NBA Betting Free Picks: Orlando @ Boston
Added on May 23, 2010 by Jack Thurman in
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One NBA betting opportunity on the board at sportsbooks today as the Boston Celtics return home for Game 3 of their series against the Orlando Magic with a 2-0 lead. With the well known fact that no team in NBA history has ever recovered from an 0-3 hole in a best of 7 series, this is a must win game for Orlando.
Orlando Magic at Boston Celtics
May 22, 5:30 PM Pacific
We went against Boston quite a bit during the regular season, usually justifying it with the observation that the Celtics were ‘looking ahead to the playoffs’. While that mindset didn’t do much for the Celtics’ online betting pointspread performance during the regular season, its paying big dividends now. Doc Rivers really doesn’t get the credit he deserves with the personnel management job he did during the regular season–he kept his starters’ minutes down and kept an eye on the playoffs even at the expense of losing regular season games. Now he’s got a veteran team that’s not worn out and playing their best basketball of the year with an eye on the championship.
Orlando was playing better basketball than anyone in the playoffs, and that might have been their undoing here–it was all coming too easy for them against overmatched Charlotte and disinterested Atlanta. Now they’re facing a team that can outplay them on both ends in the half court game. The Celtics may not have anyone who can physically match up with Dwight Howard in the middle, but they’ve made up for that by working hard on defense and looking to deny him the ball at the source–by clogging the passing lanes. The Magic now face a monumental challenge from a psychological/emotional standpoint as well–they’ve got to win on the road to survive, but that just gets them back to the home court where they weren’t exactly dominant. No disrespect to the Magic players or coaches, but that’s a situation where you need exceptional mental toughness–of the Michael Jordan/Kobe Bryant variety–and Orlando doesn’t have it. In NBA 7 game series, a home team up 2-0 in game 3 (meaning they won the first two on the road) is a 58.8% SU winner overall but is 6-1 (85.7%) winner in the Conference Finals. Orlando has the misfortunate to have run into a confidant, experienced team with superior tactical skill and mental toughness. We’re looking for a Celtics sweep to set up a LA vs. Boston final.
Bet Boston Celtics -3′ over Orlando Magic
