The NBA Eastern Conference race heats up on Thursday when the Brooklyn Nets (31-28) host the Boston Celtics (34-26). Boston currently sits in sixth place in the East after winning nine of the their last 10 games before the All-Star break. Brooklyn, meanwhile has fallen to No. 8 after losing 12 of 14 before the break. The Nets are getting closer to some big pieces returning, but they remain without Kevin Durant (knee), Kyrie Irving (vaccine rules), Joe Harris (ankle) and new acquisition Ben Simmons (conditioning). Boston has a clean injury report with no major contributors expected to miss this game.
Tipoff is at 7:30 p.m. ET in Brooklyn. Boston is a nine-point road favorite, according to the latest Nets vs. Celtics odds at Caesars Sportsbook. The over-under for total points is 214.5, up a point from the opening line. Before making any Nets vs. Celtics picks, you need to see the NBA predictions and betting advice from the SportsLine Projection Model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past three-plus seasons. The model enters Week 18 of the 2021-22 NBA season on a stunning 69-41 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, returning almost $2,300. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has broken down the Nets vs. Celtics matchup, and just locked in its picks and NBA predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Here are the NBA odds and betting lines for Celtics vs. Nets:
- Nets vs. Celtics spread: Celtics -9
- Nets vs. Celtics over-under: 214.5 points
- Nets vs. Celtics money line: Celtics -420, Nets +320
- BOS: The Celtics are 19-19-1 against the spread in conference games
- BKN: The Nets are 14-19-1 against the spread in conference games
Featured Game | Brooklyn Nets vs. Boston Celtics
Why the Celtics can cover
The Celtics are excellent on the defensive end. Boston leads the NBA in defensive efficiency since the calendar flipped to 2022, giving up only 100.9 points per 100 possessions. Extending to the full season, the Celtics are No. 2 in the league in allowing only 104.9 points per 100 possessions. Boston is No. 1 in the NBA in field-goal percentage allowed (42.9 percent) and 2-point percentage allowed (48.8 percent), and opponents are shooting only 33.9 percent from 3-point distance against the Celtics.
No team allows fewer assists per game (21.6) than the Celtics, and Boston is No. 2 in the league in blocked shots (6.0) and points allowed in the paint (41.7 per game). The Celtics are firmly in the top 10 in turnovers created, forcing 14.1 giveaways per game, and Boston is in the top third of the NBA in second-chance points allowed (12.6 per game) and fast-break points allowed (11.4 per game). Boston’s offense isn’t quite on the same level, but the Celtics are excellent at the free-throw line (81.4 percent) and very strong on the offensive glass, securing nearly 28 percent of available rebounds after missed shots this season.
Why the Nets can cover
More help is on the way soon, but Brooklyn got solid contributions from Seth Curry and Andre Drummond before the break. Both were acquired as part of the James Harden trade with Philadelphia. Curry had back-to-back 20-point games his first two times in a Brooklyn uniform, while Drummond is averaging 12.3 rebounds per game through three contests with the Nets.
Patty Mills is shooting 41.9 percent from 3-point range this season, so Brooklyn still has multiple scoring options, even with the headliners sidelined. The Nets haven’t been great against the spread this season, but they do have an 11-9 ATS mark as underdogs. They also covered in five out of their last six before the break.
How to make Celtics vs. Nets picks
SportsLine’s model is leaning under on the total, projecting 211 combined points. It also says one side of the spread is hitting almost 60 percent of the time. You can only get the model’s pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Nets vs. Celtics? And which side of the spread is hitting almost 60 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side to back, all from the advanced model on a 69-41 run on its top-rated NBA picks, and find out.
This news is republished from another source. You can check the original article here