AMEDEUS' NBA HARDCOURT HAMMER!
(NBA) Cleveland vs. Boston, 05/07/2024 7:00 PM, Score: 95 - 120
Point Spread: 12.00 | -110.00 Cleveland (Away)
Result: Loss
The Cavaliers are coming into this game off of a 4-3 series win against the Magic in the last round. They were awful in their first 2 road games of that series against the Magic, but they played much better in their last road game of that series as they lost by 7 points in a much closer game that the Cavaliers even had a chance to win in. They are going up against a Celtics team that beat the Heat 4-1 in their last series and they dominated the last 3 games of that series as they won all 3 games by 10+ points, but they were also playing against a much weaker Heat team that was missing Jimmy Butler in all of those games. Even without Butler in that whole series, the Heat found a way to win game 2 on the road in Boston, showing that the Celtics are still human despite being 37-4 at home this year. The Cavaliers were not a team that the Celtics dominated during the regular season either. The Celtics won their 2 home games against the Cavaliers this season but both of their wins there were by 9 points or less. The Cavaliers also won the only meeting against the Celtics in Cleveland this season. The Cavaliers could be without Allen in this game but that is not a huge loss for them as Evan Mobley can fill in that role nicely. The Celtics are also going to be missing their center in this game as Porzingus is out and that is a bigger loss for the Celtics as he is also one of their better defensive players. The Celtics were a favorite by 10+ points in each of their last 2 games and covered in both, but they do not have a very good record after covering 2 straight double digit spreads. They have only done it 1 other time this season and they are 0-1 ATS in the 3rd game after covering 2 straight double digit spreads. They are also 0-4 ATS in this same situation over the last 3 seasons. The Cavaliers are in a similar boat as they are rarely an underdog by 10+ points. It has only happened once this season and twice over the last 3 seasons, but the Cavaliers are 2-0 ATS when being an underdog by 10+ points. The Cavaliers may not have enough to win this game in Boston but they are going to get up for the best team in the NBA to try and steal game 1 so they will fight to keep it close and this is just too many points. The Cavaliers will cover the spread in this game.