Miami Heat: 5 Bold Predictions for LeBron & the Miami Heat Against the Celtics

After a thrashing of the defending NBA champs, the Dallas Mavericks, the hype surrounding LeBron James and the Miami Heat is steadily increasing.  

LeBron James started off his 2011-12 campaign with impressive production to the tune of 37 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, two blocks and two steals.

All the talk surrounding LeBron James about his increased maturity and his newfound humility this year appears to be true and it's validity will definitely be tested against the veteran-led Boston Celtics this Tuesday night in Miami.

Can LeBron produce another 35+ point game?  Can Norris Cole continue to look like the steal of the NBA draft?  Will the Miami Heat hand the Celtics their second straight loss of the 2011-12 NBA season?

I'm about to answer all of those questions by making five bold predictions for the Heat vs. Celtics matchup.   

1. LeBron Will Drop 25 Points in the First Half

LeBron James is a streaky player.  When he's hot there is no stopping him, and when he's not, well he vanishes into thin air.

After a dominating performance against the Mavericks, look for LeBron James to start off the game against the Celtics firing on all cylinders.

LeBron will want to prove to himself, and subsequently to all his detractors, that his Christmas Day performance wasn't a fluke and that his dominance against the Mavericks is going to be the norm for him in 2011-12.    

In the first half alone, LeBron will drop 25 points, shooting above 60.5 percent from the field and getting to the free-throw line at least six times.  Much like Christmas Day, LeBron's play in the first half will help the Heat jump out to an early lead against the Celtics.  

2. Norris Cole Will Record 10 Points and 5 Assists

Aside from LeBron's dominant performance, the most surprising part of the Heat's season-opening win was the play of rookie point guard Norris Cole.  

Cole accounted for seven points, two rebounds and one steal in his first game in the NBA.  Cole only shot 37.5 percent from the field in his first career NBA game, but he will improve that production on Tuesday night against the Celtics.

Cole showed on Christmas Day that he is ready to make an immediate impact on a loaded Miami Heat roster, and he will do so by earning minutes replacing starting point guard Mario Chalmers.  Cole played 24 total minutes in his first NBA game, and while he won't get that much time against the Celtics, he will increase his production in less time.

Cole will match up nicely against Celtics rookie point guard Avery Bradley, allowing Cole to use his speed to get past Bradley and either get to the rim or create opportunities for his teammates. 

He won't fair as well against starting point guard Rajon Rondo, but he will still be able to put up 10 points and five assists coming off the bench, giving the Heat a nice spark in the second half. 

3. LeBron Will Get a Triple-Double: 39 Points, 11 Rebounds and 10 Assists

LeBron recorded his first double-double of the season against the Mavericks with 37 points and 10 assists.  In his first home game of the year, look for LeBron to record his first triple-double of the season, recording 39 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.  

Minus the 2009 playoff debacle against the Celtics while LeBron was still in Cleveland, LeBron consistently plays very well against Boston.  The last time LeBron faced the Celtics in Miami was last year when he closed them out in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals with 33 points.  LeBron will build on that in this year in his first game against Boston.

The Celtics showed their age against the Knicks on Christmas Day and that will continue against the Heat on Tuesday night, allowing LeBron to unload a dominant triple-double on them. 

4. Mario Chalmers Will Put Rajon Rondo on Lockdown

Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo started off the 2011-12 NBA season with quite an incredible performance against the New York Knicks, with 31 points, 13 assists and 5 rebounds.  The Heat point guard will prove that Rondo's performance was the result of the Knicks not having a legitimate point guard, by locking down Rajon Rondo defensively.

The slightly taller and stronger Mario Chalmers will hold Rondo to around 14 points and eight assists, much like he did in the 2010-11 NBA playoffs, holding Rondo to a series average of 10 points and 7.6 assists per game.  I know Rondo injured his elbow in Game 3 of that playoff series, but Chalmers did a good job off shutting him down even before the injury.  

Chalmers will bring Rondo back down to earth, and he will do that by frustrating Rondo with his lock-down defense early in the game.

 Look for Rondo to return to normal form against the Miami Heat, producing at a much more realistic rate than his 31 point and 13 assist performance against the point guard-less Knicks. 

5. Miami Heat Will Win 107-95, Beating Celtics by at Least 12 Points

The aging Celtics will not be able to handle the youth, athleticism and new look of the Miami Heat.  With an increased team chemistry building off of their big Christmas Day win, the Miami Heat will show the Celtics that they are the team to beat in the Eastern Conference with a double-digit victory on Tuesday night.

It will be difficult for the Celtics to rebound from their last-second loss to the Knicks, especially being on the road for the second game in a row and possibly still without small forward Paul Pierce.  The Miami Heat will jump out to an early lead behind the hot shooting of LeBron James and the lock-down defense of Dwyane Wade.  Chris Bosh will frustrate Kevin Garnett defensively, forcing the Celtics to rely on Ray Allen to stay in the game.

In their second game of the 2011-12 NBA season, the Miami Heat will once again prove that they are the team to beat in the NBA this year and they will prove that the Eastern Conference championship and the road to the NBA finals is going to go through Miami this year.

Prediction:  Miami Heat 107 - Boston Celtics 95