The NBA Play-In Tournament has arrived! After the Charlotte Hornets and Indiana Pacers face-off, the winner will go on to face the loser of this matchup. This NBA betting preview for the Wizards vs Celtics matchup will provide game info, betting trends, odds and a prediction for this NBA play-in matchup.
Wizards vs Celtics Betting Preview and Prediction | NBA Play-In Tournament
Washington Wizards (34-38-3, 15-21 Away) vs. Boston Celtics (36-36, 21-15 Home)
Date: Tuesday, May 18th, 2021
Time: 9:00 pm EST
Venue: TD Garden – Boston, MA
Coverage: TNT
The Washington Wizards are definitely the team in the Play-In Tournament that nobody wanted to face. The Wizards average 116.6 points per game as a team, which is third in the league. They are led by two All-Star-caliber players, with Russell Westbrook, who continues to put up triple-doubles at an insane clip, and Bradley Beal was the runner up for the scoring title, with 31.3 points per game. The Wizards struggle defensively, but that doesn’t matter if they are firing on all cylinders on offense.
The Boston Celtics struggled to close out important games to end the season, finishing the year 4-6 and with a .500 record. The Celtics can mostly credit the injury bug to their struggles during the season, as Marcus Smart, Robert Williams III, Evan Fournier, Jayson Tatum, Kemba Walker, Marcus Smart and Tristan Thompson all missed time during the season due to injury and/or COVID-19. Now, Jaylen Brown is out for the season after undergoing wrist surgery on May 13th.
Wizards vs Celtics NBA Betting Odds
Moneyline: WAS: (+116) | BOS: (-136)
Spread: WAS: +2.5 (-114) | BOS: -2.5 (-106)
Total: 233.5 – Over: (-110) I Under: (-112)
Wizards vs Celtics Betting Trends
- Washington are 15-4-1 ATS in their last 20 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 6 of Washington’s last 9 games.
- Washington are 15-5 SU in their last 20 games.
- Boston are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 8 of Boston’s last 12 games.
- Boston are 1-5 SU in their last 6 games.
Wizards vs Celtics Prediction
This NBA prediction uses NumberFire’s probability model. They give Boston a 73% chance to win this NBA Play-in Tournament matchup.
My prediction is that the Wizards will not only win, but cover the spread. The hard-nosed defense-first mentality we usually see in the Boston Celtics has yet to be seen all season. I do not expect to see it tonight. Plus, I really want to see Russell Westbrook face-off against Kevin Durant in the NBA Playoffs, as does the NBA I’m sure.
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