The 2012-13 NBA season kicks off with a rematch of the Eastern Conference Finals with the Boston Celtics taking on the reigning NBA Finals champs the Miami Heat Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. ET.
Before tipoff, Heat forward LeBron James will receive his first Championship ring.
Both teams are expected to meet again in the post season, most likely the conference finals once more, so the rivalry between the two have become one of the most exciting ones in recent years.
In one of the best series of the postseason, the Celtics and Heat brawled in an epic seven game series, ultimately won by Miami.The Heat took over the first two games of the series, despite a 44-point performance by Rajon Rondo in Game 2.
But in typical Celtic fashion, the Celtics came back to win the next three straight games. The Celtics had a chance to close the series in Game 6, but James played arguably his best game of his career, scoring 45 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Heat to a win.
James and company closed out the series in Game 7 with a 101-88 victory, thus spoiling the Celtics hope for a championship title for the second straight year, adding more fuel to the existing rivalry.
This season add the fact that the Heat acquired sharp shooter Ray Allen from the Celtics, the rivalry reached new levels of intensity.
Emotions are expected run high, as Boston starts another run in hopes of capturing what it was able to in the first year of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Allen being there together.
Still, both teams are trying to keep this game in perspective, and win or lose, both teams will have an entire 82 game season to get things rolling. Unless something drastic occurs between now and the June, both teams are expected to meet once again in the post season.
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