The Sacramento Kings (18-30) carry their three-game losing skid to the East Coast where they’ll face the Boston Celtics (24-24) Tuesday. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. ET from TD Garden. Below, we look at the Kings vs. Celtics odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions and bets.
The Kings lost 133-127 to the Milwaukee Bucks as 8-point underdogs Saturday as they fell 12 games below .500. They’re 10th in the league with 110.5 points per game but their defense has been abysmal. Sacramento has given up 114.5 points per game — 29th in the league.
PG De’Aaron Fox is in the midst of a strong season but he’s currently dealing with an ankle injury that kept him out of Saturday’s loss.
The Celtics snapped their two-game skid Sunday with a 116-87 blowout win at the Washington Wizards as they easily covered a 2.5-point spread as favorites. SF Jayson Tatum had a season-high 51 points as he drilled 9 of 14 attempts from 3-point range as he heats up after a bit of a slump in recent games.
Boston is allowing the seventh-fewest points per game (105.5) but is also putting up just 107.6 points per game to rank 20th in the NBA.
Kings at Celtics odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:40 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Kings +320 (bet $100 to win $320) | Celtics -420 (bet $420 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Kings +8.5 (-115) | Celtics -8.5 (-107)
- Over/Under (O/U): 220.5 (O: -112 | U: -108)
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Kings at Celtics key injuries
Kings
- PG De’Aaron Fox (ankle) questionable
- C Damian Jones (ankle) questionable
Celtics
- None
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Kings at Celtics odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Celtics 117, Kings 105
Money line
The Celtics could start to find a groove on offense with Tatum seemingly getting out of his slump. This is a perfect opportunity for Tatum and Boston to continue to roll offensively against a Kings team that hasn’t stopped many teams this season.
I would PASS on the money line even though I like the Celtics to win this one outright and extend the Kings’ losing skid. They’ve lost two of their last three games as favorites and it’s not worth risking over four times your potential return.
Against the spread
Both the Celtics and the Kings have posted 4-6 ATS records over their last 10 as they’ve struggled against the spread. The Celtics did secure their fourth win by at least double-digits in their last 10 games by beating the Wizards 116-87, so they do have a few convincing wins recently.
That should continue against the Kings, especially if Fox is unable to go. CELTICS -8.5 (-107) is a good pick and I would bet this up to -9.5.
Over/Under
The Over is 5-5 in the Celtics’ last 10 games and 6-4 in the Kings’ last 10, so there isn’t a strong trend to follow entering this matchup. The concern with taking the Over is Fox’s injury, but Boston should be able to put up at least 115 against Sacramento, and the Kings have scored 108 or more points in each of their last six games.
I like the OVER 220.5 (-112) tonight.
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