Here is a lesson on how the NBA works. Portland is 3-0 SU and ATS coming out of All-Star break. All of the Trail Blazers' victories during this span have impressively come on the road. Boston is 0-3 following All-Star weekend. It's clear the Trail Blazers are playing well and the Celtics aren't. Boston just got blown out in Toronto Tuesday.

The oddsmaker opened the Celtics a short favorite. Wrong choice, correct? Nope. The oddsmaker isn't stupid. The NBA doesn't always make sense on the surface. But a closer look at the situation reveals that the Celtics should be favored and likely will cover the spread.

Portland's wins have occurred versus the Nets, 76ers minus Joel Embiid and the Cavaliers. This marks the Trail Blazers' fourth game in seven days. Portland is fat and happy.

The Celtics, during the post-All-Star game period, lost to the Bucks by one point. Milwaukee has the best record in the NBA. The Celtics then got caught in a sandwich spot getting upset by the Bulls, in which they obviously got caught looking ahead to their Atlantic Division showdown against the Raptors. That game didn't go the Celtics' way. No surprise since the Celtics don't win in Toronto having lost eight in a row there.

Now it's circle-the-wagons time for Boston. The Celtics have covered 69 percent of their last 51 home contests. They will be sky-high for this matchup with Brad Stevens cracking the whip and they certainly aren't outclassed.

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