In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

There were plenty of predictions to go around yesterday across the NBA and MLB, with our model focusing in on one of those predictions and making it a 3-star Play. That prediction went 1-0 overall, and you can see how each of the models performed below.

Money Line Predictions: 1-0

Over/Under Predictions: 1-0

Spread Predictions: 0-0-1

3-star Predictions: 1-0

Money Line Predictions: 0-0

Over/Under Predictions: 0-0

Puck Line Predictions: 0-0

3-star Predictions: 0-0

Money Line Predictions: 2-8

Over/Under Predictions: 6-4

Run Line Predictions: 6-4

3-star Predictions: 0-0

The NBA conference finals continue later on today, with the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics squaring off in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals in Boston.

Miami Heat @ Boston Celtics

Model Predicts- Celtics ML, OVER 210.5, Celtics -8

The Miami Heat and Boston Celtics will square off in TD Garden on Wednesday night in what is Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Miami has had an unbelievable run up to this point, defeating the Bucks in Round 1 and the Knicks in Round 2. Miami is the first No.8 seed to make the conference final since 1999, which just so happened to be the last year that an eight seed made the NBA Finals.

Boston has had a much more competitive postseason, but it has still been impressive. The Celtics defeated Atlanta in six games in Round 1, then beat Philadelphia in seven games in Round 2.

This is the third time in the last four seasons that the Heat and Celtics have met face-to-face in the Eastern Conference Final, with each team making an appearance in the NBA Finals. Will the Heat continue their stellar play and get back to the Finals for the first time since 2020, or will Boston be the Eastern Conference Champs for the second year in a row?

Miami Heat

The Miami Heat have easily been the biggest surprise of the postseason. Just a few weeks ago this team was losing by several points in the fourth quarter to the Chicago Bulls in the Play-In tournament, but now the Heat find themselves just four wins away from another NBA Finals appearance.

The key to getting past Milwaukee in Round 1 was Jimmy Butler, who averaged 37.6 points per game in that series. However, Butler hasn’t been the only Heat player to step it up in the postseason, resulting in a huge spike in production on the offensive end.

Per NBA.com Miami owns a 115.7 Offensive Rating in 11 postseason games, the fifth best of the 16 playoff teams. That is a significant improvement from Miami’s 112.3 regular season rating, which ranked 25th in the NBA.

The three-pointer has been Miami’s best friend in the postseason, while in the regular season it was its worst enemy. In 82 regular season games the Heat shot an abysmal 34.4% from behind the arc, but that has since risen to 36.8% since the postseason began. That percentage spikes even further to 38.4% when Miami is on the road in the postseason, leading to an average of 116.0 points per game.

The Heat now have an identity from three-point range, and when you combine that with its veteran leadership you get a recipe for a team that can win the East.

Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics were down 3-2 against Philadelphia in Round 2, but some late series heroics from Jayson Tatum helped advance Boston to the ECF for the second season in a row.

Tatum was a brick in the middle of the series, especially in the first half. Per NBA.com the First Team All-NBA superstar shot 13.3% from the floor overall and 7.7% from three in the first half in Games 4 through 6, a big reason why Philadelphia went 2-1 in that span of time.

However, we saw Tatum snap out of his slump in the fourth quarter of Game 6, where he had 16 points in the final frame. Those 16 points outscored the entire 76ers team in the quarter, giving Boston the late push it needed to extend its season. He then followed that up with a Game 7 record 51 points in what was a historic offensive performance from the 25-year-old.

What kept Boston afloat when Tatum was a non-factor was its bench, which outscored Philadelphia’s 188-128 in Round 2. Boston didn’t often go more than two or three players deep, but Malcolm Brogdon and Robert Williams have proven to be major offensive forces off the bench.

What’s the Play?

The over has been a play that has hit quite often for the Heat and Celtics this postseason, so we agree with our model that the over is a 3-star play in tonight’s matchup.

Miami looks like an entirely new offense since the postseason began. The Heat can finally shoot three’s, mostly because of the resurgence of Duncan Robinson, and Jimmy Butler has been able to get whatever he wants on the offensive end.

The season series saw an average total of 224.8 points per game across four matchups. We think the total can eclipse the 210.5 it is set at today.

3-star play: Over 210.5 (-110)

Money Line Trends💰

• Miami Heat- 8-3 overall in postseason, 3-3 as the away team

• Boston Celtics- 8-5 overall in postseason, 4-3 as the home team

Over/Under Trends↕️

• Miami Heat- Over is 8-3 in postseason, 5-1 as the away team with average total of 233.5

• Boston Celtics- Over is 8-5 overall in postseason, 3-4 as the home team with average total of 218.86

Spread Trends➖➕

• Miami Heat- 8-3 against the spread (ATS) in postseason, 4-2 ATS as the away team

• Boston Celtics- 8-5 ATS in postseason, 4-3 ATS as the home team

Miami Heat @ Boston Celtics

• Miami Heat

  • Victor Oladipo (OUT), Tyler Herro (OUT), Cody Zeller (Game Time Decision)

• Boston Celtics

  • Danilo Gallinari (OUT)

🎰 San Antonio wins the Wembanyama sweepstakes. The San Antonio Spurs ended the regular season with a 22-60 record, tied for the lowest win total in the Western Conference. However, the poor season has officially paid off as San Antonio was awarded the No.1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, which is set to take place in June. The Spurs are expected to take 7’2” Frenchman Victor Wembanyama, who is widely regarded as the best prospect since LeBron James in 2003. The Hornets, Trail Blazers, Rockets, and Pistons rounded out the top five.

🏔 Nuggets survive a late push from the Lakers, win Game 1 of WCF. The Denver Nuggets jumped out to a 1-0 series lead in the Western Conference Finals after a 132-126 victory over the Lakers last night. The game looked like it could be over at halftime, with the Nuggets entering the break up 72-54. However, Los Angeles made things interesting down the stretch, outscoring Denver 72-60 in the second half. Anthony Davis dropped 40 points in the losing effort, and Nikola Jokic tallied 34 points, 21 rebounds, and 14 assists in the win.

✌️ Goodbye, Doc Rivers. It felt like it was in the making for a long time, but the Philadelphia 76ers finally got rid of Doc Rivers yesterday afternoon. Rivers was a terrific regular season coach for Philly, going 154-82 in the three years he was with the team. However, the 76ers lost in the second round for the third season in a row under Doc, blowing a 3-2 series lead in two of those years. Philadelphia is reportedly looking to replace Rivers with a multitude of candidates, including Nick Nurse, Monty Willaims, Mike Budenholzer, and current 76ers assistant Sam Cassell, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

🟦 🧥The Blue Jackets are on the hunt for a coach. The Columbus Blue Jackets are coming off a horrendous 25-48-9 record in the 2022-23 season, a performance that led the organization to firing head coach Brad Larsen. As a result, Columbus is searching for a new coach to man the bench, and the search has started with Mike Babock and Peter Laviolette. Babock was last the coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2019 but has insisted that he is retired, even after accumulating the 12th most wins in NHL history. Laviolette, who ranks eighth on the all-time wins list, was the coach of the Washington Capitals last season.

🏟 Will the Coyotes finally have a permanent home? Believe it or not, the Arizona Coyotes have struggled to find their own arena for decades. Ever since relocating from Winnipeg in 1996 the Coyotes have played in three different arenas, most recently Arizona State’s, which only seats 5,000 people. However, the residents of Tempe, Arizona are set to vote on a plan that would establish an entertainment district in the downtown area, a plan that includes a permanent home for one of the NHL’s messiest franchises.

There are 15 MLB games scheduled to take place throughout this afternoon and into the evening. However, due to some gaps in the early season data, our model has predictions for 11 of today’s matchups.

There are no 3-star plays in the MLB today.

Money Line Trends💰

• Baltimore Orioles- 27-15 overall, 14-7 as the home team

• New York Yankees- 25-19 overall, 8-7 against AL East opponents (Play AL East rival Toronto Blue Jays today)

• Toronto Blue Jays- 4-8 overall against AL East opponents

Over/Under Trends↕️

• Texas Rangers- Over is 25-15-2 overall, 13-5-2 as the home team

• Atlanta Braves- Over is 25-16-1 overall, 11-11-1 as the away team

• Minnesota Twins- Under is 22-18-3 overall, 11-9-1 as the away team

Run Line Trends➖➕

• Washington Nationals- Run line is 27-15 overall, 16-4 as a road underdog

• Cincinnati Reds- Run line is 25-17 overall, 12-9 as the away team

Various injuries around the league. See full injury report at MLB.com

👋 Domingo German ejected for “sticky substance”. MLB umpires are cracking down on the use of foreign substances, and Yankees pitcher Domingo Germán appears to be the latest victim. Germán was ejected in the fourth inning of last night’s matchup against Toronto due to the sticky substance, which he claims was the result of the rosin bag that is on every mound. If you recall, Max Scherezer was suspended ten games for the same offense, and it is likely we see the same suspension handed down to Germán.

🤕 Vladdy Jr. to undergo MRI. One of the MLB’s best hitters is facing the possibility of missing some time due to knee discomfort. Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Gurrero Jr. left last night’s matchup against the Yankees due to a right knee issue, which was reportedly suffered when he was fielding a bunt attempt by Gleyber Torres. Vladdy Jr. has been a huge piece of Toronto’s offense this season, hitting .312 with seven home runs.

👏 Coach K inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame. Former Duke and Army head coach Mike Krzyzewski was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame yesterday. Four others were given the honor alongside him, including his former player Johnny Dawkins and former North Carolina standout Tyler Hansbrough. Krzyzewski retired following the 2021-22 season, tallying 1,202 total wins and five national championships in 47 seasons.

💰 Joe Burrow is about to get PAID. It’s no secret that teams are backing up the Brinks truck for their franchise quarterbacks, and it appears the Cincinnati Bengals signal caller Joe Burrow is the next QB in line to be paid. The Bengals picked up Burrow’s fifth-year option last month so he is under contract through next season, but Cincinnati has stated that giving Burrow an extension is one of the organization’s top priorities.

❌ Ndamukong Suh has no desire to participate in training camp. Current free agent Ndamukong Suh came out and said the he does NOT want to be on a roster before training camp begins. The 36-year old said that he still wants to continue playing, but it doesn’t appear that the former first-round pick wants to have grueling summer filled with football. This will be Suh’s 14th year in the NFL, with his most recent stint coming last season with the Philadelphia Eagles.

We’re mixing up the trivia once again today. Instead of our usual handful of questions, we’re are going to play a game of “Who Am I?”. We’ll write a few clues about a famous sports figure, and you have to guess who the person is.

1. I am a three-time NBA Champion and two-time NBA Finals MVP. I also won the regular season MVP three seasons in a row as a member of the Boston Celtics, and I am the only person to win the MVP, Coach of the Year, and Executive of the Year awards.

2. I currently rank seventh on the NFL’s all-time rushing yards list. I played college football at TCU before being selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft. I played a majority of my career with the Chargers, but also had a brief stint with the New York Jets.

3. I was the last pick of the 1988 MLB Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. However, I would go on to be the Rookie of the Year in 1993, a 12-time All-Star, 10-time Silver Slugger Award winner, and be inducted in to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.

Anyone know what has happened on May 17th throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On May 17th…

1959- Pro golfer Sam Snead sets a PGA record for 36 holes with a 122. Snead is widely regarded as one of the greatest golfers ever, winning the Master’s and PGA Championship three times and the US Open once in his nearly four-decades long career. Snead would also reportedly go on to shoot a round of 60 at the age of 71.

1979- The Philadelphia Phillies defeat the Chicago Cubs 23-22 in ten innings, a game that saw 50 total hits and 11 home runs. By the time the fifth inning ended Philly and Chicago had already combined for 37 runs, with 13 coming in the first inning alone.

1984- Cincinnati Reds pitcher Mario Soto throws four strikeouts in one inning. As all baseball fans know each team gets three outs in an inning, but the fourth out was made possible by a dropped third strike, allowing the hitter to run to first base. A four-out inning isn’t aa rare as you may think, as it has happened 97 times in MLB history and 60 times since the year 2000.

2020- A pair of Michael Jordan’s Air Nike 1’s form 1985 sell for $560,000 in an online auction. The shoes were game-worn and signed by the legend himself, but even the host of auction believed they were worth no more than $150,000. The sale set a record for any pair of sneakers sold at an auction.

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1. Larry Bird

2. LaDainian Tomlinson

3. Mike Piazza