The key for the Celtics? Don’t underestimate the Heat

This is what the Celtics wanted.

This is what everyone in New England wanted.

This is what the NBA wanted.

A Celtics-Heat rematch felt inevitable, and we all naively convinced ourselves it would be different this time around.

Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday will change everything. Caleb Martin won’t shoot 97-percent from 3. Erik Spoelstra won’t have any more tricks up his sleeve. Oh, wow. Jimmy Butler’s out? Celtics in 4. Maybe 5, if Miami gets lucky.

We all did it. Every last one of us. We fell for the trap – again. This is exactly the way the Heat want it (well, they’d probably prefer having Butler, but you get the idea). They love being the underdogs. They love messing up a game plan. They love terrorizing the opponent – and the Celtics, in particular.

Wednesday’s 111-101 Heat win was just one game, but it carried more weight than a typical setback. It reminded everyone that this Miami team should, under absolutely no circumstances, be taken lightly. Spoelstra is the best coach in the NBA and has them prepared every night. The Heat are relentless, and they know how to beat the Celtics.

“We knew it wasn’t going to be easy,” Jayson Tatum told reporters. “It’s the playoffs and especially with that team, it’s never going to go how people expect it to go and that’s the beauty of the playoffs.”

OK, that’s nice and all, but they have to actually keep that in mind on the court. The Celtics should slap bright yellow caution tape on each Heat player’s forehead that reads: “WE ARE GOOD.” Instead of giving fans Celtics towels, they should hand out “HEAT CULTURE IS REAL” signs.

I still believe the Celtics will win this series, but this was a humbling reminder that nothing is guaranteed in the playoffs. It’s critical for the Celtics to not underestimate the Heat moving forward. If they do, we all may be left wondering what could have been – again.

I believe the Celtics are telling themselves to not underestimate the Heat, but telling yourself to do something and actually doing it are two entirely different things. For instance, you can map out a diet perfectly, and tell yourself to follow it, but if you sneak downstairs and devour that irresistible Yodel at 3 a.m., that negates all your hard work the rest of the day.

It’s about discipline, detail and execution. Doing 90 percent of the work is easy; it’s the final 10 percent that gets you where you want to go.

NBC Sports’ Brian Scalabrine made an astute observation during Wednesday’s broadcast. He pointed out that the Celtics think they have a mismatch at every spot, so they’re repeatedly force-feeding the ball to their stars. It looks juicy (I could go for a Yodel right now), but it’s a trap. That’s exactly what Miami wants you to do.

The Heat pride themselves on their physicality, smarts and cohesiveness. If you try to beat them 1-on-1, you’re likely going to fail. It wasn’t that the Celtics were playing selfishly; it was that they weren’t playing strategically.

In Game 3, it’s imperative that they return to their roots and play the way they did for most of Game 1 and the bulk of the season. Boston needs to play downhill, space the floor and make the extra pass. Forget bully ball. Trust what’s gotten you here and what works.

The Celtics need to pretend they’re up against a lineup of Steph Curry, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Hakeem Olajuwon. They need to squint a little harder and pretend it’s Nikola Jokic, not Nikola Jovic. Don’t let Tyler Herro’s harmless facial hair fool you; he can hoop. The Heat are good! They’re very good! This is an elite basketball team!

We’ve all been in a scenario where we’ve entered a sporting event assuming we should win because we’re the better player or team. It doesn’t always work out the way we see it unfolding in our head. On the flip side, we’ve all been the underdog and been underestimated. There’s nothing more satisfying than stunning an opponent that assumes it’ll cruise to a win.

The Celtics are more talented, but they have to play like they’re less talented. They have to adopt the mindset of an underdog and play a scrappy style of basketball. Contest 3-pointers. Dive on the floor. Fire up the crowd. Do it for Marcus Smart. Do it for Mike Gorman.

“Come back. Be the harder-playing team next game,” Jaylen Brown told reporters. “And execute. Let everything else take care of itself. Gotta win the fight.”

Great. Now actually do it! Win the fight.

If they come out with a different fire and intensity in Game 3 – and I genuinely (perhaps foolishly) believe they will – they should be fine. If they don’t, it could mark the beginning of the end.

I believe this team has the poise and tenacity to learn from its mistakes and rise to the occasion. I believe this will be a turning point for the better. I believe they’ll figure it out.

Celtics in 6.

(Dang it. I fell for it again.)