There are some big games set to take place throughout the NBA on Thursday night, but none bigger than the matchup in Boston. The Celtics are set to host the Phoenix Suns, and this game could be a potential NBA Finals preview.
Phoenix comes into this game having won three of their last four games, but the lone loss was to the Boston Celtics. The Suns are finally playing as a full unit again, and they are now sitting at 38-27 on the year.
Boston has been the best team in the league all season long, and they bring an overall record of 51-14 into this game. The Celtics have rattled off three straight games, and they have been nearly unbeatable since mid-January.
The betting odds for this game have the Boston Celtics as 4.5-point favorites, and the over/under is set at 231.5 points.
Suns Will Have to Shoot Well
The Phoenix Suns are averaging 117 points per game this season, but they are not even close to as explosive as the Boston Celtics are. Phoenix has looked better now that Bradley Beal has joined Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, but there are still flaws.
Durant and Booker are scoring 56 points per game for the Suns, but it’s going to be up to the other players in this game. Phoenix is shooting 37.6% from the three-point line and they will have to shoot extremely well to win this game.
The Suns do have some issues on defense at times this season, and that will be something to monitor in this matchup as well.
Celtics Coming Up Clutch
The Boston Celtics have not played in many close games this season, but they always seem to come up with clutch plays when needed. Boston is scoring over 120 points per game this season, and they have also shown that they can be great on defense.
Jayson Tatum is on the short list of MVP candidates this season with 27 points per game, and Jaylen Brown can take over as well. Boston has put together a terrific roster, and they get scoring from many different players.
The Celtics are nearly impossible to deal with on their home floor, and they should be able to set the tone on defense in order to control this game.
Celtics Win in Shootout
Phoenix has been playing much better now that their big three is back on the floor together, but they did fail to beat the Celtics. The Suns will need to shoot extremely well to stay close in this game, but even that might not be enough.
Boston is coming into this game with a ton of confidence and momentum, and those two things have been there all season long. The Celtics just have so many weapons on the offensive end of the floor that eventually they will take control.
These two teams are going to fly past the over/under line set at 231.5 total points, and betting on the Celtics at -4.5 is the way to go in this matchup.
