Free NBA Pick: Pacers vs. Celtics NBA Odds
Looking for Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics free NBA picks & NBA Odds? NBA betting sees the Pacers taking on the Celtics on Thursday, May 23rd, at TD Garden, Boston. Cappers Picks provides complimentary expert handicapping picks on all NBA basketball matchups so stay tuned for more FREE daily NBA hoops predictions like this Pacers Celtics matchup.
2024 NBA Playoffs Handicapping Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics
(0-1) Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics (1-0)
Date: Thursday, May 23rd
Time: 8:00 PM ET
Venue: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Moneyline NBA Odds: Pacers +320 | Celtics -375 (Bet Now!)
NBA ATS Betting Odds: Celtics -9
Today’s NBA Betting Total (O/U): 224.5
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Thursday serves up Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Indiana Pacers and Boston Celtics.
The Celtics took the early series lead after a wild finish where a combination of turnovers led to overtime and a 133-128 victory for Boston.
Season Series
In history, the Celtics own the advantage of winning 109 of the club’s 194 meetings. Last season the teams played three times with Boston taking two of the three contests.
In an oddity, these teams played five times this season because they met in the In-Season Tournament with the Pacers being victorious although the Celtics took this season’s series 3-2.
This is the seventh postseason meeting between the clubs with Boston ahead 4-2 including their last meeting in 2019 when the Celtics swept the Pacers although both teams have made substantial roster changes since then.
*Editor’s Note: Statistics and rankings are current as of this writing, Wednesday, May 22nd. Numbers may vary slightly entering games on Thursday, May 23rd.
Indiana Pacers
Entering the Conference Finals most pundits taped the Celtics as the automatic winner but the Pacers served notice in Game 1 why they shouldn’t be overlooked.
I had them taking that initial match and it was looking great until the wheels feel off the wagon via a series of confounding turnovers in clutch time and in the extra frame.
Rick Carlisle shouldered the blame for not calling time out and took the high road avoiding the post-game question regarding the charity stripe (with minutes left in the match Boston had taken 23 attempts to the Pacers THREE!
Pacers Stats
During the season, Indiana possessed the second-ranked offense (120.5) however, their defense lacked something to be desired as it ranked 24th (117.6) while their net differential of plus +2.9 registered 10th overall.
To this point in the postseason the Pacers rank first offensively (121.2), and 13th defensively (118.1) with a plus +3.1 net differential ranking sixth.
The Pacers began the season strong and remained one of the better bets against the spread with a 52-42-3 record through 97 matches.
Pacers Injury Report
To summarize the injury report…
- Bennedict Mathurin, SF (OUT for season — shoulder)
Boston Celtics
Typically it’s the underdog who gets credit for ‘stealing’ a game but in this circumstance it was the favorite Celtics who absolutely stole Game 1. Indy was poised to capture the victory and seemingly fell victim to the pressure of closing out the game.
Boston also got some major luck via the whistle and their reputation as a solid defensive team as a few fouls were overlooked including the critical inbound play where Jalen Brown was clutching Pascal Siakam’s jersey and pushed him in the back.
Jayson Tatum is also extremely fortunate in the win as he stepped up in overtime but prior to that point was missing in action. If the Bean Town crew had lost the narrative would’ve focused on his absence instead.
Celtics Stats
Boston ranked first offensively (122.2) and was second defensively (110.6) while registering a net differential of plus +111.7 which also ranked first overall.
Through the postseason, the Celtics rank second offensively (118.8) and third defensively (107.1) with a plus +11.6 net differential that ranks first overall.
In terms of the Celtics’ performance against the spread, they offer a 47-41-5 record through 93 matches.
Celtics Injury Report
To summarize the injury report…
- Kristaps Porzingis, PF (OUT indefinitely — calf)
- Xavier Tillman, PF (questionable — personal)
NBA Bettors we want to hear from you. Comment below. Give us your Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics NBA picks!
Pacers vs. Celtics NBA Betting Trends:
- All in all, the Pacers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 14 of Indiana’s last 19 games.
- Also, the Pacers are 2-6 SU in their last 8 games against Boston.
- By comparison, Boston is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Boston’s last 7 games.
- Additionally, the Celtics are 8-1 SU in their last 9 games.
Free Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics NBA Prediction:
Immediately after the game the focus for Boston was how they lost the last two Game 2’s at home. Now that they’ve played the Pacers they are sure to be even more focused on getting that match.
Per above, Indiana shot themselves in the foot because if they had held on to win Game 1 they could play with that same freedom. Instead, they’ll be feeling extra pressure now to even the series.
Other than not getting to the line and turnovers, the Pacers gameplan was on the mark. They shot 53.5% from the field and 37.1% from deep while holding the Celts to 33.3% from deep.
Indy also won rebounds and assists and was within two points in fast break/points in the paint scoring. As I predicted the depth of the Pacers was a huge advantage as the reserves outscored Boston 30-13.
Although the Celtics are saying all the right things and avoided a huge loss I’m still inclined to take the points and Indiana. Siakam and Andrew Nembhard targeted Al Horford in the mid-range and that action feels like it was underutilized so look for more of the same in Game 2.
4* Free Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics NBA Betting Pick: Pacers +9
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