Celtics vs Nets Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight

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13 February 2024

Celtics vs Nets Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight

The Nets have had plenty of defensive issues this year, especially at the perimeter. It's part of the reason why they're big underdogs vs. the Celtics tonight, and why our NBA betting picks are focusing on a Jayson Tatum prop as the best bet of the game.

As we approach the All-Star break it’s becoming quite clear why the Boston Celtics are at the top of the NBA Championship odds.

The Celtics hit the road for tonight’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets with the NBA’s best record and net rating, both by a significant margin. And while Boston boasts arguably the best starting lineup in the NBA, it begins and ends with Jayson Tatum.

Meanwhile, somewhat surprisingly, the Nets are in a battle for the final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference. But with the NBA odds listing Brooklyn as nearly double-digit home underdogs, this may not be the game to gain some ground in the standings.

Will Tatum and Boston overwhelm Brooklyn and cover the spread? I break down this Atlantic Division matchup and bring you the best bet in my NBA picks and predictions for Celtics vs. Nets.

Celtics vs Nets odds

Celtics vs Nets predictions

The Boston Celtics enter tonight’s game against the Brooklyn Nets with a 41-12 record, lead the NBA in net rating, and are the +260 favorites to win the Finals. They are the only team in the NBA that ranks in the Top 3 in both offensive and defensive ratings. And for my money, their starting lineup is the best in the Association.

Simply put, the Celtics are a wagon.

And they are, of course, led by Jayson Tatum. The now five-time All-Star may be a bit of a long shot in the NBA MVP odds (+6,500) but the Celtics small forward is still playing at a level few can. Tatum is averaging 27 points with a 55.3% effective field goal percentage (the best of his career). He’s also adding 8.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game.

For tonight’s matchup, I want to focus on his shooting. Tatum is shooting a solid, if unspectacular, 36.2% from 3-point range. The 25-year-old Tatum can be a little streaky with his shot at times, but when he gets in a groove there isn’t much stopping him.

Tatum has also upped his volume from beyond the arc over his last seven games, attempting 9.7 triples per game over that stretch, up from his season average of 8.4. And I like the Jayson Tatum odds for him to keep letting it fly tonight vs. the Nets.

Brooklyn has its issues on defense. For starters, the Nets rank 19th in defensive rating. But a lot of those issues are on the perimeter, where they rank 24th in opponent 3-point shooting percentage and surrender the seventh-most made 3s per game.

And Tatum has had plenty of success in this matchup when it comes to shooting the 3-ball. Tatum has gone 6-for-10 and 4-for-11 from beyond the arc in two meetings against Brooklyn this season.

With Tatum’s added volume, a juicy matchup, and a +135 price tag, there is value in him going Over 3.5 made 3-pointers in tonight’s game.

My best bet: Jayson Tatum Over 3.5 made 3s (+135 at bet365)

Celtics vs Nets same-game parlay

Jayson Tatum Over 3.5 made 3s

Jaylen Brown Over 20.5 points

Jrue Holiday Over 4.5 rebounds

Tatum isn’t the only Celtics player I see value in for this game. Tatum’s running mate Jaylen Brown is averaging 22 points per game this season but has seen his production take a bit of a dip of late, putting up 18.1 points per contest over his last 10 games.

But that’s just giving us a good number on his points total for tonight’s matchup. Brown’s point total is sitting at 20.5. Brown is still shooting a solid 49.5% from the floor this season and has also been a problem for the Nets. He put up 23 and 28 points in the two previous meetings against Brooklyn this season. Plus our Prop Projections have him at 22.7 points. Add the Over 20.5.

Let’s close this SGP out with one more Celtics player prop in Jrue Holiday to grab Over 4.5 rebounds. Holiday is one of the better-rebounding guards in the NBA, averaging 5.9 boards per game. But his numbers are also down a bit in that category lately and his rebounding prop is at 4.5.

Yet outside of Nic Claxton, the Nets aren’t a great team on the boards, ranking 16th in rebounding rate. And once again, Holiday has good numbers in the previous meetings with the Nets, grabbing 12 and nine boards, respectively, in those games.

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Celtics vs Nets spread and Over/Under analysis

The Celtics are obviously one of the best teams in the NBA. But that success seems to mean they are becoming a little overvalued, at least when it comes to the spread. Boston opened this Atlantic Division matchup as 8.5-point road favorites, making it nine consecutive games as favorites of seven points or more.

The Celtics are just 2-7 ATS over those nine games but that isn’t scaring bettors off in this spot, as the line has moved from Boston -8.5 to -9 as of early Tuesday afternoon.

Clearly, the Celtics are a great team and are winning a lot of games. But expecting them to win by almost 10 points every game would be tough for any great NBA team. They did win both previous meetings with the Nets by 10 points or more this season, but I’ll stay away from the spread here.

Meanwhile, the total hit the board at 229 and has been bet down to 227.5. The first two meetings went 1-1 O/U with the first going Over a total of 227.5 and the second staying Under one of 229.5.

The Celtics are an elite defensive team and while the Nets are below average at that end of the floor, they have some excellent defenders like Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson. Mix in the fact both teams are in the bottom half of the NBA in terms of pace of play, and I would lean Under here.

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Celtics vs Nets betting trend to know

The Celtics are 1-7 ATS in their last eight games overall and have been favored by at least 7 points in all of those games. Find more NBA betting trends for Celtics vs. Nets.

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