Heat face challenge in ending 5-game slide vs. Celtics

The Miami Heat, who are 8-23 versus teams with .500 records or better, are going through a rough stretch at the moment.

Miami is on a season-high five-game losing streak, and they will get a visit on Friday night from one of the NBA's elite teams, the Boston Celtics.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said "it just takes a win" to get back on track.

"We're at our best when we don't fear anyone," Spoelstra said.

Asked about the losing streak getting to his team mentally, Spoelstra challenged his players.

"You just have to reveal your competitive character," Spoelstra said. "You can go the other way and say this is too much. Or, you can use adversity to try to find something better. You always have a choice."

The Heat are coming off a 119-104 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday. Miami got a game-high 31 points from Tyler Herro, but Spoelstra gave his highest praise for Heat rookie Pelle Larsson and his hustle on one play in particular.

Larsson dove head-first to come up with the ball, and he got an assist on a pass while still sitting on his backside.

"That's one of the best plays I've seen," Spoelstra said. "I think he got three loose balls on one possession."

Meanwhile, the reigning NBA champion Celtics had their five-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday night in a 118-112 loss to the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder.

Boston shot 36 3-pointers in the first half -- the most 3-pointers in any half in NBA history. They made 15 of those and finished 20 of 63 (31.7 percent) for the game.

The Celtics, who are 15-4 over their past 19 games, have been without starting center and 7-foot-1 unicorn Kristaps Porzingis since Feb. 26.

"I've been dealing with some viral illness that we've not been able to fully identify yet," Porzingis said. "I'm recovering and getting better."

Porzingis, who missed the first month of the season due to an ankle injury, is averaging 18.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 32 games.

Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said on Wednesday that Porzingis' absence changes the way the Celtics play "significantly" on both ends of the court. But even without Porzingis, the Celtics have an impressive collection of standout players.

Jayson Tatum, who has been named to six straight All-Star Games, is averaging 27.2 points, 8.8 rebounds and a career-high 5.9 assists.

Jaylen Brown, the MVP of last year's NBA Finals, is averaging 23.0 points, 6.1 rebounds and a career-high 4.7 assists.

Boston's exceptional role players include guards Derrick White and Jrue Holiday, who last season were named to the NBA's All-Defense second team. White is also having a career year as a scorer (16.7 ppg).

The Celtics also have a pair of outstanding shooters in Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser, who are both reserves.

Pritchard shoots 41.7 percent on 3-pointers and averages 14.1 points. He scored a career-high 43 points on March 5 in a win over Portland, making 10 3-pointers in that game.

Hauser shoots 39.9 percent from deep. On Monday, he scored a career-high 33 points on 9-for-19 shooting from deep in a win over Utah.

At center in place of Porzingis, the Celtics start veteran Al Horford, 38, who had 18 points and 10 rebounds on Wednesday.

--Field Level Media