The Celtics have owned the Nets for the past calendar year. Boston has won the last five regular-season meetings between the two teams, in addition to its first-round playoff sweep last April to make it nine in a row overall against Brooklyn.
The Atlantic Division foes face off for the third time this season and for the first time at TD Garden on Wednesday. The Celtics won the first two games at Barclays Center, both by 11 points: 103-92 in early December and 109-98 on Jan. 1.
Brooklyn and Boston will both be short handed when they take the court. The Nets will be without Kevin Durant (knee), who last played Jan. 8, and Ben Simmons (knee) and T.J. Warren (lower leg), both of whom missed the last two games. Yuta Watanabe (back) is probable. The Celtics are missing reigning Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart (ankle), who’s been out for more than a week, and Robert Williams III (ankle) is questionable.
The Nets carry a two-game winning streak into the contest, while the Celtics’ win streak stands at one. The C’s enjoyed a three-day layoff from their last game action Saturday and are 8.5-point favorites on their home floor.
Brooklyn Nets vs. Boston Celtics Odds
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN
Spread: Nets +8.5 (-110) | Celtics -8.5 (-110)
Moneyline: BKN (+275) | BOS (-350)
Total: 226.5 – Over (-110) | Under (-110)
Nets Betting Profile
Straight-Up Record: 31–19
Against The Spread Record: 25–24–1
Over/Under Record: 21–28–1
Points Per Game (Rank): 114.6 (14)
Points Allowed Per Game (Rank): 111.5 (6)
Celtics Betting Profile
Straight-Up Record: 36–15
Against The Spread Record: 26–25
Over/Under Record: 24–25–2
Points Per Game (Rank): 117.8 (3)
Points Allowed Per Game (Rank): 112.3 (11)
Spread Bet: Celtics -8.5 (-110)
Boston is a tough team to beat at home with a 19–6 record straight-up at TD Garden. Its mark against the spread (ATS) in such games is a more pedestrian 13–12, though. The Celtics covered in the two earlier games this season against the Nets as a road favorite of one and 2.5 points, so this spread is quite a bit wider. Brooklyn struggled to score in both matchups and failed to crack 100 points in either game, one of which was played with Durant and one without.
The C’s haven’t been entirely healthy when these teams met, either. Smart, Jaylen Brown and Al Horford all missed one game against the Nets so far. Jayson Tatum, who’s played in 48 of 51 games this year, was active for both and scored 29 and 20 points. His shooting was largely inefficient against Brooklyn compared with his season-long stats and he committed 12 turnovers across the two games.
The Nets are an impressive 16–11 in away games, which is good for the second-most road wins behind only the Celtics. They’re also 15–12 ATS outside of Brooklyn, the fifth-best cover percentage. Kyrie Irving scored 18 and 24 points on poor shooting against his former team earlier in the year and the onus will be on him to provide more offense with Durant still sidelined, which he has done lately.
Having Tatum and Brown healthy at home against a Nets team that’s not at 100% is enough for the Celtics to cover this sizable spread. Boston has had Brooklyn’s number, and it will make it 10 in a row with a victory and a cover Wednesday.
The under hit in the last two meetings between the Nets and Celtics and neither game came particularly close to where the total was set. In December, with the over/under set at 230.5, the teams combined for 195 points and in January the total ticked down to 225 and only 207 points were scored between the teams.
The over has hit in Boston’s last two contests, but the under is 6–4 over its last 10. The under is also 5–4–1 during that same stretch for Brooklyn. For the season, Nets’ games go under at the second-highest rate in the league (57.1%) and that’s the case even more often on the road (57.7%). Both teams also rank in the bottom half of the league in pace, another sign pointing toward a third consecutive under.
Prop Bet: Jaylen Brown Over 32.5 Points + Rebounds (-133)
In his lone game against Brooklyn this season, Brown cleared this combined total on points alone with a game-high 34. He also added 10 boards in that contest. His season averages of 27 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game put him comfortably over 32.5 points and rebounds.
Brown has had a few blowup games of late, including 37 last time out against the Lakers and a season-high 41 a few weeks prior against the Pelicans. He should clear this total with ease, which is why you’re laying a bit of extra juice on the over.
