After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 1

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Additional terms apply. I just told one of our hosts on our local New York affiliate. I'll try not to steal all your listeners. I mean, I'll try.

I can't guarantee it's not going to happen. We're pretty proud of the product we put on the air every night. Except for when I say stupid stuff. Then Jay laughs at me and pretends like he doesn't know who I am.

Oh, also pretends like he's forgotten what the dump button is for. But don't you worry when Jay makes a mistake, you know what happens? Jay never makes mistakes because they never go on the air. No one ever hears them when Jay makes mistakes. Just as a show of hands, anybody out there ever heard Jay make a mistake?

I can't, I don't think it's ever happened. Right, I wonder why that is. It's because he uses the little button that we call the dump button, which gives us a cushion. About a 30 second cushion in case we need to take a swear word off the air. Except Jay somehow feels like it applies to him.

And when he makes mistakes. So he uses that dump button, not just for swear words, but for Jay's miscues. I wonder where they go when you dump them? Into a black hole? Do they go into the trash can?

Do they go into the toilet? Oh, we don't make potty humor here. Stay away from the Aaron Rodgers drop. I don't want to hear it.

Jay has promised me that the Aaron Rodgers conversation about the bathroom in the darkness retreat will never ever ever see the light of day. Oh, do you like what I did there? Yeah, you got me. So I just told our host, who is getting ready to do a show on our New York affiliate. Well, you know, have a great show and I'll try not to steal all your listeners. Sometimes I'm sorry, but I'm not sorry. I'm sorry that you have to worry about me stealing all your listeners, but I'm not sorry that it happens. Sometimes I actually get sleep during the daytime.

And then do you know what? I feel like a new woman. That's what happens when I sleep eight hours, maybe once a month.

No kidding. During the week, every now and then I'll get an eight hour sleep night on the weekends, except not nearly as much since I got into a long distance relationship and we stay on the phone until all hours of the day and night on the weekends, mostly. Well, not just the weekends.

Anyway, I don't sleep quite as much on the weekends anymore because someone's on the phone. Anyway, it's fine, Bob. I don't mind. But I do.

It's totally fine. Do you remember the movie? What about Bob?

I feel like we need some drops. Wasn't that Bill Murray? What about Bob? My Bob does not look like Bill Murray, by the way. No, he does not.

Thank you, Jay. Wait, have I shown you a picture of Bob? I don't think you have any idea what Bob looks like. You could think he's Bill Murray. You would have no idea if Bob looks like Bill Murray.

I wouldn't. I just know him just from my own imagination, I guess. I have like an idea in my head of what he could look like, but yeah, I guess I've never seen him. Oh, really? What is that? Go ahead.

Pray tell. It's good. It's attractive, so it's good. Great, Jay. I'm glad to hear you don't have me paired up with someone who's unattractive.

Not Bill Murray. So, guess what? Bob thinks it's a great idea if he comes to work with me some night. And, how do you feel? How do you feel? He's going to be in there with you. He's going to come hang out.

It's lonely in here sometimes. I don't know how I feel. I don't think I'd be nervous with him in here.

I mean, we're past the point where I get nervous around him, or talking to him. Now I'm just, I am who I am. Take it or leave it.

I think he would be a welcome member of the team. I'm sorry, what? Wait, I'm sorry.

Wait, what? He's looking for one night? Only if you promise me. Well, he's not joining the team. I'm sorry, I don't take input. You know I don't take input well anyway, but I don't take input from, well, that's not true.

He doesn't give me input, but if he did offer some, I would certainly listen. Hi, Bob. So, yeah, the whole team thing. Let's just make an agreement right now between you and me. Are you ready? Otherwise, you're not going to the Empire Strikes Back. Oh, yeah. Okay. So this is the trade off.

You ready? He's not allowed to have an open mic when he's in here in the studio. That's a negative Ghost Rider. Do you hear me?

Look at me right now. No, that's fireable offense. You don't get to turn on someone's microphone when I do not authorize. I think that's fair. You think that's fair? That's fair. Why do you have an evil smile on your face? I don't trust you.

No open mics except for mine. All right, I agree. Can we agree? Yeah, I can.

Okay. Speaking of agree, do you know what I noticed during the Heat game tonight? Sorry, Heat Celtics game tonight. When Kyle Lowry and Jimmy Butler congratulate one another after a big play, do you know it's not a fist bump? It's not a high five. Have you seen it? No, it's a formal handshake. They actually shake hands. Have you seen this?

Now that I'm thinking about it, maybe, but I have never picked it up. It's crazy. I love it. It's so the two of them.

I mean, Kyle Lowry's older anyway, but go back. I bet if you Google it, people will have posted about it on Twitter because it happened as I'm watching that third quarter play out. And normally I'm taking notes or I'm tweeting or I'm reading something when there's a stoppage of play. So I'm not always paying attention to what's happening during a stoppage of play.

If I hear the announcer reference something, I'll go back and just quick do a rewind. But during the third quarter, they get a defensive stop or a shot. Actually, I think it was an offense. They get an offensive shot, a bucket to drop, and it's an and-one situation. So after Butler hits the shot, he and Kyle Lowry shake hands. Like actually shake hands. Are you seeing it? Yeah.

And then, so I'm thinking, okay, it's a one-time thing. Like, oh, it's just something funny they do to shake hands. Not even 60 seconds later, Butler hits a free throw and they shake hands again.

And he does a high five and a fist bump with the other teammates, but shakes hands with Kyle Lowry. We need to get to the bottom of this. Why? Do you think somebody would feel like asking that at a press conference? Or maybe there's a Heat player, not a Heat player, sorry.

Maybe there's a Heat fan out there who understands why they do this. I've never seen this before. Never.

And yet it's fantastic. Can we do that from now on? Sure. No like fist bump. We don't do fist bumps. There's a high five now and then. We do high five. But could we like shake hands? I like that.

Straight business. That might be what it's about for them. Have you ever seen, on the field court or ice, two teammates who will shake hands? Teammates, not opponents, teammates. Just like after a good play as a celebration.

No, I like it a lot though. Twice in the span of say three minutes. So the video I'm seeing here on Twitter is actually posted by the NBA official Twitter and it's Butler and Lowry after the game, after the win, they go up to each other and they go right to it. So you see Butler goes to fist bounce someone else in the background, I can't tell who it is, but he goes right to Lowry and they shake hands and that's their celebration. That's what they do. Okay, so let's retweet that and anybody who, yes it is, seriously, it's a formal handshake and they do it every time. It's all fingers extended, big ol' handshake. It is, and I'm telling you they did it, I saw it multiple times on the court tonight in the middle of the third quarter. So please, we have to. Can you retweet that from our show account and then if there's a Heat fan out there who understands why they do it or where this originated, you have to let me know.

On Twitter, A Law Radio, on our Facebook page, After Hours with Amy Lawrence, I look forward to hearing from you. Here's what we know about the Miami Heat. It's not complicated. Are you ready? Write this down.

You can actually impress your friends and neighbors with this analysis if you must. You ready? Miami always, always has the answer. Think ahead to Love. Step back for three.

Left wing, yummy goodness. That's what Love has to do it. From the edge for three. Smart who tried to force it in to Williams, knocked away by Jimmy.

Here's Band the other way, finger rolling in as he climbed up the side of Smart who had no shot. Streuss gets a screen left from Love. Fires a three.

Oh yes, let the cup runneth over with the Streuss juice. Working from the left wing now, moves it to Martin. Working right baseline, leaves it for Jimmy. Three ball, right corner pocket, nothing but net for Jimmy Buckets. Jimmy working the right side. Pritchard on his back. Bouncing him all the way to the paint, snaps it to Martin. Fakes the pass, fires a three and rips the net. Jimmy goes left, pauses at the left elbow to Streuss for three. I got a carafe.

Put that Streuss juice in it and knock it back. Three for four for Maximus who's one of us. Jason Jackson on Miami Heat Radio. That third quarter run, 13 points to just one for the Celtics. And I felt like I was watching the Denver LA third quarter all over again. In that, the Nuggets took their foot off the gas. The Nuggets had a comfortable lead but stopped using the game plan and the principles that had built them the lead. They stopped running. They stopped pushing the tempo. They stopped defending. They came out of the halftime locker room with the big lead and thought, alright, we don't have to go quite as hard now. As for the Celtics in the third quarter, even Jalen Brown said after the game they need to play with more intensity.

Joe Missoula said their lulls, as in their let downs. Similar to taking your foot off the gas, right? Those have got to stop. They have to keep it up the entire time. But credit the Heat. Yes, the Celtics took their foot off the proverbial gas but the Heat are all gas no freaking breaks.

They never stop. And I'm not saying they can't be beaten. I'm not saying that they can't have games in which they absolutely stink on the offensive side of the ball.

We know that's the case. Remember, they were one of the worst offensive teams in the entire NBA this season. Statistically, bottom three in almost every category that you can be measured offensively, which is why it's so crazy what they're doing in the playoffs. But they had a lot of adversity. They had a lot of injuries. We know that Eric Spolster has referenced the roller coaster ride of the regular season.

I called them Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. You never knew which personality you were going to get when the Heat stepped on the court this season, which is why they had to go through the play-in tournament. And I don't think this is the switch that the Golden State Warriors can flip until this year.

I don't think it's that. I don't think it's a lack of caring or a lack of accountability. Sometimes they just don't play well. They have a couple of really good offensive players.

But then they've got a bunch of guys who are role players. And they're missing guys in and out of the lineup. But what they do is they bring the Heat every single minute of every game. They don't let up.

They're relentless. And that wears teams down. But also when you've got the combination of their intensity and their confidence and belief in themselves, the fact that they do play defense, which travels. This is why they've won three consecutive openers in three consecutive playoff series on the road.

This is why. Because they have a defense and they have defensive principles that they stick to. And then you've got the games where Kyle Lowry has 13 points in the second quarter to at least keep them close. Where Jimmy Butler is scoring from almost everywhere on the court. Where Bam Adebayo is the energizer bunny. Such a huge fam of Bam. I knew I was going to do it. I'm such a huge fam of Bam.

I'm the Bam fam. They are relentless, which is why they always have an answer. And I'm not telling you the answer is always a W as a result. No, of course they lose sometimes. But they always answer. They never believe they're out of it. They never believe a game is over and that fighting, that scratching, that clawing, that heart and soul that they put into it. And let's be fair, the leadership of Butler and Lowry. And then the craftiness and the savvy of their coaching staff that is carried out on the court with these veteran players.

That's why they always have an answer. And then sometimes, sometimes the threes drop like they did in this game. They shot 50% from beyond the arc.

50%? 16 triples. And against the Celtics, who clamped down on defense in the game 6 and 7 against the Sixers. The Heat shot 54% in this game. That third quarter run in which they put up 46 points. 46 points in one quarter on the road in the playoffs.

That's a franchise record for the Heat in the postseason. They dig down deep. They find ways. And it's very impressive. However, even with that 46 point third quarter, the game still on the line.

So hang into the balance in the late stages. And Tatum threw a right to him. Tatum turns the corner.

Yep, he traveled. Back to back turnovers by Jason Tatum in crunch time. And Miami is closing in on game one. A 7 point lead with 1.57 to go. Right hand dribble to the free throw line. Butler elevates. 12 feet jumper.

No good. Celtics stay alive because Butler's missed a bunch of shots in a row. Boston down 7.

98 seconds to go. Jaylen Brown throws back to Al Horford. Now Brogdon straight away. Brogdon right hand dribble coming strong in the paint.

Swishes to the left hand. Wild shot. No good offensive rebound. Horford kick out. Tatum up fakes.

Travels again. And Jason Tatum coming off a game for the ages on Sunday has committed back to back to back turnovers in crunch time in game one tonight. I turned the ball over.

Threw it to Jimmy. You know, that was on me. And, you know, on shot fake, you know, I just got sped up a little bit.

So, you know, just got to slow down a little bit in those moments. Do you remember last season when the Celtics went to the NBA finals and was game six against the Warriors, I think, because the Warriors won in Boston, if I remember correctly. They closed it out in Boston. That series went six against Golden State. Over the course of the multiple rounds of the postseason, Jason Tatum had set a new record for playoff turnovers. No player in the history of the NBA had ever had more turnovers in a single postseason than Jason Tatum. Now, we only had four tonight, but three of them come on back to back to back possessions in the fourth quarter with the game hanging on the line.

Let them work on the other side. They gave him some room for it all over. He has to get off the ball, get it to Jimmy. Three left on the shot clock. He elevates for three, leaned in and bounced up and in.

Jimmy Butler has lost his mind. 34 points, two of four from the land of milk and honey. Damn right, I did. Damn right, we did. And the best part about it is we still don't care what none of y'all think, honestly speaking. We don't care if you pick us to win. We never have.

We never will. We know the group of guys we have in this locker room. We know that Coach Bo puts so much confidence and belief in each and every one of us.

Coach Pat as well. And so our circle is small, but this circle got so much love for one another. We pump constant confidence into everybody. And we go out there and we hoop. We play basketball the right way, knowing that we always got a chance.

Okay, here's the question. And the Celtics can be an answer to this. I'm not telling you that the Heat have something the Celtics don't. But looking around pro sports, I don't care which sport.

Pick a sport, any sport. Looking around pro sports, what other teams have the kind of chemistry that Miami Heat do? And it plays out in different ways.

Also, there's no quick recipe for chemistry. In the case of the Heat, I think it's fairly obvious that Pat Riley and Eric Spolstra look for the type of players that fit their winning formula, that fit their culture. And what did Eric Spolstra just tell us in the wake of Doc Rivers firing? Maybe bring a coach in, he builds a culture. He tries to find the people who fit what he wants to do. And then the second it's built, he gets canned.

And then you got to start all over again. But that's not the case in Miami, where Eric Spolstra has been there for nearly two decades. Pat Riley has been there for a long stretch of time. This brain trust, this front office, this coaching staff, they stay together. The leadership is intact. There's consistency, which means the culture is in place and they can find the guys who fit. It may not be a tried and true automatic guarantee for chemistry, but it's one big reason why the Heat have chemistry. Because the leadership stays the same and they've been able to find guys who fit what they want to do. Here's another reason that we see chemistry. Identity.

The Heat know who they are. And they don't have any problems with being who they are. They like who they are. It's one of the benefits of being older. One of the things I found about being middle-aged is that I like who I am now.

I wouldn't go back to the insecure 20-something that I was for all the money in the world. Hell no. So I know I went a little bit long, but what other teams in pro sports have the kind of chemistry that you can see with the Miami Heat? It's so obvious. They always have an answer. On Twitter, A Law Radio. On our Facebook page, I look forward to hearing from you.

After Hours with Amy Lawrence. So we're just getting into our post-game reaction. A little bit from Jimmy Butler and Jason Tatum there who, by the way, did not take a shot in the fourth quarter.

Whoa. Momentum is fleeting in sports. But Eric Spolstra, Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry.

Bam out of bio. We'll get to the Celtics too, the back half of the hour. The explanation for what the heck happened in the third quarter when the wheels came off. It was a good start to the series, though. I liked it.

We had a lot of smart basketball people involved in this Eastern Conference Finals. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Visit us for more at T-Mobile.com slash CY. That's S-E-E-W-H-Y. I'm a little late with this promo.

Listen for free on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. Jimmy gets buckets and he also gets the ball. I think we're aware of it, but we don't care. And that's just how we've been operating this whole playoff run. I know we're at eighth seed, but we're not the typical eighth seed. We really don't care. We go out here and we do our jobs and we're prepared. Coach prepares us, the players prepare ourselves and we get shots up and we just work. That's the one thing about our culture is we just work no matter what.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. I think it's pretty clear the Miami Heat don't care what people think of their chances in the Eastern Conference Finals or against any other opponent in the playoffs. Kyle Lowry, Jimmy Butler, they do formal handshakes. I don't know why, but I like it. Actually, a listener found me on Twitter, A Law Radio, and reminded me that the Denver Broncos did it, that Terrell Davis, I remember it now, used to shake hands and then salute.

Thank you, Adam, for that post on social. We've got a post on social we want you to react to as well, looking around pro sports, what other teams have the kind of chemistry? What other teams are oozing the chemistry and are excelling because of that chemistry, the way the Miami Heat have excelled in the last, we'll call it five weeks of the NBA playoffs. Going back to the play-in tournament.

Can we even call it a tournament? Going back to the play-in wrinkle, the play-in gimmick, as I call it. So the Heat don't care whether they're favored, whether they're overlooked, whether they fly under the radar, or whether you think they can win because they know they have a formula. And that's what Kyle Lowry indicates.

Kyle Lowry, who had 13 points in the second quarter, the man was on fire. And I've said this before, he's not nearly the explosive player he used to be. He does not get around the court quickly. He motors now.

He rumbles. He doesn't glide. But he is smart and he is savvy and he is crafty and he can still shoot. This is a championship guard.

He can still shoot. And obviously when Jimmy Butler attracts so much attention and Bam Adebayo attracts so much attention, other guys are open. Did you see the way that the Heat spread the court out tonight? By doing that, they negate some of the length and the reach of guys like Rob Williams on the back line of defense.

Rob can't reach from corner to corner. When you spread out your offense, the Celtics have more ground to cover. When you spread it out and you've got guys around the perimeter, well then Al Horford and Rob Williams and some of the other defenders, Jason Tatum, Jaylen Brown, they have to move around too.

But here's the thing. This is physics. The ball travels faster than people do. So if you move the ball around quickly with pinpoint passing, you're going to find an open man. They spread out the offense so that one Celtics defender can't cover two guys. They spread the offense out so that the Celtics defenders were constantly having to track. And then Jimmy Butler is nearly impossible to keep in front of you. And Bam Adebayo is so athletic. Now Kyle Lowry you can keep in front of you.

Let's be fair, it's not that difficult. However, you leave him open to try to track down another member of the Heat and he's able to hit open shots. I mean he had a couple off balance ones.

There was one in the second quarter that looked like he was on one leg. Pretty impressive. It's like vintage Kyle Lowry. But yeah, it's great when Jimmy Butler attracts all the attention and he's on cruise control. It's fun.

Bam said it's amazing. I think it's just great to be a part of this run he's been on since I don't know how long it's been now. But that's what he does. He's one of the best players in the world for a reason. It's just a joy to watch him. For a guy, he wants it so bad and he works so hard at his craft. It's important to enjoy his success and he gives us all the confidence to be successful and be aggressive and assertive. That's what makes him special.

He's not all about him. It's about our group and our team and everyone else. You can't quantify it.

There's no analytic to it. Just the feeling of stability in the locker room. Even when you're down nine in the first half and we played poorly. But you have to credit Boston because they made us play poorly. There's just a settling effect.

It's impossible to quantify. We're in striking distance. Let's just settle into our game. Jimmy will make a bunch of plays. Bam will make a bunch of plays and we'll be alright.

Everybody can just fit into their roles. But that's what the great players do. Jimmy Butler with another 35 points. 20 of those coming in the second half.

I'm not sure he's ever satisfied except for when he's got a good cup of coffee. But that's three in a row. Starting playoff series with victories on the road. Grabbing home court advantage.

Three separate series now in a row. We're just playing really good basketball. More than anything, we're staying together through the good and through the bad. It is a game of runs and we can talk to one another. I think that's what ultimately makes me smile is the fact that when things aren't going our ways, we can look at each other eye to eye. Knowing somebody's messing around and we can fix it. Obviously it's a good feeling coming in and getting the first win on the road. That's pretty big especially in a place like this and how well they typically play at home.

So to get one is a great start. What did Jimmy Butler tell us? I don't know producer J if you can grab that cut from I guess it would have been Tuesday?

Tuesday we actually used it at the very end of our show as we were tagging out on Wednesday morning. Now we can't go full on guarantee but it certainly should be attracting headlines and raising eyebrows. The way that he talked about the heat as they approached the Celtic series. And again, why wouldn't they believe in themselves? Why wouldn't they have all the confidence in the world? They know that their formula works. And that's what I love. Also Kevin Love.

This is amazing. They've got multiple players on their team that have championship experience. But Kevin Love, he's out there knocking down threes. First of all he's in the starting lineup which is incredible.

Marco Belletti's here in studio. He was an afterthought in Cleveland because they were shifting to a younger lineup and a different formula. He signs with Miami. He is in the starting lineup. He doesn't play enormous minutes. But he'll hit a few threes.

Tonight he hit a couple of them. He gets the ball out of the hoop and instantly is looking up court to jack a three quarter court outlet pass. I mean he's been doing that his entire career.

But it's that type of mentality Marco. It's savvy, it's crafty, it's smart basketball. It's clever basketball. It's the Heat know what their identity is and they don't care about being anything else. I'm the old guy on the team.

Savvy, crafty, isn't that the Heat culture? Isn't that basically what they tell you all the time? With Spolstra and some other parts. Jay did you find it? Sorry Marco did you find it? Okay did you hear this yesterday Marco? About Jimmy?

I'd have to hear it I'm not sure. Okay here we go. Two years a year we're going to go into this game one and do what we're supposed to do. You know be the first one to four. Like I said we're very capable of it.

We have enough. Guys are playing some incredible basketball. That's what you're talking about right? They're smart, they're crafty, they know who they are. And I'm sorry Jimmy Butler I mean the last thing he lacks is confidence. You know and that's good. It rubs off on the rest of the club.

It does. They have enough guys too. I mean guys like Kyle Lowry, guys like Kevin Lovey. Talk about that championship mock seed.

Like they've been through it, they know what it is. And this is a team that a couple years ago I mean we won't talk about bubble all you want. But they did go to the NBA Finals. They have tasted the success and they're not a true eight seed. I mean we keep talking about the eight seed.

It's not exactly fitting for this club. First of all they were actually the seven seed and they lost the playing game to push them down. So they really weren't the eight seed to begin with. But even still like they had some injuries, they had some issues. It took them a while to find their footing. There's too much, they're too good to just be an afterthought. Now should they be in this spot?

No probably not. But they've battled to be able to get in this spot. And they show you that you're going to have to beat them. They're not going to beat themselves.

No they definitely are not. But tonight the Celtics did a little bit of that. Which is surprising for a team that has that much veteran leadership. I mean Jason Tatum with three consecutive turnovers in the fourth quarter.

Two of which were travels for heaven's sakes. Yeah but I mean that's one thing with the Celtics though. I mean we've seen that through the entire playoffs series. I mean they've beaten themselves a ton in these playoffs. Now they've been able to overcome. They've been able to battle back.

They've been able to find it when they need to. It's a dangerous thing to do in the playoffs to begin with. You do it against a team as smart as the Heat. Right. You're asking for trouble.

You really are. I mean again it's not a knock on the Sixers but the Sixers have a tendency to beat themselves too. So it's the idea that you keep doing this against a team as smart and as well coached as the Heat are. It's going to be a difficult thing to overcome. You think you're just going to roll it out there and say Jason Tatum is going to put up 51. Hey we'll be fine.

It's rough. But he doesn't take a shot in the fourth quarter. That is too extreme. That's one extreme to the other Marco.

I know when you get to your break. No I know but like I said it's the Celtics. There's a lot of Jekyll and Hyde there. I mean they're so talented and when they put it all together.

Yes they're better than the Heat on paper and they're better when you watch them. But they don't always put it together. And that's a problem. You can't be so Jekyll and Hyde in the playoffs. You've got to be able to find some consistency and stability even when you don't play your best to find a way to win. And the Celtics seem to find a way to give things away even when things are going well. It's not a good recipe to try to get to a championship. They are now 4-4 at home.

4-4 in Boston in these playoffs. The question was asked of them. Why? You'll hear Jason Tatum's answer coming up next. On Twitter A Law Radio.

Also on our Facebook page. Great to connect with you. What other teams in sports.

Marco you can think about this for next hour if you don't mind. What other teams in sports have the kind of chemistry that the Miami Heat do. And it's evident. It's oozing chemistry when they're out there on the court. It doesn't matter what sport.

Any sport. You're listening to the After Hours Podcast. And that's going to do it for game one. Wow. They head for the exits at the Garden.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. We came out too cool. It was just almost like we were just playing a regular season game. It's the Eastern Conference Finals.

Come on. We got to play with more intensity than we did today. And we just got to be better including me. Jalen Brown says the Celtics need to play with more intensity. I wouldn't think that would be a problem in the opener of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat who oozed chemistry and intensity. And they certainly had it in the first quarter when they were pounding the paint. Did you notice how the Celtics came out? Again, thinking back to the opener of the West Finals between Denver and L.A. What did we see from the Nuggets over and over and over going directly to the hoop?

Oftentimes in football we talk about a nose for the ball. Defensive players have a nose for the ball. The Nuggets and the Celtics, both home teams, early in these openers had a nose for the hoop. They were pounding the paint. They were trying to get the high percentage shots. They were going straight to the hoop. They were working the inside out game. Points in the paint were a big advantage for the Celtics at halftime.

Now there were multiple opportunities. To review the second quarter, there were multiple opportunities for the Celtics to go up by 15, if not more than that. And Kyle Lowry happened. Thank goodness for the Heat that they had Kyle Lowry in that second quarter because he had 13 of his 15 points.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. So a couple of different explanations for what the heck went wrong in the third quarter when Miami went on a 13 to 1 run and erased the Celtics advantage but also took that Celtics defense to school. Lost our offensive purpose. Lost our game plan, discipline. Allowed them to get out and transition, get second chance shots. Didn't guard the three point line. We just gave up 46 points in the third. So that's defense and transition and offensive rebounds and not closing out the shooters.

So there's some things that we really got to focus on and go over tomorrow and practice. I like how Joe Mazzulla said it. He was salty in his postgame press conference. In fact, he was salty and he was sarcastic.

Sarcasm is my love language. You'll hear it coming up. Okay, so one more time with Joe Mazzulla. Short and sweet and salty about what happened in the third quarter. Lost our offensive purpose. Lost our game plan, discipline. Allowed them to get out and transition, get second chance shots.

Didn't guard the three point line. So everything, in other words, went wrong for the Celtics in that third quarter. And yeah, they were still within striking distance. They pulled themselves within striking distance in the fourth. And that's in large part because the heat went cold from the field. For a long stretch in the fourth quarter, they could not buy a bucket.

Or the points were sporadic. And to underscore that, 46 points in the third quarter. Do you know what the heat had in the fourth quarter?

20. 26 fewer points in the fourth quarter. I mean, it's stunning that that could happen in the NBA, but this is who the heat are. They can be hot to trot, fire emoji, fire emoji.

And then they can be the opposite, cold as freaking ice. And so the Celtics found that defensive intensity again. But the heat just missed wide open shots. There were a few that they just hit, or that they just missed wide open.

Including Jimmy Butler, as you hear with Sean Grandy there on the Celtics radio network. He had been cold for a good stretch of the fourth quarter, but got that last three to kind of rattle home. So they need to play with more intensity. They need to stick with their offensive purpose. They need to make sure that they maintain the defensive formula that they used in six and seven of the Philadelphia series.

But did they also need to call a time out there in the third quarter? Interesting question. When I first heard Joe Mazula answer this, I for a second considered he might be being serious. BB8. He might BB8 serious.

But now I recognize, as I've listened to it more than once, I recognize that he was being sarcastic. Going up against Spolstra, who's constantly making adjustments on the fly, willing to kind of call timeouts and change things up so quickly. How did you balance trying to let things play out in the ways you usually do versus having to seize control? I called two in the first quarter. Thinking more like the third quarter.

No. I don't call two in the first quarter. Save it for the third quarter run. He's being a smart ass. Well, I shouldn't call two in the first. I should have saved them for a third quarter run. Oh my goodness.

All right. Well, I know that I take an irreverent approach to sports just because it's not life or death. It's sports. It's entertainment. He was definitely salty tonight.

But I appreciate it when athletes get salty because it gives us much material for the show. Thinking more like the third quarter. Not the first quarter.

The third quarter. Oh, you mean I should have saved the timeouts for the first quarter for the third quarter? Great. Thank you for that coaching strategy.

I think he's probably tired of hearing questions about timeouts, too, considering the playoffs at this point. All right. I promised you. Jason Tatum, why are the Celtics 4-4 in the playoffs at home this season? I don't know. Oh. I don't know.

I don't know why. You know, you still got to play the game. You still got to make plays regardless of, you know, your home on the way. You know, the court is the same. One ball, three reps, two baskets, you know. So, you know, I don't have an exact answer why we 500 at home.

You know, we just got to be better. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know.

Bleep. I don't know. I don't know.

I love Jason Tatum. He might set a record this postseason for the number of swear words dropped in front of the microphone. Also, does the NBA still fine for that? Because they used to. But I don't hear that he gets fined. Maybe not. Or maybe at this point that word is not considered offensive anymore to anyone, even to his son Deuce. Wait till his son Deuce starts saying it. We're asking you what teams ooze chemistry? What teams are winners because of the chemistry they have like the Heat? It's after hours CBS sports radio.