Bet on Basketball – Can Celtics Take Game 2?

LeBron James’ elbow looked fine in Game 1 but he’ll have to be spot on in Game 2 as well if the Cavaliers want to protect home court advantage.

Monday, May 3rd – 8:00 PM ET

Quicken Loans Arena – Cleveland, OH

Broadcast: TNT

Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers – Game 2

NBA Playoff Betting Spread: Cavaliers -6

The Week That Was: Celtics

Another game, another sign that the Celtics are coming apart at the seams. After Game 1, head coach Doc Rivers called out his veteran power forward, Rasheed Wallace, and suggested that his team needs more from him if they are going to win.

Wallace chipped in a lazy two points for the Celtics in Game 1 and had very little impact on the game.

More discouraging might be the fact that the Celtics played great – leading by as many as 11 points in the first half – and were still outgunned by the Cavaliers in the second half.

The Cavaliers outscored the Celtics 58-39 in the second half, which shows that the Cavaliers really do have another gear that the Celtics don’t anymore.

If the Celtics are to win this series, they’ll have to do it with help from the bench as Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett won’t last playing 40+ minutes per game.

The Week That Was: Cavaliers

How is LeBron’s elbow, you ask? Just fine.

James finished Game 1 12-of-24 from the field with 35 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. More importantly, James had a lot of help from his teammates, which is what has made the Cavaliers a scary team all year long.

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Mo Williams poured in 20 points, Shaquille O’Neal chipped in 11, J.J. Hickson also added 11 and Delonte West scored eight.

The key takeaway from Game 1 has to be the fact that the Cavaliers youth – or younger legs – was a big difference. Pierce, Allen and Garnett looked a step slow while the Cavaliers looked very fresh. That’s going to be a big difference as the series wears down.

Outlook & Pick

Game 2 will be close again for a half but expect the Cavaliers to pull away in the second half again. They are younger, stronger, faster and more versatile. And they are at home.

Game 2 is just as important as Game 1 and the Cavaliers know that they don’t want the Celtics to have any inkling that they might win this series. They are close to coming apart and an 0-2 for a team with chemistry issues may be enough to push the Celtics over the edge.

NBA Playoff Betting Pick: Celtics >> SIGN UP HERE!