The Cleveland Cavaliers figure to again be peerless in the Eastern Conference this season. Can the Boston Celtics flip that general expectation upside down? Boston may be one of the best second-tier teams in the East, and will get its chance to go toe-to-toe with the reigning NBA champions early in the season.
The Celtics were a solid team last year and the addition of Al Horford has them feeling good about the direction of the team. However, it’s a steep curve to catch up to LeBron James and the Cavaliers, who should be solid home favorites to take care of business in this showdown.
This war on the floor will go down Thursday, November 3, 2016, at 8 p.m. ET at Quicken Loans Arena. The game will be televised live on TNT. We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NBA Thursday schedule.
Odds Analysis
The Cavaliers have been favored in every game this season and are 1-1-1 attempting to cover the spread. They could be picked to win by double digits in this one despite having a pretty good squad facing off with them. That’s how much talent Cleveland has on the roster.
The Celtics will not only hope to keep it close but pull off the upset. Boston is 1-2 against the spread this season but will certainly get some points as the underdog.
Player To Watch
Kyrie Irving - The Cavaliers have a star by the name of James, but it is Irving who actually leads the team in scoring early on. James is nearly averaging a triple-double, so it’s not like he has fallen off at all, but Irving is putting up 25 points per game and pitching in with four rebounds and four assists.
He will likely be guarded much of the time by either Isaiah Thomas or Avery Bradley for the Celtics. While both are good scorers, they each are significantly smaller than Irving and could have a tough time keeping him in check. Expect Irving to have a big game.
Injury Report
The Celtics have recently gotten the back the services of Marcus Smart, who missed early time with an ankle injury. He averaged 9.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists a season ago while adding tough defense, and is a key depth piece.
Boston needs all the key components they can get against such an intimidating foe. The Celtics play the night before at home so they may need to substitute plenty in order to keep everyone fresh.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The Cavaliers are 3-0 on the season and look primed for another NBA title run. The Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs are lurking in the West, but there isn’t expected to be much competition in the East.
The Celtics could really open some eyes by either winning this game or keeping it competitive. It’s not like an upset would shift the power in the conference, but it would certainly announce Boston as an expected postseason adversary.
Horford is still finding his way with the team and needs to have a big game to give the Celtics a shot at winning. In the end, James and Irving will be too much. This is a tough matchup for a Boston team which plays some pretty good defense but will need to make sure to rotate and rebound.
James still seems motivated to go for another championship and Cleveland is running on all cylinders early on. Take the Cavs to win this one on the moneyline and also keep an eye on the spread.
While some might expect this one to go down to the final two minutes, the expectation here is for the Cavaliers to take care of business earlier and cruise down the stretch.
NBA Odds: Cavaliers 103, Celtics 92
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