The Philadelphia 76ers were the laughingstock of the NBA for the past several seasons. Now they are in contention to make an NBA Finals appearance. The 76ers continued their hot streak by laying waste to the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs. They are the lower seed but the favorites to knock off the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The teams will face off in Game 1 and it will be interesting to see how this one plays out. The Celtics finished with the better record in the regular season and have the home court advantage, but the oddsmakers have still made Philadelphia the road favorite.
Injuries have taken their toll on the Celtics this season, and they were pushed to seven games in the first round by the Milwaukee Bucks. Without Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving, the feeling is that the Celtics are the inferior team. The 76ers are young but don’t seem overwhelmed by the stage and would love to pick up a Game 1 win in NBA basketball betting.
Game 1 of this NBA Playoff Series is on Monday, April 30, 2018 at 8 p.m. ET at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The contest will be nationally televised on TNT.
We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for every game of the 2018 NBA Playoffs.
Odds Analysis
The 76ers come into this game listed as three-point favorites in Game 1. The betting public is in lockstep with Philadelphia’s positioning as the favorite as a whopping 88 percent of the money is on it to cover.
The scoring total is listed at 208.5 points, and that seems pretty well pegged as the “under” is getting slightly more action at 52 percent. The 76ers are the -150 favorites on the moneyline while the Celtics are listed as the +130 underdogs. The 76ers have also been the more common pick to win this game straight up.
Injury Report
Celtics shooting guard Jaylen Brown injured his hamstring in the final game of the first round against the Bucks and didn’t return to the game. He is doubtful to play in this one, which is another reason why the 76ers are the road favorites.
Brown had a great first-round series, averaging 17.9 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.0 steals per game against the Bucks despite playing only 16 minutes before getting hit in the final game. He is a big key for Boston with Irving and Hayward on the shelf. Al Horford is another main player for the Celtics in this series as they aim to keep pace against the surging 76ers.
Key Stat
20. That’s the number of wins the 76ers have reeled off in their past 21 games heading into this series. They ended the regular season with 16 straight wins and then beat the Heat in five games in the first round.
The 76ers are led by the talented young duo or Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. Embiid missed a portion of the first round with an orbital fracture but returned in Game 3 and Philadelphia didn’t lose to Miami after that. Embiid finished with an average of 18.7 points, 10.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in the first round and should have a big impact in this series.
Simmons averaged 18.2 points, 10.6 rebounds and 8.2 rebounds in the first round and is capable of putting up a triple-double on any given night. J.J. Redick is also playing well and is a scorer the Celtics must try to keep in check.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The Celtics have a great coach and solid players, so they aren’t going to go down without a fight in Game 1. Look for Boston to hang around, but the spread is still too low. The 76ers are the pick to both win this game and cover in NBA basketball gambling.
NBA ATS Pick: 76ers 107, Celtics 101
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