Celtics vs. Trail Blazers Prediction
Are the red-hot Portland Trail Blazers laying too many points to the Boston Celtics tonight? The matchup will tip-off at 10:00 p.m. ET.
Game Snapshot
(867) Boston Celtics at (868) Portland Trail Blazers
Friday, March 23, 2018
TV: NBATV, 10:00 p.m. ET
CURRENT ODDS
According to oddsmakers from online sportsbook YouWager, the Trail Blazers are 7-point home favorites to knock off the Jazz, while the over/under currently sits at 203 points.
Bet This Matchup & Other NBA Games
LINE MOVEMENT
Portland opened as a 6.5-point home favorite but the line has moved to 7 at the majority of sportsbooks. The total, meanwhile, hit the board at 203 and that’s where the number currently sits.
PUBLIC BETTING
As of this writing, 54% of betting tickets wagered at online sportsbooks are on the Trail Blazers to cover the point spread. Meanwhile, 75% of the betting tickets wagered online are on the over.
KEY INJURY TO WATCH
Kyrie Irving is out with a knee injury and Gordon Hayward, of course, is out for the year due to his ankle injury. Jaylen Brown (concussion) and Marcus Smart (thumb, out for the year) are both out. On the other side, Jusuf Nurkic (back) is questionable for the Blazers.
BETTING STRATEGY
The Celtics have been a solid bet in this series, covering in 12 of their last 16 games in Portland and in 17 of their last 25 games versus the Trail Blazers overall. Boston is also 7-2 against the spread in its last nine games overall, is 27 of its last 37 road games, and is 7-3 at the betting window in its last 10 games versus Western Conference opponents. Even with all of the injuries that Boston is dealing with, I still like taking the points with a young, aggressive Celtics team that has been great at the betting window of late.
OUR PREDICTION: BOSTON CELTICS +7