Has any NBA team made a comeback from 3-0 down? Exploring Celtics chances' to win Eastern Conference Finals
The 2023 Eastern Conference Finals have been very exciting. The eighth-seeded Miami Heat took a 3-0 lead over the second-seeded Boston Celtics, but then the Celtics tied the series.
Just a few days ago, it looked like the Heat were going to sweep the Celtics. However, with Game 7 being played in Boston, the Celtics are now favorites to win the series and advance to the NBA Finals for the second year in a row.
If the Celtics end up beating the Heat in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals, they will become the first team in NBA history to overcome a 0-3 deficit. In fact, teams that were down 0-3 have forced Game 7 only 2% of the time.
Boston Celtics could make history by winning the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals
By forcing Game 7, the Boston Celtics have become only the fourth team in NBA history to get this far after trailing 0-3 in the series. The Celtics are the 151st team to go down 0-3 in the series, but they have a chance to complete a comeback.
In 92 of the previous 150 series, the leading team won in four games, or in 61% of the series. The series was over in five games in 44 or 29% of the series, while it was decided in six games in 11 series.
Here are the three other instances where a team trailing 0-3 forced a Game 7:
- 2003 Western Conference first round: Portland Trail Blazers - Dallas Mavericks
- 1994 Western Conference semifinals: Denver Nuggets - Utah Jazz
- 1951 NBA Finals: New York - Rochester Royals
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In all of these cases, the team that had a 3-0 lead won. However, all of these teams played Game 7 on their homecourt, which is not the case in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals.
The Miami Heat had a chance to finish the series at home in Game 6, but ended up losing on a game-winning buzzer-beater by Derrick White. Game 7 will take place in Boston, where the Celtics have won one out of three games of the series.
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In the previous Game 7s, a home team won by an average of 8.6 points. Due to this, it's no surprise that the Celtics are eight-point favorites for the upcoming matchup. They have a great opportunity to win the series and make history and will be able to do so in front of their home crowd.