The Boston Celtics pushed the Miami Heat to the brink in game two of their best-of-seven Eastern conference final series, but ultimately fell short. Now down two-games-to-none, the Celtics are in a desperate situation as they ship back to Boston. There is an old sports betting saying that reads, “Nothing has happened in a series until a team loses it home”. Well, Rajon Rondo and company are at home for game three on Friday night, and if they can’t rally together to get a win at TD Garden, the series could be over by the time the weekend wraps up.
Miami Heat @ Boston Celtics (Game 3)
Friday, 8:30 PM ET
The Celtics came out with a much better effort in game two at Miami, but the problem was that so did the Heat. Neither team played very well in the first betting contest, but both responded well for a much more competitive game the second time in a row, setting the stage for a highly anticipated game three. Boston got 44 points and 10 assists from Rondo in a 115-111 overtime loss game two, and certainly can’t expect much more from their star point guard than that. Even if he can reach that mark again, Rondo will need more support in game three, and after Kevin Garnett led the way in game one, he is the most likely candidate to play that supporting role. The Heat’s biggest area of weakness is down low, where they haven’t been punished enough without Chris Bosh in the lineup. The Indiana Pacers got sucked in to the ego of trying to match Lebron James and Dwayne Wade basket for basket and it cost them in the betting news blog series, but the Celtics haven’t learned from that lesson. Garnett and Brandon Bass will need more touches in the paint to open things up on the perimeter, and if Rondo can help establish their presence early it will open up more room Paul Pierce and Ray Allen to get going and make things interesting for game four Sunday.
NBA Betting Pick: Boston Celtics
San Antonio Spurs @ Oklahoma City Thunder
Saturday, 8:30 PM ET
The Spurs carried over a 10-game Betonline win streak from the regular season and extended it to 20 in the playoffs, yet they still didn’t get the respect they deserved as the series shifted back to Oklahoma City on Thursday. San Antonio has undoubtedly earned the title of most dangerous team in these playoffs with its ability to dominate both down low and on the perimeter, and the fact that its bench is so deep just makes it that much more impressive. The Thunder have several young pieces in place to regroup for another run next season, but this year they are caught in a tough spot against the association’s deepest team, and the NBA’s best coach in Greg Popovich, who must be loving the opportunity to send his veteran troops up against some of the game’s newest stars.
NBA Betting Pick: San Antonio Spurs
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