Phoenix Suns vs. Boston Celtics Prediction, Preview, and Odds

The Phoenix Suns will be playing their second road game in a four-game trip on the East Coast. They began with a win and Cleveland and will stop in Boston before heading to Charlotte and Milwaukee to end the trip. the Suns have won three of their last four games, with their one loss coming against this Boston team. Durant put up 45 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in the previous Boston game, but it was not enough as the supporting cast could not score enough, as Devin Booker sat out that game with a minor injury. The Suns should be at full strength for this rematch in Boston.

Durant is the leading scorer for the Suns in his 16th year in the league. He is averaging 28.5 PPG, to go with 6.7 RPG and 5.5 APG. He has been on fire lately, scoring 35 or more points in each of his last four games. Devin Booker is not far behind in scoring, he gets 27.5 PPG and leads the team in assists with 6.8 per game. He missed a few games recently, but returned to play against Cleveland in their last game, dropping 27 points in the win. Bradley Beal is the third star on the team, health has been an issue as he only played in 36 games so far, but he is still their third-leading scorer with 18.6 PPG. Grayson Allen (13.0 PPG, 2.7 threes per game.

Royce O'Neal is averaging 8.7 PPG in his 13 games with the team off the bench. O'neal played the most minutes off the bench last time out, with Drew Eubanks grabbing time at backup center. The Sunsa are ranked 11th in offensive efficiency and 14th in defensive efficiency according to dunksandthrees.com. They play at the 15th-fastest pace in the league.

Injury Report:

Out: Josh Okogie, Damion Lee

Questionable: Eric Gordon, Nasir Little

The Boston Celtics are looking to win their fourth consecutive game and grab an even stronger lead in the Eastern Conference. The Celtics are coming off three straight road wins over the Suns, Blazers and Jazz, and finally, return home here to play Phoenix again. The Celtics have a 9.5-game lead in the East and should be able to hold on to the 1-seed barring an epic meltdown. In their last game, Boston was led by Jayson Tatum with 38 points in the win over Utah.

The Celtics are battling injuries for this game, Kristaps Porzingis will miss this matchup with a hamstring injury, and Jaylen Brown is questionable with a back issue. Boston still has Jayson Tatum, the forward is averaging 27.0 PPG, 8.4 RPG and 4.9 APG on the year. He is the top shooter on the team with 3.1 made threes per game on 37.5% shooting from deep. If Brown and Porzingis both miss this game, Derrick White will be their second top scorer at 15.1 PPG. White also gets 5.0 APG, and is coming off a 24-point game against Utah. Jrue Holiday is still an elite perimeter defender and scores 12.9 PPG.

Against the Jazz, the Celtics started Sam Hauser (8.1 PPG) on the wing, and Luke Kornet inside (5.2 PPG). Xavier Tillman and Peyton Pritchard played the most minutes off the bench. The Celtics rank 1st in offensive efficiency and 2nd in defensive efficiency. Boston plays at the 18th-fastest tempo in the league.

Injury Report:

Out: Kristaps Porzingis

Questionable: Jaylen Brown

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Insiders Status:

These teams just met a few days ago, but the circumstances were different. Phoenix lost, but they were without Devin Booker, while the Celtics won with Jaylen Brown in the lineup. Boston will be shorthanded here, Porzingis is definitely out, and the status of Jaylen Brown's back is still unknown. Phoenix meanwhile looks as if all their stars will play, as Durant, Booker and Beal are finally all healthy. Boston has more reason to feel comfortable here, they have a massive lead for the 1-seed in the East, while Phoenix is sitting in the dangerous 6th-seed in the West. Phoenix does not want to fall lower than 6th, as that would force them to take part in the Play-In Tournament. Boston has no one that can cover Durant, Jaylen Brown is their best option, but he may be out of this game with an injury. Durant put up 45 in the last meeting with Boston and will be primed to do so again on national television. Phoenix has won three of their last four, including a strong win over Denver, they are finally healthy and are the better play with the points here.

Take Phoenix to cover.

Prediction: Suns +4.5

Insiders Status:

Phoenix has a tight schedule, this is the first game of a back to back as they will play in Charlotte on the following day, and play three games in four days as they only get one day of rest before taking on the Bucks. This may cause Phoenix to go deeper in their rotation, as they do not want to wear out all three stars with games right around the corner. The Suns may be tempted to play slower than usual, they only rank 15th in the league in tempo, and will play conservatively with so many games in such few days. Boston does not play fast either, they rank 18th in the league in pace of play, and could potentially be without two of their top scorers. The public tends to bet overs on these star-studded teams, and Vegas has been making a ton of money on that assumption; the Suns have gone under in 10 of their last 11 games, and Boston has gone under in five of their last six. Expect more of the same.