Cleveland has been dominant at home on the season and that’s the location of this matchup. The Pacers have enough talent to hang around but will still be heavy underdogs. An upset seems really unlikely even with Cleveland possibly missing one of its better players.
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The Cavaliers are 37-16 straight up and 24-27-2 against the spread. Cleveland is 14-12-2 against the spread in home games this season. The Cavaliers have been the favorites in all but seven games this season and have gone 22-22-2 against the spread in those games. Cleveland will certainly be giving points again in this one.
The Pacers are 29-25 straight up and 24-30 against the spread. Indiana has played in 26 road games on the year but has only won 10 of them. The Pacers are 11-14 against the spread as the underdog this season.
Player to Watch
Paul George -- If the Pacers have any hope of sticking close in this one, it will be on the heels of a big game from George. He is clearly the best player on the team and has luckily returned to peak form after a gruesome broken leg injury a couple years ago.
George is averaging 22.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists per contest, shooting 45.2 percent from the field and 38.1 percent from three-point range. He had 31 points in a recent loss against the Wizards and must force the issue in this one.
The Pacers have some other nice pieces but no one with the scoring ability of George. The Cavs have the best player in the world on their team in LeBron James, and it will take a big effort from George in order to keep his team close.
Injury Report
Cavaliers star power forward Kevin Love had 16 points and nine rebounds in the team’s recent win over the Denver Nuggets, but dealt with knee soreness and has already been ruled out of Tuesday’s contest against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The injury doesn’t seem like a huge concern, but with the All-Star break on the horizon the Cavs could decide to give him a decent stretch of rest to make sure it doesn’t linger. That puts Love’s availability in doubt for this contest.
He is averaging 20.0 points and 11.1 rebounds per game this season so if he can’t play it will certainly be a big deal, and it could result in a small adjustment on the spread.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The Cavaliers have not had the smoothest ride of late, losing some games to inferior teams, but nonetheless sit atop the Eastern Conference and seem destined to make it back to the NBA Finals once again.
James is playing outstanding while Kyrie Irving is also in All-Star form. The potential absence of Love is a big one, but it’s not enough to put this one in doubt.
The Pacers are a run-of-the-mill NBA team and don’t have the firepower to stay up with Cleveland. Only an off game can make this one close. Instead, LeBron should be able to dominate to help his team to an easy victory.
NBA Odds: Cavaliers 117, Pacers 103
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