NBA playoffs 2023 - Inside the bizarre patterns that have defined the Heat-Celtics series - ESPN

BOSTON — After losing for the first time in the 2023 Eastern Conference finals on Tuesday night, Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler was asked if he was concerned the Boston Celtics had seized momentum.

«No,» Butler said, unconventionally. «If anything, it will build momentum for us knowing that we have to play with a lot more energy. We've got to play like our backs are against the wall.»

On its face, this seems like an unusual response: How can a losing team feel momentum? How can a team up 3-1 in the series be up against the wall?

Maybe Butler, a wise veteran who thrives on playing mind games, actually has this right. If so, he might be the only one.

This matchup between the Celtics and the Heat, a series in which the No. 8 seed took a 3-0 lead, has become a bizzarro conference finals.

What should be true isn't.

What makes sense suddenly doesn't.

And just when you think you might have things figured out, you're flipped on your head.

When the Celtics won Tuesday's Game 4 116-99, it marked the fourth time in the past two postseasons they'd won a road game while facing elimination. This is an incredible achievement that speaks to resilience and poise under pressure. It's also incredibly uncommon.

For example, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James, who has played more playoff games than anyone in NBA history, has four such victories in his 20-year career — two of which happened in the magical 2016 NBA Finals.

«I think anytime you're in a do-or-die situation, it forces you to build an awareness and perspective,» said Joe Mazzulla, who has been the Celtics coach for two of those victories (Game 6 at the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round and Tuesday's tilt in Miami). «It's always been there, and I think just the perspective of