Hoops fans and bettors will get a special treat Tuesday night, as the NBA-leading Celtics take on the conference-rival Cavaliers. Today we’re going to dive into the odds for this clash of the titans and share our best bets, top props, and final score prediction.
Boston and Cleveland have combined to go 48-14 since Christmas, but someone has to win this game. The Green teams will have confidence in their team, which has won 11 straight games, is 29-3 at TD Garden and just blew the doors off Stephen Curry and the Warriors 140-88 in a rematch of the final 2022.
The Cavs, meanwhile, began to slip. They’re just 5-5 in their last 10 games, and MVP candidate Donovan Mitchell (knee) and Sixth Man of the Year prospect Caris LeVert (elbow) missed the loss to Sunday against the equally undermanned Knicks. Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis quietly the key to Boston’s pursuit of Banner 18it’s everyday with a quad problem.
Will the Celts continue to roll at home and easily dispose of the banged-up Cavs? Or will JB Bickerstaff’s always pesky team pick up its third win against Boston since October 2022? Let’s move on to the odds for the Celtics vs. Cavaliers and reveal our best bets from BetMGM.
Celtics vs. Cavaliers points breakdown and moneyline
All odds and props are from BetMGM, a licensed NBA gaming operator.
- ATS: Celtics -8.5 (-110) | Knights +8.5 (-110)
- Money line: Celtics -350 | Riders +260
- More less : W 218.5 (-110) | U218.5 (-110)
Unsurprisingly, the red-hot Celtics opened as heavy favorites. They have won 11 games in a row, 29 of their 32 games at home, and have lost 278 points in their last two games against the Mavericks and Warriors. The Cavs, meanwhile, are 1-8 ATS in their nine games.
Cleveland potentially being without Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert for a second straight game could be perilous. The Cavs have lost three of their last four games without Mitchell active, and they are just 13-13 without him since he joined the team in 2021.
These guys have been killers for the Celtics over the past two seasons – Mitchell has averaged over 35 points per game against Boston over the past three seasons, while LeVert has averaged over 18 points per game against the Cs, mainly off the bench.
Celtics vs Cavaliers predictions, best bets
More than nine games separate the Celtics and Cavaliers. Boston is riding the longest winning streak in the 2023-24 NBA season, and it isn’t showing many signs of slowing down.
We’ve never seen sustained streaks of outside shooting like the Celtics have shown this season. They are shooting 39.9 percent at home. March seems to bring even more luck, as the Greens have shot a superb 23 from 46 from distance in their two matches this month.
That’s not a good thing for the Cavs, who just gave up 16 triples in a home loss to the Knicks.
Boston is blowing away playoff teams like Dallas and Golden State. How can we expect the Cavs to keep up with the Celts if Mitchell is out or not at full strength? That’s too ambitious a task for a team that has split its last 10 games 50-50, including two losses to the Joel Embiid-less Sixers and L’s to the Bulls and Magic.
We like the Celtics team below, as the projected total appears to be based more on recent results and less on the Cavs’ defensive abilities, with Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley inside.
Cleveland is typically pretty good at defending the three and cleaning the glass — and this unit always plays hard against Boston — so we like Bickerstaff’s team to at least keep a relatively decent ballgame until the final frame. Expect the Cavs to hold the C’s to under 118 for the 10th time in 12 games, but end up narrowly missing coverage for the ninth time in 10 games.
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION: Celtics 117, Cavaliers 106 – The Celtics earn (-350) And blanket (-8.5), with the score going BELOW total (218.5).
Celtics vs. Cavaliers: Bet on the best player
Jaylen Brown Points — OVER 21.5 (-125)
Brown has been on a tear lately, exploding for 28.8 points per game over Boston’s last four games. He’s also averaging 27.8 PPG over his last 11 games against Cleveland dating back to 2019-20. This is no place for a stoned Kristaps Porzingis to take on the twin towers of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen — this is a Brown and Tatum game through and through. Crush the OVER and support JB’s continued success against Cleveland.
