Boston Celtics at Miami Heat

Betting Odds

Point Spread: Miami Heat (-5)
Game Total Line: (182.5)
(wagering lines available at Sportsbook.com)

Miami coasted through the first round, beating Philadelphia 4-1. Unfortunately, the series did very little to clear up some of the lingering questions from the regular season—namely, which is the real Miami Heat? The team oscillates from dominant force to underachiever, and it was more of the same against the Sixers. The Heat had just one blowout win over Philly and went 2-3 against the spread despite being the much more talented team.

What we do know is Miami continues to be a three-man team, period. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh did their thing, combining for 70 percent of Miami’s offense and nearly 60 percent of its rebounds in the first round. James averaged a double-double (24.2 points, 10.6 rebounds per game) while Wade (22.2 points, 8.4 rebounds) and Bosh (19.8 points, 9.0 rebounds) were very close.

Now, the biggest question is will somebody step up when one of the Big Three falters? Miami lost Game 4 86-82 when Bosh managed just 12 points. Nobody else in the lineup replaced his production, and it cost Miami the game. Things have gotten so drastic, head coach Erik Spelstra benched Mike Bibby and Zydrunas Ilguaskas just four minutes into Game 5; neither returned, indicating a permanent lineup change could be on the horizon.

Boston is well rested after sweeping the Knicks in four games. The Celtics haven’t played since last Sunday. After losing the first two games against the spread, Boston covered the second two on NBA odds.

As usual, the Celtics relied on tough defense to carry the day. Boston held New York to less than 100 points in all four games, limiting the Knicks to just 90.7 points per game for the series. Though the Knicks can certainly blame injuries to some degree, it’s very impressive on Boston’s part considering the Knicks ranked second in the NBA during the regular season at 106.5 points per game.

At the other end of the floor, Rajon Rondo has awoken from his slumber. Rondo mailed in the second half of the season, especially once friend and teammate Kendrick Perkins was traded to Oklahoma. Rondo looks focused now, though, and nearly averaged a triple-double in the first round—19.0 points, 12.0 assists and 7.3 rebounds per game. Paul Pierce and Ray Allen also look fresh, as both averaged over about 22 points per game against New York. Allen shot 57.4 percent in the series.

Boston won the first three times it faced Miami this season, including three straight against the spread. Miami finally won and covered the final game of the season series. The total went under in three out of the four games. BetUS.com has set the total for Sunday’s game at 182.5 points.

Point Spread Pick

The Celtics were dominate in the final two games versus the Knicks in NY, so we do expect them to bring their A game on Sunday to Miami. Boston did win 3 of 4 in this match-up in the regular season and we expect them to keep this close and possibly pull off the minor upset.
Take the Celtics +5 at Bodog where you can bet sports and play poker (US clients included).