Philadelphia 76ers vs Boston Celtics Prediction, Preview and Odds - 05/01/2023

Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Monday, May 1, 2023

Venue:  TD Garden, Boston, MA

Where to Watch:  TNT

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  76ers +7.5, Celtics -7.5; Over/Under:  215 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  76ers +7, Celtics -7; Over/Under:  215 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  76ers +7.5, Celtics -7.5; Over/Under:  215.5 points

Philadelphia 76ers:  54-28 (2nd place, Atlantic Division)

Boston Celtics:  57-25 (1st place, Atlantic Division)

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Philadelphia 76ers:  8-2 last 10

Boston Celtics:  7-3 last 10

The 76ers finished the regular season with a 54-28 record overall and they were 25-16 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game on a 6 game winning streak with wins coming against the Atlanta Hawks and the Brooklyn Nets in their last 5 games. In game 4 of that series against the Nets, Tobias Harris led the team in points in that game with 25 while James Harden was next on the team with 17 points. James Harden led the team in assists in that game with 11 while Paul Reed led the team in rebounds with 15. They were 39.6% from the field, 37.5% from 3-point range, and 93.8% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 115.2 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 110.9 PPG against them. The 76ers have an ATS record of 50-34-2 this season and their O/U record is 45-39-2.

The Celtics finished the regular season with a 57-25 record overall and they were 32-9 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off of a win against the Atlanta Hawks in their last game. Jaylen Brown led the team in points in that game with 32 while Jayson Tatum was next on the team with 30 points. Jayson Tatum led the team in assists in that game with 7 while Jayson Tatum led the team in rebounds with 14. They were 50% from the field, 42.9% from 3-point range, and 94.1% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 117.9 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 111.4 PPG against them. The Celtics have an ATS record of 50-38 this season and their O/U record is 46-40-2.

The current betting odds have the Celtics listed as a 7.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. This is game 1 of a 7-game series between the 2nd seeded Celtics and the 3rd seeded 76ers for the 2nd round of the playoffs in the NBA Eastern Conference. The 76ers have had a lot more rest for this series as they ended their series in the 1st round against the Nets in 4 games while the Celtics dragged out their series to 6 games, just ending it in Atlanta on Thursday night. The 76ers are going to be the more rested team here but after being off for more than a week, that can actually start to work against them as they will be a bit rusty early in the game and will need some time to readjust. The 76ers are also dealing with a knee injury to their star Embiid so even if he plays here, he won't be at 100% and the Celtics can take advantage of that early in this game by getting out to an early lead and putting the game out of reach quickly where the 76ers will have to fight back down big all night. The Celtics didn't look great in their last few games of that series against the Hawks either so they will be looking to make a statement in this 1st game on their home court and they have had a very good record against the 76ers all year. The best way to place a bet here is on the Celtics to cover the spread in this game.

76ers Celtics Prediction:  Our NBA Pick for Monday, May 1, 2023 (7:30 pm ET start time) is Celtics 120 76ers 107.

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Philadelphia 76ers: 20-8 ATS after allowing 105 points or less. 31-19 ATS after a game where they covered the spread. 12-5 OVER after allowing 100 points or less. 18-8 OVER after playing 2 consecutive road games.

Boston Celtics: 3-13 ATS revenging a same season loss vs opponent. 13-27 ATS after 3 straight games where they made 50% of their shots or better. 28-17 OVER as a favorite of 3.5 to 9.5 points. 7-0 OVER after 5 straight games where they made 47% of their shots or better.

Philadelphia 76ers:  J. Embiid (C) day-to-day - Knee. D. House Jr. (SF) day-to-day - Illness.

Boston Celtics:  D. Gallinari (SF) out for season - Knee.

“As a coach I hate that word, I hate those three letters. I mean, because it never comes out well. It just feels like that whenever they tell a coach, ‘Hey, we’re going to get an MRI,’ it doesn’t turn out well most of the time and this one did not.” - Doc Rivers on the injury to Joel Embiid after his team’s win against the Nets in their game on Saturday which ended that series 4-0, game 4 of that series.

“We talked about finishing the game. I felt the last game, for the most part, we were fine. But tonight there was that sense of urgency. We understood how important it was to not extend the series.” - Al Horford after their win against the Hawks in their game on Thursday which ended the series 4-2, game 6 of that series. 

PG James Harden

SG Tyrese Maxey

SF Tobias Harris 

PF P.J. Tucker

C Joel Embiid

PG Marcus Smart

SG Derrick White

SF Jaylen Brown

PF Jayson Tatum

C Al Horford

PPG: J. Embiid (33.1)

APG: J. Harden (10.7)

Reb/G: J. Embiid (10.2)

PPG: J. Tatum (30.1)

APG: M. Smart (6.3)

Reb/G: J. Tatum (8.8)

Coaches:

Philadelphia 76ers: Doc Rivers (3rd season)

Boston Celtics: Joe Mazzulla (1st season)