Cleveland Cavaliers (61-38 SU, 39-59-1 ATS) vs. Boston Celtics (66-34 SU, 62-36-2 ATS)
Time: Sunday, May 27th, 2018 – 8:30 PM EDT
Where: TD Garden – Boston, Massachusetts
TV: ESPN
by Keith, Professional NBA Handicapper, Predictem
Odds Cleveland +115, Boston -135
Point Spread: Boston -2.5
Total Line: 199.5
The Cleveland Cavaliers will hit the road once more to take on the Boston Celtics at the TD Garden for Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Finals. The game is scheduled for an 8:30 PM tip-off and is due to be broadcasted for national audiences on ESPN live from Beantown. Very simply, it is win or go home. To the winner goes a trip to the NBA Finals. For Cleveland, a victory here sends them to their fourth consecutive NBA Finals appearance and yet another Eastern Conference crown. The triumphant party will square off with the winner of Houston and Golden State on Monday.
Both the NBA Western and Eastern Conference Finals have been exciting as both have gone the distance. In Game Six, Cleveland dominated the Celtics defeating them by 30 points in route to their victory. LeBron James was instrumental, posting 46 points, 11 rebounds, and 9 assists in the outing. LeBron has now gone for over 40 points in three of the six contests within this series, illustrating why he is the greatest player in the world today.
There are many betting trends worth focusing in on this epic Game Seven clash. Between Boston and Cleveland, home court has been imperative as the home team is 6-0 SU in this series. The Celtics are undefeated at home this playoff season while the Cavaliers are just 24-25 SU away from home.
The Cavaliers are a team that maximizes on riding a hot hand. Look no further than how this outfit fared against Indiana and Toronto. Against the Raptors, in particular, the Cavaliers won four straight games. Of course, the presence of LeBron James brings a new level of intangibles into the fold for Cleveland as he has won several games for the Cavaliers on the heels of his clutch play.
Boston’s home court advantage remains the biggest selling point in Game Five. As mentioned, the Celtics play at a higher level when they are at home, and they will look to capitalize here to re-establish themselves in this series. With Game Six transpiring in Cleveland, the Celtics will look at this game as a virtual must-win albeit they will be facing elimination if they were to fall here and go back to The Land down 3-2.
Out of the gate, the consensus seems to be right down the middle of this market. The public cash is divided right down Broadway while just 51% of the ticket action is with the Celtics in this position. As a result of this trend, there have been no indicative movements in the current line. In Over/Under markets, we have seen the market descend by two points. On the contrary, 65% of the public cash and 81% of the ticket action is on the Over.
With home-court advantage being a point of emphasis in this series and a point of focus in this contest, one huge variable has seemingly been forgotten: LeBron James. In the league today, there is not a more clutch basketball player to foot on the court. The King has made a career off of coming up big in big games and has hit a plethora of game-winners. His acumen was on display against Indiana and Toronto. With respect to Boston, the fact the Celtics have yet to lose at home this playoff season is something that sets up Boston to be overvalued in this scenario. Lest we forget, LeBron James had defeated the Golden State Warriors in Oakland twice in the 2016 NBA Finals when the Warriors were seemingly unbeatable at home. LeBron subverts the norm, and we’ll take Cleveland on the Money Line as a result.
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