While they were the betting favorites to win an NBA-record 18th championship for the vast majority of this season, things aren’t looking good for the Boston Celtics as they trail the Miami Heat 3-1 in their Eastern Conference Finals series.

No team has ever managed to make it back from a 0-3 series deficit, so the Celtics will need to make history in jaw-dropping fashion in order to secure a chance at their next championship. 

Game 5 tips off in Boston at 8:30 pm EDT, so we could know as soon as tonight what this year’s NBA Finals matchup will be if the Celtics aren’t able to stave off elimination for a second consecutive game. 

As of right now, Caesars Sportsbook Massachusetts loves the Celtics’ chances of prevailing tonight, listing them at -320 and 8.5 point favorites to overcome the Heat, just make sure to utilize a Caesars Sportsbook Massachusetts Promo Code when placing your bets on the Celtics (or any other team or sport) to ensure you have the best chances of winning big. 

Here’s a look at how their series with the Heat has gone so far, and what could go down if they manage to advance to face the Nuggets in the Finals.

Missed opportunities marred Boston’s first two home games against Miami, as the Celtics built massive leads in the second half of both games before promptly blowing them away. It doesn’t help that Heat wing Jimmy Butler has shown his ability as one of the most clutch players (on both ends of the court) in the league today, turning into an ice-cold assassin when the game hits crunch time.

The Heat blew Boston out 128-102 in Game 3, feeding off of the energy of their home crowd and limiting Celtics’ stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to just 14 and 12 points, respectively, as head coach Joe Mazzulla pulled them early with the game out of hand. 

It was the Celtics who finally kept their foot on the gas for all four quarters in Game 4, winning 116-99 behind a 33-point outing from Tatum.

Should Boston manage to do the (almost) unthinkable and come back from what was a 3-0 series deficit, it’ll be interesting to see how they respond against the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets managed to take care of business quickly against the Los Angeles Lakers, sweeping them 4-0.

As such, if Boston managed to win their conference finals, Denver will have had more than a week-long layoff as they wait for the Celtics’ series to finish. That can go either way: right now the Nuggets have an impeccable injury report (with the exception of guard Collin Gillespie, who’s out for the season with a leg injury), so it’s not like they’ll be working their way back to a clean bill of health during the time off.

On the other hand, if Boston is banged up after coming back against Miami’s grueling defense, they could struggle against a fresh opponent. Right now, Celtics’ point guard Malcolm Brodgon is day-to-day with a partially torn tendon in his right forearm, while power forward Danilo Gallinari has been ruled out with a knee injury.

Brogdon is planning to play through the injury, as he has for this entire series, but he’s managed just two points in 35 minutes across the past two games, so it’s clear that it’s limiting his effectiveness. 

While he’s an excellent sixth man when healthy, the Celtics might be better off resting him in favor of a player at full capacity, especially because Boston isn’t keeping the injury under wraps: Miami knows exactly how limited Brogdon is, and that should change how they play against him in Game 5.

Gallinari, a depth piece, hasn’t yet played a minute in a Celtics’ uniform, so his absence shouldn’t hurt the team much, if at all. 

Mazzulla will have to reach deep into his bag of tricks in his first year as a head coach in order to find a lineup that will help him come back in the series despite Brogdon’s injury.

Without any layoff between a potential series comeback and the beginning of the NBA Finals, it sounds like it’ll be pretty tough to get Brogdon back to full health in time to vie for a championship: tendons don’t heal overnight as bumps and bruises can. 

At the end of the day, though, the rest is a narrative written after a series ends. If the team with a long layoff wins easily, it’ll be because they had time to rest up: if they lose in disappointing fashion, pundits will claim it’s because of rust after the time off.

Erik ten Hag is a Dutch professional football manager of Premier League club Manchester United and a former football player.

While his professional life has been well-documented, he has managed to keep his personal life private, leading fans to wonder about his children.

Erik ten Hag shares three Children with his wife, Bianca

Ten Hag, the professional football manager, is not only dedicated to his career but also committed to his family. He is happily married to his wife Bianca, with whom he shares three children: two daughters and a son. 

Although he has chosen to keep his personal life private, he has managed to maintain a level of secrecy around his family, even withholding the names of his children. 

Erik ten Hag. (Source: Instagram)

Additionally, despite having a verified Instagram account, he has not shared any posts, limiting information about his family on the platform.

While the specific reasons behind his decision to keep his personal life private remain unknown, he may prefer to shield his family from unnecessary attention. 

However, The Sun reported Ten Hag resided in Oldenzaal in Twente, Netherlands, with his wife and children, and the pair enjoys playing golf in their spare time. Since then, he has moved to Manchester.

Erik ten Hag’s playing career

Ten Hag had a notable playing career before transitioning to coaching. During his playing days, he played primarily as a center-back.

He represented several clubs throughout his career, including Twente, De Graafschap, RKC Waalwijk, and Utrecht, leaving his mark on Dutch football.

Erik ten Hag. (Source: Twitter)

His association with Twente was particularly significant, as he had three separate stints with the club. It was during his time at Twente that he achieved a remarkable feat by winning the KNVB Cup in the 2000-2001 season.

Before his triumph with Twente, Ten Hag had also tasted success with De Graafschap. In the 1990-1991 season, he played a vital role in helping De Graafschap secure the Eerste Divisie title.

After a successful playing career spanning over a decade, Ten Hag decided to retire from active football in 2002 at the age of 32. 

Erik ten Hag began his coaching career in 2012

Ten Hag’s coaching career began in 2012 when he was appointed as the manager of Go Ahead Eagles in the Eerste Divisie. 

This opportunity was granted to him by Marc Overmars, who was a shareholder of the club. 

After his successful stint at Go Ahead Eagles, Ten Hag moved on to coach Bayern Munich II from June 2013 until 2015. 

Erik ten Hag. (Source: Twitter)

Following his tenure with Bayern Munich II, he worked as sporting director and head coach at Utrecht in 2015. 

In his first season with the club, he led Utrecht to a respectable fifth-place finish. The following season, the team secured a fourth-place finish and earned a spot in the UEFA Europa League qualifiers.

On 21 December 2017, Ten Hag was appointed as the head coach of Ajax. Under his guidance, Ajax achieved remarkable success. 

On 21 April 2022, it was announced that Ten Hag would become the manager of Manchester United, commencing from the end of the 2021-2022 season. 

Name me a colder manager than Erik Ten Hag. I’ll Wait. pic.twitter.com/QDMQJ2ceb4— 𝟭𝟬 (@JosiahUTD) May 30, 2023

In his early tenure with the English club, he experienced mixed results, including a 2-1 home defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion and a 4-0 loss to Brentford. 

However, Ten Hag secured his first competitive win with a 2-1 victory against Liverpool, ending United’s winless streak against their rivals.

He continued to make his mark by leading Manchester United to a 3-0 win over Charlton Athletic in the EFL Cup, becoming the fastest United manager to reach 20 competitive wins. 

Furthermore, he guided the team to a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United, clinching the EFL Cup and securing their first trophy since 2017.

Despite these successes, Ten Hag faced a significant setback when his team suffered a record-breaking 7-0 defeat to Liverpool.

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Erik ten Hag, a former Dutch football player, is now a professional football manager. He currently serves as the manager of Manchester United, a Premier League club.

During his playing career, Ten Hag played as a center-back. He started his journey at the Eredivisie club Twente. In 1990, he joined De Graafschap and achieved success by winning the Eerste Divisie in his first season. 

On April 21, 2022, Ten Hag was appointed as the manager of Manchester United, starting from the end of the 2021-22 season until June 2025, with the option to extend for another year. He was joined by Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren as part of his coaching staff. 

On May 16, it was confirmed that Ten Hag had left his role at Ajax early to begin his preparations as the Manchester United manager for the 2022-23 season.

Erik Ten Hag is a married man

According to Metro, Manchester United’s manager is a married man. He is married to his wife Bianca Ten Hag and also has children. The source mentioned that they have 3 children, 2 daughters and a son, non of whose information is available.

Likewise, not much information is available about Ten Hag’s wife, Bianca, as she prefers to keep her personal life private. Even though her date of birth is not publicly known, some sources mentioned that she was born in the Netherlands.

Nothing other than that is known about the wife, not even their wedding date. However, The US Sun mentioned Bianca is between 45 and 50 years old, while Ten Hag, born on February 2, 1970, is 52.

Both of them maintain a low profile and rarely make public appearances together. They choose to keep their relationship away from the media spotlight.

Although the specific details of their relationship are not publicly disclosed, it is rumored that they have known each other since their childhood and were childhood sweethearts.

Erik Ten Hag started coaching since 2013

Ten Hag was born in Haaksbergen, Overijssel. During his playing career, he primarily played as a center-back for Twente, De Graafschap, RKC Waalwijk, and Utrecht. He had three separate stints with Twente, and it was during his time there that he won the KNVB Cup in the 2000-01 season. 

Additionally, he achieved success by winning the Eerste Divisie with De Graafschap in the 1990-91 season. Ten Hag retired from professional playing in 2002 at the age of 32, while representing Twente, after the 2001-02 Eredivisie season.

In 2012, Ten Hag was appointed as the manager of Go Ahead Eagles in the Eerste Divisie. This opportunity was extended to him by Marc Overmars, who held a shareholder position in the club.

He then went on to coach Bayern Munich II from June 6, 2013, until 2015, when he was eventually replaced by Heiko Vogel. In the summer of 2015, Ten Hag took up the roles of sporting director and head coach at Utrecht. During his first season with the club, he guided them to a fifth-place finish. 

Erik ten Hag took over as the head coach of Ajax on December 21, 2017, after Marcel Keizer was dismissed. In the 2018-19 UEFA Champions League, he led Ajax to the semi-finals, defeating Real Madrid and Juventus along the way. However, their hopes of reaching the final were dashed when they lost to Tottenham Hotspur in the second leg.

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