetings between the two teams. However, the Celtics are just 1-4 against the spread in the last four games facing the Heat. In the last five meetings at TD Garden, Boston is 3-2 SU and 2-3 ATS against Miami.
Overall, the Celtics are 7-1 SU in their last eight games, but 1-6 ATS in the last seven games. Boston is 13-2 SU in the club’s past 15 home games. The Celtics are 8-1 SU in their past nine contests against Southeast Division opposition. However, they are 0-5 ATS in their past five games facing Eastern Conference teams.
Miami is 4-2 SU through the club’s past six games. The Heat are 4-11 ATS in the last 15 games they’ve played against Eastern Conference opponents. The Heat are also 4-16 SU in their last 20 games as the betting underdog. Miami is 2-4 SU as an underdog this season. Boston is 16-3 SU as the betting choice.
The total has gone under in eight of the past 12 games between Boston and Miami. However, eight of the last 11 games between the Celtics and Heat played at Boston have gone over. The over has hit in six of Boston’s last nine games. Miami has also gone over in eight of the last 12 games. As well, four the last five road games played by the Heat hit on the over.
Heat forward Jimmy Butler scored 17 points in the loss at Toronto. However, the oft-injured Miami star appeared to tweak his right knee upon landing after completing a layup in the final minute of the fourth quarter. Afterward, Butler was suggesting he was banged up and uncertain whether he’d be able to go against Boston.
Butler is a vital cog in the Miami machine. He’s the second-leading scorer on the team, averaging 19.0 points per game. Butler is also contributing 5.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists per contest. He is shooting 53.1% from the floor.
Guard Tyler Herro will be expected to pick up the slack for the ailing Butler. He’s Miami’s top scorer with 23.6 points per game. Herro has scored 20 or more points in 12 of Miami’s first 18 games in the 2024-25 NBA season.
Bam Adebayo mans the boards for Miami. He’s pulling down 9.4 rebounds per game to go with up 15.8 points and 4.8 assists per game.
With a 16-4 slate and atop the Atlantic Division, the Celtics are licking their wounds following a rare loss Saturday at Cleveland. Small forward Jaylen Brown (illness) and shooting guard Derrick White (foot) both missed that game. They are listed as questionable for this game.
Jayson Tatum is leading the Celtics in scoring (28.7 points per game), assists (5.8 per game) and rebounds (8.5) per game). Brown (24.7 points per game) and White (18.3 points per game) are also key elements in the Boston rotation. White’s 3.8 3-pointers per game rank seventh in the NBA.
Miami isn’t faring well against the NBA elite this season. the Heat are 1-5 SU when facing teams with winning records. They are also struggling to play the inside game. In the back-to-back games against Toronto, the Raptors were scoring 130 points in the paint. Miami gave up a season-high 68 points in the paint during Saturday’s setback.
Luckily for them, Boston is 29th in scoring in the paint (40.2 points per game). Overall, though, Boston’s offense is second in the NBA, scoring 121.2 points per game. And the Celtics average margin of victory this season is 10.6 points per game, also second in the NBA. That margin would cover the spread of Boston -10.5 on this game. However, the uncertain status of Brown and White make this a difficult play. Take Miami to cover on the road at Boston in the Vegas Monday NBA picks.
