The 7-seed Boston Celtics open the NBA Playoffs on the road against the 2-seed Brooklyn Nets in Game 1 of the first round Saturday night. Tip-off is at 8 p.m. ET at Barclays Center. Below, we analyze the Celtics-Nets odds and lines, with NBA picks and predictions.
Brooklyn finished the season one game out of first place in the East, winning their final five games.
The Nets averaged the second-most points per game in the Association (118.6 points per game) and their top three players of Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and James Harden are all healthy for the postseason.
The Celtics had to participate in the play-in tournament and earned the No. 7 seed with a 118-100 win over the Washington Wizards. They closed the regular season losing five of their final six games.
Celtics at Nets: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:26 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Celtics +275 (bet $100 to win $275) | Nets -350 (bet $350 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Celtics +8 (-110) | Nets -8 (-110)
- Over/Under: 231.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Celtics at Nets: Key injuries
Celtics
- C Robert Williams III (foot) probable
Nets
- SG Landry Shamet (ankle) probable
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Celtics at Nets: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Nets 121, Celtics 105
Money line (ML)
The Nets and Celtics played three times in the regular season. The Nets won all three games.
Brooklyn was 28-8 at home, while Boston struggled on the road at 15-21. The Celtics lost five of their last seven road games.
Betting the Celtics to win outright can win a lot but it isn’t a smart play considering they haven’t beaten the Nets all year and are not good on the road.
The Nets have all their stars healthy, so they will most likely win the game. But betting the Nets doesn’t have much value.
Take the NETS (-350) if you must, but it is better to look at the spread and the total.
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Against the spread (ATS)
Brooklyn covered the spread in all three contests against the Celtics this season and were 19-17 ATS at home. Boston was only 16-20 ATS on the road this season.
Take the NETS -8 (-110).
Over/Under (O/U)
All three games between the Nets and Celtics went Under the total. Their three games averaged a total of 220.3 points. With the projected total as high as it is, take UNDER 231.5 (-110).
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