Magic vs. Celtics Pick
Is it going to be a dominating performance this afternoon at 1PM ET by the Boston Celtics when they host the Orlando Magic?
Who Oddsmakers Like: Boston. According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Celtics are listed as a 10.5-point favorite on the spread line. The total is set at 207 points. The spread has stayed at -10.5 since it opened, while the over-under has dropped from 208.
Who the Public Likes: Orlando. As of Sunday morning, 54 percent of public bets have sided with the visiting Magic.
Injury Report: Magic guard Arron Afflalo is serving a two-game suspension for throwing a punch during a game and will not play tonight. Nikola Vucevic is out until late February with a broken hand. Jonathan Isaac is out indefinitely with an ankle injury. Terrence Ross it out indefinitely with a sprained MCL. For the Celtics, Guerschon Yabusele missed the last game with an illness and is questionable today. Kyrie Irving missed the last game with a sore shoulder and is questionable for this game. Gordon Hayward is out indefinitely as he recovers from a broken ankle and fractured tibia.
Who the Trends Like: Orlando is 1-5 ATS in the last six meetings. The over is 4-1 in the last five meetings in Boston and 4-1 in the last five meetings overall.
Who We Like: The spread might be large, but do we need to recount all the times Orlando has been blown out by double digits this season and often to much worse teams than the very solid Celtics. With the odd early start time, I don’t think the Magic are going to be too motivated to bring their ‘A’ game. Expect the Celtics to play lockdown defense early on and follow Kyrie Irving’s lead on offense en route to a decisive victory. Boston defeated host Orlando 104-88 on Nov. 5 and followed it up with a 118-103 triumph on its home court on Nov. 24.
NBA DAILY PREDICTION: BOSTON CELTICS -10.5