Boston at Cleveland
Time: 7 PM ET
Spread: CLE -11
Total: 208
Betting odds c/o Bovada
The Cleveland Cavaliers are now hitting stride. The Cavs, winners of its past three contests, enter a tough home matchup against the Boston Celtics.
NBA live lines at Bovada showed the Cavaliers as 11-point favorites in the affair, with the over/under set at 208. NBA odds explained will show how to bet these NBA lines.
The Cavs still sit 11 games behind Atlanta. In all likelihood the Cavs will finish in the No. 3 or No .4 spot in the East which will result in a matchup with Washington, Milwaukee or Miami. Only the Wizards pose a realistic threat to LBJ and company, and that is the opponent it would draw if the playoffs began today. No team in the East, save maybe the Hawks (winners of four straight), is exactly on fire at the moment, however.
Perhaps best of all for Cleveland, Kevin Love is now starting to show signs of life. The coveted power forward had 24 points, nine boards, three assists and a steal in the 102-93 victory over Detroit on Tuesday (Feb 24) night.
James was three rebounds shy of a triple double, dishing out 11 assists and posting a team high plus-27 while on the court. Irving had an off night shooting the ball hitting just 6 of 16, but the Cavs hit 14 threes, assisted 22 times on 34 field goals, and only turned the ball over 14 times. It was enough to overcome a negative-6 disadvantage on the boards, and getting after the glass against the Celtics tonight will prove vital, too.
Cleveland made a couple good acquisitions. For all the shot chucking J.R. Smith does, he is a better fit than the discontented Dion Waiters, who was dealt to the OKC Thunder in a three-team deal before the deadline. Timofey Mozgov is a big imposing body and surprisingly good athlete. Kendrick Perkins further fortifies the frontcourt. Iman Shumpert hasn’t quite panned out as the Cavs hoped he might, but the Cavs have plenty of options off the bench and Shumpert always offers steady defense if nothing else. Even Matthew Dellaedova adds steadiness to the second unit, and the combo guard shoots 40.2 percent from behind the arc this season, while attempting 2.4 per game.
The Cavs have been seeking floor spacing, and Love’s lack of accuracy this season (35.9 percent) has been partly to blame. It’s still a good mark for a power forward, but not the level of shooting he displayed in Minnesota prior to being dealt for No. 1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins. Even though Love is not the indisputable best power forward in the NBA anymore (Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge both have better resumes this year), he is still a better fit than a raw rookie like Wiggins.
Every player has off years, and Love may get back on track still, as he has shown signs of in recent games. Love has shot 45.8 percent from the floor in his last nine games, but is seeing only 31.1 minutes per night over that stretch. With Tristan Thompson being one of the best power forward reserves in the NBA, the Cavs are afforded the luxury of sitting Love when he’s not producing. It seems strange to type these things about a player whose ability to throw a 20/20 game seemed almost taken for granted, but Love is still only 26 years old and there’s enough reasons to believe this could just be an anomalous player whose talents will likely render him an All-Star again in coming seasons.
The Boston Celtics are 23-34 and still very much in the hunt for the final playoff spot in the East. The C’s have won six of its past 10 games and are just 1.5 games behind No. 8 Brooklyn. The Celtics have made a resilient effort with the talent that does remain in Beantown, with Rajon Rondo now finally out of the picture. Boston hung tough with Golden State Sunday (Mar 1) night, losing 106-101 despite 20 points from new acquisition Isaiah Thomas. Energy man Jae Crowder added 17 boards, six of which came on the offensive end, while Tyler Zeller and Brandon Bass combined for another 32 points and 18 rebounds in the frontcourt.
The Warriors are a tough bunch to overcome, as will be the Cavaliers tonight, but the Celtics are not a team saturated with talent and to stay with that crew for 48-minutes is a statement. Thomas is good at getting shots off quick, and the Celtics have a dangerous quartet of guards, often playing three at a time. Evan Turner seems to have found his role in the NBA, and Avery Bradley is one of the most terrorizing defenders in the backcourt. Marcus Smart will play a similar role, and he is learning quickly on a team that gives him big minutes. There are right ways to do rebuilds, and Celtics GM Danny Ainge seems to know how to do it.
