The Boston Celtics have been fantastic on the road this season but they are going to be challenged this week in a matchup against the Utah Jazz. Even though Utah is only sitting as the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference it is one of the hottest teams in the NBA. The Jazz has played really well at home all year and could be favored in this one despite the inferior record.
The Celtics are pretty well locked in to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference but do have an outside shot at catching the Raptors. They will have to win all the toss-up games like this one down the stretch. It will be interesting to see what the NBA basketball spread looks like for this intriguing contest.
Don't miss the hardwood action from the Vivint Smart Home Arena at 9:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 28, 2018. Catch every moment of the game live on ESPN.
We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NBA Wednesday schedule.
Odds Analysis
The Celtics are 51-23 straight up and 46-26-2 against the spread. Boston has gone a fantastic 27-10 against the spread on the road this season. The Celtics have been great as the underdog on the season, covering in 15 of 18 attempts.
Utah is 42-32 straight up and 39-34-1 against the spread. The Jazz has covered in 20 of 36 attempts at home this season. Utah is 19-18-1 against the spread as the favorite.
Injury Report
The Celtics will be without star point guard Kyrie Irving for this game and the rest of the regular season after he had arthroscopic surgery on his knee. Irving has a projected timeline of three-to-six weeks to return, which will put it into the playoffs.
His absence will make it really hard for Boston to catch Toronto down the stretch but the team has played well of late without him. Irving is averaging 24.4 points, 5.1 assists and 3.8 rebounds per contest. He is shooting 49.1 percent from the field and 40.8 percent from three-point range.
Terry Rozier has taken over as the starting guard as Marcus Smart is also on the shelf due to an injury. The Celtics are hurting badly at point guard and the absence of Irving and Smart could be a difference-maker in the outcome of this matchup.
Key Stat
6. That’s the number of road wins the Celtics have claimed in their past seven games to improve to 27-10 on the road this year. Boston will aim to keep it rolling but Utah is playing lights out.
The Jazz have won eight of its past ten games and has zoomed from expected lottery team to playoff contender. Utah may be the most dangerous low seed in the Western Conference and is a team that none of the top seeds want to face.
Rookie point guard Donovan Mitchell has been a great pickup and the team has really taken off since Rudy Gobert came back from injury.
Free NBA ATS Picks
Utah is coming off a blowout road win over the Golden State Warriors, albeit an extremely short-handed Warriors team. The Jazz had a recent winning streak of nine games and is the healthier team in this one. The Celtics have a lot of solid players but will be the underdogs in this one.
Keep an eye on where the spread checks in because Utah figures to win this one but it is not expected to be a blowout. The Jazz will remain hot and Boston’s road success will come to an end in this matchup in NBA basketball odds. The game could be low-scoring as both of these defenses are among the NBA’s best and each team is fine playing at a slower pace.
NBA Odds: Jazz 101, Celtics 96
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