Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets: Prediction and Betting Tips
The marquee matchup of NBA Thursday is the Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets. It's the second and final meeting between the two powerhouse teams this season, with the Nuggets looking for the series sweep. Let's look at the game's preview, prediction and betting tips for March 7.
The Celtics are trying to get revenge against Denver for snapping their 27-game winning streak at the TD Garden on Jan. 19. It was one of the best games of the season, with Jayson Tatum missing the game-tying fadeaway jumper at the buzzer to give the Nuggets the 102-100 win.
Thursday's game will also be the 100th regular-season matchup between the Celtics and the Nuggets. The Celtics have historically dominated the matchup with 60 wins and have beaten the Nuggets six times out of the last 10 games since March 18, 2019.
Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets preview, prediction, odds and betting tips
The Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets game is on Thursday at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. It starts at 10:00 p.m. EST and will be nationally televised on TNT. It is also available through the local channel NBC Sports Boston.
Moneyline: Celtics (-120) vs Nuggets (+103)
Spread: Celtics -1.5 (-109) vs Nuggets +1.5 (-109)
Total (O/U): Celtics o223 (-110) vs Nuggets u223 (-110)
Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets preview
The Boston Celtics are coming off a 105-104 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday. The defeat snapped their 11-game winning streak, but the bad part was they blew a 22-point lead against a Cavs team missing Donovan Mitchell and Max Strus.
On the other hand, the Denver Nuggets also had their six-game winning streak ended by the Phoenix Suns on the same night. The Nuggets came back to take the lead against the Suns, but Kevin Durant forced overtime. Durant kept the momentum to hand the defending champs a 117-107 loss.
Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets starting lineups
Jaylen Brown is listed as questionable for the Boston Celtics due to a pelvic strain. If Brown gets cleared to play, he'll be joined in the starting lineup by Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Jayson Tatum and Kristaps Porzingis.
Meanwhile, the Denver Nuggets have only one player on their injury report – Vlatko Cancar. Head coach Michael Malone is expected to stick to his usual starting five of Jamal Murray, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic.
Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets betting tips
Nikola Jokic has an over/under of 25.5 points and is projected to score below it. Jokic has been magnificent since the All-Star break, but is favored to go under. Don't take the risk and bet on "The Joker" to go under.
Jamal Murray is projected to score 21.2 points and is favored to go under. However, Murray has been playing really well recently with four games of at least 22 points in his last five. Take the risk and bet on Murray to score more than 21.5 points.
Jaylen Brown is favored to score less than 21.5 points against the Nuggets. Brown has only gone under 21.5 points once in his last five games. If he gets cleared to play, bet on him to go over and score at least 22 points.
Boston Celtics vs Denver Nuggets prediction
The Denver Nuggets are the slight underdogs against the Boston Celtics on Thursday despite playing at home. The Celtics own the best record in the league and have been performing betting the Denver this season.
Oddsmakers are predicting that the Celtics will get the win and cover the spread, and the total will go over.
