Xam’s Daily Gems:
Cavaliers/Celtics Over 208.5 Points -110 FanDuel
The Cavaliers barely survived their 1st round series against the Magic, having to win every game at home to sneak out of the first round. Now, they head into the lion’s den in Boston. The Celtics have been resting since they finished off their first round matchup against the Heat on May 1st. The Celtics did whatever they wanted offensively all season long. They averaged 120 PPG. At home, that ticked up to over 123 PPG! Even without Kristaps Porzingis, they averaged 121 points per game, and at home without Porzingis they scored nearly 123 PPG! Simply put, very few teams have shown an ability to slow down this dynamic offense. The entire key to this Play is what the Cavs are able to do offensively. They’re going to be tired and drained after spending so much energy to get past the Magic. During the regular season, all 3 of the matchups between these teams went Over 208.5 points. However, the last matchup ended on exactly 209 points. Donovan Mitchell has been great, but he needs help from guys like Darius Garland and Evan Mobley. Jarrett Allen is still questionable with a rib injury, which is a big blow offensively. If the Cavaliers can keep this game remotely interesting, the Celtics SHOULD take care of the rest! The only question is how much they’ll be needed. The home team being a double-digit favorite certainly indicates there’s blowout potential. However, if Cleveland brings their offense and is able to score ANYWHERE near their season average of 112 PPG, the Celtics should have NO ISSUES taking care of the rest and going Over this number!
Braves Money Line -172 FanDuel
The Braves are coming off being swept by the Dodgers and need to get back on track. To do that, they are turning to Reynaldo Lopez, who’s been nothing short of FANTASTIC this season. In 5 starts, he has a sparkling 1.50 ERA and in 2 home starts that ticks down to 0.69! He’s simply been phenomenal this season. The Red Sox counter with righty Kutter Crawford, who’s been similarly good this season for the Red Sox. He has a 1.56 ERA on the year, but he’s given up 5 runs in his last 5 starts and he had a 4.04 ERA last year, which indicates there’s some negative regression coming. The Braves have been a solid home team this year, coming into tonight’s game with a record of 11-4 at Truist Park. The Braves are averaging 5.2 runs per game at home, which can be a tough draw for the Red Sox here. The Braves SHOULD figure out how to score some runs like they usually do at home. If Lopez can continue his successful start to the season, they shouldn’t have ANY ISSUES getting back on track and ending their losing streak!