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The Washington Wizards (17-17) return home to play host to the Cleveland Cavaliers (20-14) on Thursday night with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. ET. It’s the third meeting between the two sides this season, with each team winning once. Interestingly enough, it’s the away team who won each game, with the Wizards winning 97-94 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse back in November, followed by the Cavs getting a 116-101 victory at Capital One Arena on December 3rd.
DraftKings Sportsbook has the Wizards favored by 3.5 points. They’re priced at -160 on the moneyline with the Cavs at +140, and the point total is set at 211.
Cleveland has six players in COVID-19 protocols at the moment, with Darius Garland, Cedi Osman, Ed Davis, Lamar Stevens, and Dylan Windler all in the league’s health and safety protocols. They’ll also be missing Collin Sexton (knee) and Ricky Rubio (torn ACL) for tonight’s contest.
The Wizards currently have eight players in protocols: Bradley Beal, Thomas Bryant, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Anthony Gill, Rui Hachimura, Montrezl Harrell, Aaron Holiday, and Raul Neto.
Injury Update — Beal and KCP are both available to play tonight vs. the Cavaliers. Jarrett Allen remains out for Cleveland.
Cavaliers vs. Wizards, 7:00 p.m. ET
Pick ATS: Wizards -3.5 (-110)
The Cavs have been a solid team all season long even through injury and health concerns, but now they’re missing key players like Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen which will really take a toll on their game, on both sides of the court. The Wizards have players on the cusp of clearing protocols, as Bradley Beal, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Anthony Gill are all listed as questionable. If somehow any combination of those players are able to return for Washington tonight, it spells trouble for the Cavs.
However, Cleveland does have the best ATS record in the league, going 25-7-2, and more specifically a league-best 12-4-1 ATS record when they’re on the road. Of course, with new health concerns and big players missing from their lineup, this game is anything but predictable. My best bet is going with the Wizards to win and cover at home.
Over/Under: Under 211 (-105)
Assuming that none of the Wizards players in protocols end up coming back tonight, all signs point to this game hitting under the total. The Wizards have hit under in three of their last four games, while the Cavs have stayed under in five of their last seven. While the Cavs are missing their top three scorers (Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Collin Sexton), and the Wizards are potentially missing their top two (Bradley Beal and Montrezl Harrell), don’t expect this to be a high-scoring affair. Take the under.
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