Tipping off as part of tonight’s five-game NBA slate, the Brooklyn Nets will face the Boston Celtics in an Eastern Conference clash.
This will be the fourth and final matchup between these two teams this season. They faced off for back-to-back matchups and split these two games in November. Boston won 113-99 in the first game, before Brooklyn bounced back with a 113-105 win of their own in the following game. In their most recent matchup, it took double overtime for the Celtics to ultimately produce a 130-126 win.
Looking at the odds for tonight, the Celtics are 18.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Nets hold +850 odds of winning outright, with the game’s total set at O/U 208.5 points.
This article will look at a preview and prediction for the Friday night matchup.
Nets vs. Celtics Preview
The Brooklyn Nets sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference with a 15-43 record on the season. They enter on a six-game losing streak and have dropped 16 of their past 19 games. This will be the second night of a back-to-back after they lost to the Spurs last night. On the season, the Nets have gone 25-32-1 against the spread, and the game total has remained under in 32 of their 58 games played.
Michael Porter Jr. has headlined the scoring for Brooklyn this season, posting averages of 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game, while launching 9.6 three-pointers per contest. Noah Clowney has shown some encouraging development, adding 12.9 points and 4.2 rebounds per contest. Nic Claxton adds 12.6 points and 4.7 rebounds of his own, while Egor Demin is the lone other player scoring in double figures with 10.6 points per game of his own. Nolan Traore, Ziaire Williams, and Day’Ron Sharpe also play key roles in the rotation. Brooklyn has not submitted an injury report at the time of writing due to it being the second night of a back-to-back, but don’t be surprised if Porter Jr. is held out of this matchup, given the load management plan they have leaned on this year.
As a team, the Nets are scoring the fewest points in the league at 107.0 per game. They also rank 29th in offensive rating, last in field goal percentage, 28th in three-point percentage, and 27th in pace. Defensively, opponents are scoring 115.0 points per game against the Nets. Brooklyn also ranks 26th in defensive rating, 29th in opponents’ field goal percentage, and 30th in opponents’ three-point percentage.
The Celtics sit in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 38-20 record on the year. They are looking to bounce back from a frustrating 103-84 loss to the Nuggets in the previous game, but have won eight of their last 10. On the season, the Celtics have gone 33-25 against the spread, and the game total has remained under in an NBA-leading 37 games.
Jaylen Brown has ascended to a true 1A option on this Celtics team while Jayson Tatum continues to recover from an Achilles tear. The five-time All-Star is averaging 29.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists. Derrick White adds 17.1 points, 5.7 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game, while Payton Pritchard contributes 17.2 points and 5.4 assists per game. The Celtics traded for Nikola Vucevic at the trade deadline, and he has averaged 9.9 points and 7.7 rebounds in his first seven games with the team. Neemias Queta, Sam Hauser, and Jordan Walsh each also play key roles in the rotation.
The Celtics average 114.4 points per game, which ranks 22nd in the league. They also rank second in offensive rating, 17th in field goal percentage, and 12th in three-point percentage while attempting the second-most perimeter shots in the league. Defensively, opponents are scoring the fewest points against them at 107.5 per contest. Boston also ranks seventh in defensive rating, third in opponents’ field goal percentage, and 16th in opponents’ three-point percentage.
Nets vs. Celtics Prediction, Best Bet
There are two teams with very different outlooks on the season. The Boston Celtics have exceeded expectations and must be viewed as a threat in the Eastern Conference, especially with Jayson Tatum’s return looking increasingly likely. In contrast, the Nets are still in the early stages of their rebuild and are content with adding to the loss column to maximize their lottery odds.
Surprisingly, this has been a matchup that Boston has struggled with a bit this year. They covered the 11.5-point spread in the first matchup, but failed to do so in the other two games between them, and were pushed to double overtime in the previous matchup. 18.5 is a significant spread given the struggles they have had with Brooklyn. On the season, the Celtics have only won by 19+ points in 13 of their 38 wins.
My lean is still toward the Celtics managing to push this to a full-scale blowout and covering this number. But I am backing the Celtics’ team total to go over 113.5.
While Boston has leaned on more of a defensive identity this season, they attempt the second-most three-point attempts and connects at the 12th-best rate. Facing a Nets team that ranks dead last in opponents’ three-point percentage, this will be a concern.
The Celtics have scored 113, 105, and 130 in the three matchups with the Nets thus far. They scored 104 points in regulation in the third matchup before scoring 26 additional points in overtime. Looking in the wider frame of the season, the Celtics have scored as many as 146 points in a game and have scored 114 or more in 28 of their 58 games played.
Expect tired legs to be a factor for the Nets on the second night of a back-to-back and for the Celtics to assert themselves. Boston is looking to bounce back from their worst loss of the season in the previous game. Expect the Nets to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and for there to be very little let-up by this Celtics team until the final whistle sounds. Keep an eye on the injury report and don’t be shocked if a few key players are ruled out for Brooklyn, but back the Celtics to put up a healthy scoring total regardless of who is attempting to slow them down.
