The 2-seed Brooklyn Nets (1-0) hosts the 7-seed Boston Celtics (0-1) Tuesday for Game 2 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series at Barclays Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze the Celtics-Nets odds and lines, with NBA picks and predictions.
Brooklyn rallied back from a first-half deficit to win and cover Game 1 vs. Boston, 104-93, as 8.5-point home favorites.
Both teams shot terribly from the field — the Celtics had .435 effective field goal shooting (eFG%) and the Nets .464 eFG% — but Brooklyn significantly outrebounded Boston 50-40.
The only All-Star for either team that produced more than their season average was Nets’ Kyrie Irving who scored 29 points on 11-of-20 shooting. Brooklyn has won and covered each of its four meetings with Boston this season.
Celtics at Nets: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:50 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Celtics +350 (bet $100 to win $350) | Nets -455 (bet $455 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Celtics +9.5 (-110) | Nets -9.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 227.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)
Celtics at Nets: Key injuries
Celtics
- None.
Nets
- None.
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Celtics at Nets: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Nets 118, Celtics 113
Money line (ML)
PASS even though I “lean” to Boston plus the points because I don’t trust Brooklyn to win this game by a margin given its lack of continuity and the Celtics’ postseason experience.
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Against the spread (ATS)
“LEAN” to the CELTICS +9.5 (-110) for a half unit because there are paths to Boston covering this game.
First, the “backdoor” is wide open given Brooklyn’s occasional defensive lapses and the volume of 3-point shooting in today’s NBA.
Also, the Celtics are an elite offensive rebounding team (fifth in offensive rebounding rate) who score the ninth-most second-chance points per game while the Nets are 21st in defensive rebounding rate and 29th in second-chance points allowed per game.
Brooklyn’s edge in rebounding in Game 1 should be an outlier and if Boston makes it a point to crash the glass in this meeting the Celtics could score a bunch of easy buckets.
If the Nets find themselves getting crushed on the boards it could force them to pack in their perimeter defense, making it tougher to contest Celtics 3-point attempts.
Finally, wait closer until tip-off before betting this game because the market is backing Brooklyn and very few basketball pundits give Boston a chance to cover or win a game.
However, all of Brooklyn’s edges are baked into the line and the majority of the market rarely beat the oddsmakers in gambling so my instinct is to take the contrarian approach to handicapping Celtics-Nets.
Over/Under (O/U)
BET the OVER 226.5 (-115) for 1 unit because both teams should improve offensively in Game 2 and Brooklyn’s impressive defensive effort in Game 1 was more a product of the Nets not hitting shots than anything else.
For instance, if the Nets are knocking down shots I’d expect their defense to sag and give the Celtics quality looks.
Additionally, Boston could score easy points by crashing the glass against Brooklyn’s weak rebounding, but the Nets also figure to spend a lot of time at the charity stripe.
The Celtics have the fourth-worst defensive FTA/FG rate and the Nets have the fifth-best FTA/FG rate. It would make sense for both teams to attack the defense more aggressively since they both had off-shooting nights.
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