Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics Prediction, Preview and Odds - 05/07/2024

Game Time: 7:00 pm ET, Tuesday, May 7, 2024

Venue:  TD Garden, Boston, MA

Where to Watch:  TNT, MAX

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Cavaliers +11, Celtics -11; Over/Under:  209 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Cavaliers +11, Celtics -11; Over/Under:  209 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Cavaliers +11.5, Celtics -11.5; Over/Under:  209.5 points

Cleveland Cavaliers:  48-34 (2nd place, Central Division)

Boston Celtics:  64-18 (1st place, Atlantic Division)

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Cleveland Cavaliers:  6-4 last 10

Boston Celtics:  7-3 last 10

The Cavaliers are entering this game with a 48-34 record overall to finish the regular season and they were 22-19 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a win against the Orlando Magic in their last game. Donovan Mitchell led the team in points in that game with 39 while Caris LeVert was next on the team with 15 points. Donovan Mitchell led the team in assists in that game with 5 while Evan Mobley led the team in rebounds with 16. They were 44.2% from the field, 33.3% from 3-point range, and 83.3% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 112.6 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 110.2 PPG against them. The Cavaliers have an ATS record of 41-46-2 this season and their O/U record is 43-45-1.

The Celtics are entering this game with a 64-18 record overall to finish the regular season and they were 37-4 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game on a 3 game winning streak with wins coming against the Miami Heat in their last 3 games. In their last game against the Heat in game 5 of this series, Derrick White and Jaylen Brown each led the team in points in that game with 25 while Sam Hauser was next on the team with 17 points. Jrue Holiday led the team in assists in that game with 5 while Jayson Tatum led the team in rebounds with 12. They were 54.5% from the field, 40% from 3-point range, and 66.7% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 120.6 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 109.2 PPG against them. The Celtics have an ATS record of 45-37-5 this season and their O/U record is 45-42.

The current betting odds have the Celtics listed as an 11 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. This is game 1 of a 7 game series between the 1st seeded Celtics and the 4th seeded Cavaliers for Round 2 of the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs. The Celtics looked great in the 1st round of the playoffs as they beat the Heat in 5 games. They did lose game 2 on their home court, but the rest of the games in that series weren't even close as the Heat didn't really stand a chance without their best player Jimmy Butler. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers were healthy in their series yet they still struggled against a really young and inexperienced team like the Magic, needing 7 games to win that series and winning no games on the road either. Now the Cavaliers are going to be missing a starter here with Allen picking up an injury in the last game and that isn't going to help them here against the best team in the NBA this season. The Cavaliers also looked a lot worse on the road this season with their 22-19 road record while the Celtics were 37-4 in their home games with the best home record in the entire NBA. The Celtics are more rested for this game too while the Cavaliers are on short rest and just played a much tougher elimination game to get to this series. The Cavaliers are going to be out of gas in this 1st game while the Celtics show up in a big way to lay down the law in this series. The best way to place a bet here is on the Celtics to cover the spread in this game. 

Cavaliers Celtics Prediction:  Our NBA Pick for Tuesday, May 7, 2024 (7:00 pm ET start time) is Celtics 120 Cavaliers 98.

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Cleveland Cavaliers: 17-24 ATS after a game where they covered the spread. 5-9 ATS in all playoff games. 1-6 ATS in a road game where the total is 200 to 209.5. 26-18 UNDER in road games. 11-3 UNDER in all playoff games. 15-7 UNDER after a combined score of 205 points or less 2 straight games.

Boston Celtics: 26-17 ATS after a game where they covered the spread. 25-18 ATS after a win by 10 points or more. 33-19 ATS after a combined score of 205 points or less. 25-17 UNDER after a game outrebounding opponent by 20 or more. 42-22 UNDER after a huge blowout win by 30 or more. 

Cleveland Cavaliers:  C. Porter Jr. (PG) Ques Tues - Ankle. J. Allen (C) Ques Tues - Ribs. D. Wade (SF) Out indefinitely - Knee. T. Jerome (SG) Out indefinitely - Ankle.

Boston Celtics:  K. Porzingis (PF) Late May - Calf.

“That’s what special players do when it matters most. He was special when he needed to be.” - J.B. Bickerstaff on Donovan Mitchell after his team’s win against the Magic in game 7 of that series on Sunday, winning that series 4-3.

“It is a lot of history, back and forth. But it didn’t matter who it was. We just had to get the job done.” - Jaylen Brown after their win against the Heat in game 5 of that series on Wednesday, winning that series 4-1.

PG Darius Garland

SG Donovan Mitchell

SF Max Strus

PF Marcus Morris Sr.

C Evan Mobley

PG Jrue Holiday

SG Derrick White

SF Jaylen Brown

PF Jayson Tatum

C Al Horford

PPG: D. Mitchell (26.6)

APG: D. Garland (6.5)

Reb/G: J. Allen (10.5)

PPG: J. Tatum (26.9)

APG: D. White (5.2)

Reb/G: J. Tatum (8.1)

Coaches:

Cleveland Cavaliers: J.B. Bickerstaff (5th season)

Boston Celtics: Joe Mazzulla (2nd season)