Boston was a 16-point underdog and was betting at +1400 on the moneyline, so those who took the Celtics to win the game were massively rewarded. Despite the unthinkable upset, Cleveland is still a virtual shoo-in to advance to the NBA Finals and will once again be a heavy favorite in Game 4.
While the Celtics showed flashes of potential in the win last time out, they are still without star shooting guard Isaiah Thomas and will have trouble winning another game in this series. Cleveland is expected to rebound in impressive fashion in Game 4.
This war on the floor will go down Tuesday, May 23, 2017, at 8:30 p.m. ET at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. 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 Tuesday schedule.
NBA Odds
The Cavaliers were humongous favorites in Game 3 against Boston and had that 16-point margin at halftime, but the Celtics came all the way back in the second half to win, 111-108. Boston easily covered the spread in addition to the outright victory. The “over” was the correct choice.
The Game 4 spread will certainly be double digits again because of Thomas’ absence, but it may come down a little bit based on the Game 3 result. The scoring total was accurate and figures to come in at a similar clip.
Cleveland is now 61-32 straight up and 42-47-2 against the spread. The Cavaliers are 21-23-2 against the spread at home on the season and 37-37-4 against the spread as the favorite.
The Celtics are 62-36 straight up and 51-46-1 against the spread. Boston is an impressive 29-18-1 against the spread on the road this season against the spread and will aim to keep that up. The Celtics are 13-13-1 against the spread as the underdog on the season.
Last Time Out
The Celtics played fantastic in the second half to rally from a deficit that was at one time 21 points for the victory. Avery Bradley hit the game-winning three-pointer with one tenth of a second remaining to shock the Cavaliers. Bradley finished with 20 points to help absorb the loss of Thomas but it was really Marcus Smart who was the hero.
Smart finished with 27 points and seven assists, hitting 8-of-14 shots from the field including seven three-pointers. Smart was on fire in the second half as the Celtics slowly but surely sliced into the Cleveland lead.
After scoring at will in the first half, Cleveland scored only 42 points in the second half. Kevin Love had 28 points, including 7-of-13 from three-point range, and Kyrie Irving had 29 for Cleveland.
Player To Watch
After a fantastic playoffs up to this point, LeBron James was off in Game 3, finishing with only 11 points, six rebounds and six assists. James shot only 4-of-13 from the field and didn’t hit any of his four attempts from three-point range.
Despite the bad performance, James has been really good in the postseason, and even the best players are bound for a bad game at some point. He was previously averaging 34.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game in 10 playoff games, while shooting 56.9 percent from the field and nearly 46 percent from downtown.
James isn’t that good of a shooter so it makes sense that his three-point touch regressed, but he can put up the rest of those types of numbers consistently. Look for a bounceback game from James on Tuesday.
Free NBA ATS Pick
The Celtics found something in Game 3, as their defense down the stretch was solid. If Smart can play that well again and Jonas Jerebko again gives the team solid minutes, maybe Boston can once again keep it close.
However, James isn’t going to play this badly again, and the Cavs will be motivated to put to rest any thoughts of the Celtics getting back in this series. Take Cleveland to win Game 4, although don’t be surprised if this one isn’t as high-scoring as games past.
NBA Odds: Cavaliers 112, Celtics 99
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