Cleveland at Boston
Time: 7 PM CT, ESPN
Spread: BOS -3
Total: 213
Odds c/o 5dimes
The Boston Celtics have won its last three games to improve to 30-10 on the season, with a 3.5 game lead over its opponent, the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers. Boston is 16-5 at home and is favored by 3-points in the game, which will air at 7 PM (CT) on ESPN. The over/under is set at 213 points by NBA oddsmakers at bookmaker 5dimes.
CLEVELAND
LeBron James and the Cavaliers have been pretty hot, just not hot enough to usurp the places of the No. 1 Boston Celtics or No. 2 Toronto Raptors in the standings.
Cleveland has won six of its past 10, despite not having its main trade piece from the Kyrie Irving deal healthy and available. Isaiah Thomas has continued to rehab a hip injury that was later identified as far more serious than the Celtics revealed at the time of its occurrence. The teams will meet for the first time since the swap tonight.
Beyond that, Derrick Rose basically retired seven games into this season. The Cavaliers have every reason to be struggling, and they are not, and one need look no further than the team’s two main cogs to understand why: LeBron James is playing phenomenal basketball, and Kevin Love is a consummate second option alongside the King.
Accordingly, with Cleveland getting 27.7 points a game from Bron and another 20.1 from Love, it has not required much from the supporting cast for Cleveland to average 110.5 points per game. Even the ancient Dwyane Wade has reinvented himself as a sixth man and quasi-1, distributing the ball and providing second unit scoring while James takes care of the starting core.
“Uncle” Jeff Green (not to be confused with Uncle Drew!) is consistently mediocre, but his 10.8 points per game help along with Kyle Korver’s shooting, Jae Crowder’s stringent defense, and, well, outside of that the rest of the team is struggling.
It is a true feather in LeBron’s cap that he can lead such a poor supporting cast to a 25-12 record, but at this point in his career it is hardly a surprise and one not need think back too far to remember the 2007 Cavaliers which were even less replete with talent than the core James now leads.
It is tough to envision the Cavaliers ever managing to survive and win a seven-game series with its opponent today, but it is not difficult at all to imagine Bron and company coming in and stealing a Christmas day game at Oracle.
BOSTON
Boston maintains a 2.5 game lead on the Toronto Raptors for the Atlantic Division crown. Toronto is hot and has won its past six, so the time for Boston to heat back up is now. Crucial in replacing the injured Hayward has been rookie Jayson Tatum and second-year swingman Jaylen Brown, who rank No. 3 and No. 2, respectively, on the team in scoring.
Tatum has been nothing short of sensational and is averaging 13.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game in 30 minutes a night. Brown has improved nearly every facet of his game and is good for 14.7 points and 1.18 steals per night.
But perhaps the biggest difference maker has been franchise player Kyrie Irving. Irving was acquired at the “low” cost of Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder from the Cleveland Cavs this past offseason, and he is playing the best and most efficient basketball of his NBA career. The Flat Earther has averaged nearly 25 points per game and five assists per night while posting a team-high PER of 26.0. Along with
Irving’s career year has come one from veteran Al Horford, who has developed into one of the league’s most effective high-post passers. Horford leads the team in assists at 5.4 per game—and he is shooting a blistering 40.9 percent from three-point range while connecting on 51.7 percent of his field goals overall.
Outside of these highly effective four players, has been the strong play of a cast of role players: Marcus Smart is still one of the league’s best defenders, and Marcus Morris seems to have found a home in Boston, replacing the colossal bust that was
Jared Sullinger several seasons ago.
Second-Year guard Terry Rozier has developed nicely in his second season, and despite his shooting struggles (34 percent field goals) has looked as though he will eventually be a very integral part of the team. In 23 minutes a night, Rozier makes his impact known, though his 8.5 points per game may seem humble. The fact remains, Brad Stevens simply knows best how to milk the talent of his roster, and the disaster that Hayward incurred is largely forgotten by a Celtics’ fanbase thinking “title” no matter the cost.
