SATURDAY MAY 22, 2010 – Orlando Magic vs Boston Celtics
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Team records:
Boston: 50-32 SU, 33-48-1 ATS
Orlando: 59-23 SU, 45-33-4 ATS
It can’t have been a good last couple of days for Rashard Lewis.
The big power forward has been hammered coast to coast for his uninspired play against the Celtics in Games 1 and 2, and now he must figure out a way to re-build his game and image in Saturday night’s Game 3 in Boston.
Matchup: MAGIC vs. CELTICS
Time: Saturday 8:30 ET
Venue: TD Garden, Boston
Spread: Celtics -3.5
Over/Under: 190
Make no mistake. If Lewis’s shots don’t start falling very quickly, the Magic will probably make a rapid and not-too-graceful exit from a playoff series that most observers had expected that they would win in 5 or 6 games.
Lewis’s importance to the Magic offense is that great.
A year ago against the Celtics life was a lot more carefree. Hyperactive Kevin Garnett sat out the series with a knee injury and while Big Baby Davis played hard, it was obvious from Game 1 that Davis didn’t have the footspeed to stick with Lewis.
Lewis was pretty much free to flit around the perimeter for uncontested 3-pointers, and coach Stan Van Gundy could pretty much put him down for three or four long balls and 20 points a game.
Orlando defeated the Celtics in 7 games in Round 2.
But a year has changed everything. 
This time around the block the Celtics have tons of energy (last year they were coming off an exhausting 7-game series against the Bulls in which 4 games went into overtime), and while Garnett may not be the defensive monster he was in Boston’s championship run two years ago, he’s still the team’s best defender and quick enough to make life a living hell for Lewis.
Lewis, soft-spoken and reserved, is the 180-degree opposite of the maniacal Garnett that Celtics fans see on game days. Garnett also knows that time stops for no man and this may be his last chance at grabbing another ring.
He will come with guns blazing. If Lewis doesn’t, it might be the end of the line for this year’s Magic.
Magic vs. Celtics Game 3 Free NBA Prediction
Celtics backers have cashed twice in this series due to puzzling lines in the 7-point range, and there is opportunity for more money on Saturday night with a line of Boston minus 3.5.
There is no indication that the Magic have the slightest idea how to handle the Celtics’ Rajon Rondo, and any help they give stopping Rondo’s penetration just opens the door for the outside shooting of Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.
Rondo thrives on making eye-opening plays at home so he will be pumped from the get-go. Parlay players can look hard at the over as it’s likely Orlando has spent the last few days at practice trying to figure out a way to free up its outside shooters.
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Lawrence Paul is a regular contributor to the Cappers Picks Blog, and is a free-lance gambling and travel expert from Massachusetts.
