The Boston Celtics clinched a heart-stopping 104-103 victory over the Miami Heat with Derrick White’s dramatic buzzer-beater in a historic showdown in South Florida in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
The win forces a winner-take-all game seven in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Joining an elite group, the Celtics became only the fourth team in NBA history to even the score in a best-of-seven playoff series after trailing 3-0.
Now, they have a chance on Monday to accomplish an even more remarkable feat by becoming the first team to win a series after dropping the first three games, potentially securing a spot in the finals against the Denver Nuggets.
The defeat was devastating for the Miami Heat, who were on the verge of clinching their seventh NBA Finals appearance before White’s inspiring shot.
Although the Celtics held the lead for most of the game, Miami seemed to have secured the victory and the series when Jimmy Butler drew a foul from Boston’s Al Horford while attempting a three-point shot.
With three seconds remaining, Butler, who had a slow start but came alive in the fourth quarter, calmly sank all three free throws, giving the Heat a 103-102 advantage.
Facing elimination, Marcus Smart’s three-point attempt ricocheted off the rim. However, White’s quick reflexes and strength allowed him to tip the rebound into the basket, releasing the shot just fractions of a second before the final buzzer.
As the Celtics celebrated in a huddle on the court, the Miami crowd was left distraught. Reflecting on his game-winning moment, White said, “The ball came to me, I made the shot. That’s what I saw.” He added, “It felt good. Everybody was asking me, ‘Did you get it off?’ And I was like, ‘yeah, I think so,’ but it was so close, you never know. I’m happy we won. Whatever it takes. We got our backs against the wall. Just happy we won.”
Miami coach Erik Spoelstra lamented his team’s misfortune on the decisive final play, acknowledging that sometimes luck doesn’t go your way.
Jayson Tatum led the charge for Boston with 31 points, accompanied by 11 rebounds and five assists, while Jaylen Brown contributed 26 points and 10 rebounds. Despite a slow start, Butler finished with 24 points, and Caleb Martin provided 21 points for Miami.
Butler took responsibility for the team’s situation, stating, “I told the guys in the locker room, if I play better, we are not even in this position.” He vowed to bounce back and deliver his best performance in game seven.
With the Celtics now holding the momentum after another remarkable comeback, Brown expressed confidence, saying, “It gives you a supreme boost in confidence, man. It doesn’t get too much worse than being down 0-3. We feel like we’ve been to hell and back.
We feel like we can face any adversity that gets thrown at us during the duration of the game or the duration of the season or in the postseason. It all means nothing if we don’t come out and give our best effort on our home floor on Monday night.”
