The Cleveland Cavaliers are staggering into their Wednesday night game against the Boston Celtics. Like so many teams across the league the Cavs have been hit hard by the Omicron variant and have multiple players unavailable to play. As of Wednesday morning that number stands at eight players, including three starters.
The league is pressing forward and trying to avoid game postponements whenever possible. That means the show must go on, and barring another unexpected wave of outbreaks among the Cavs or Celtics, these teams will meet tonight for the third time this season, looking to gain the advantage after splitting the first two games.
The Cavs visit the Boston Celtics Wednesday night to continue a bitter rivalry. What do you need to know about who is playing and how to bet?
The Cavaliers were riding high before this outbreak, winning six-straight games by an average of 19.8 points per game. That included wins over the Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls. The margin of victory is likely inflated by a number of key absences in those opponents, but at the end of the day the Cavs are getting the job done.
On the other side of the matchup, the Boston Celtics continue to wobble their way through a .500 season. They currently sit 15-16, and are 5-6 in their last 11 games, or 2-2 in their last four. This game against the Cavs will be the fifth and final game of a homestand for Boston.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics: Odds, spread, over/under
The Cavaliers (19-12) will visit the Celtics (15-16) tonight. According to our partners over at WynnBet, the Celtics are favored by 5.5 points. The over/under total is 215.5. For reference, the last two meetings between these teams back in November both would have hit “under” and averaged just 185 points.
The Cavs have had a long period of rest, with their last game on Saturday (Sunday’s contest against Atlanta being postponed). The Celtics played a hard-fought game against the 76ers on Monday night.
Cavs vs Celtics: Project starting lineups, injury report
The “injury report” is long, and is mostly made up of players in the league’s health and safety protocols. That makes the starting lineup for the Cavs somewhat of a guess, although we dove deep on the potential options earlier today. Boston played Monday with a similar list of inactives so our dart throw is a little more informed. They did sign veteran Joe Johnson, and he could play tonight, but he will certainly come off the bench.
Celtics starters: Dennis Schroder, Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Enes Freedom
Cavs: Darius Garland, Cedi Osman, Dean Wade, Lauri Markkanen, Kevin Love
The Celtics’ key injuries: Al Horford, Josh Richardson, Grant Williams, Jabari Parker, Juancho Hernangomez, Sam Hauser, Brodric Thomas (out, health and safety protocols); Robert Williams (questionable, personal matter); Jayson Tatum (probable, ankle)
The Cavaliers’ key injuries: Collin Sexton (out for season, knee); Isaac Okoro, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen, Lamar Stevens, Dylan Windler, Ed Davis, Denzel Valentine, RJ Nembhard (out, health and safety protocols)
Cavs vs Celtics: Prediction
There is a lot of unknown in this matchup, with both teams’ frontcourt completely wiped out. Enes Freedom could be starting against Tacko Fall. The Celtics’ perimeter defenders will look to keep Darius Garland and Ricky Rubio out of the paint, as there will be no rim protection behind them. The Cavs have won this year based on interior defense, and instead will have to pivot and try to out-shoot the Celtics.
The Celtics deserve to be favored, as they have their two star wings available, while the Cavs are missing two of their three studs in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Yet this season he Cavs have been better coached than the Celtics, have received more production from their bench, and will have the two best point guards on the court. That all counts for something. Finally, the over/under being at 215.5 is insane; neither team has proven capable of blowing past that number, so the smart bet is under.
Prediction: Boston 102, Cleveland 99
The Bet: Cleveland (+5.5), UNDER
Cavs vs Celtics: Where to Watch
The Cavaliers continue their breakout season off the national radar, and not even the pull of the Celtics can pull them into the spotlight. Local Cleveland fans will tune into Bally Sports Ohio, and fans in Boston will use NBC Sports Boston. All other fans can catch the game on NBA League Pass. Tip-off is 7:30pm EST.
Cleveland Cavaliers Upcoming Schedule
After playing the Celtics the Cavs will return home for the holiday, not playing against until Sunday the 26th. They will host Scottie Barnes and the Toronto Raptors; will Evan Mobley be back to face his Rookie of the Year competition?
Going out from there, the biggest question for the Cavs will be player availability. Isaac Okoro was the first into the protocols, so he could be the first back. How long will it take Mobley, Jarrett Allen and the rest of the roster to make it back? The Cavs play the New Orleans Pelicans in the Big Easy next Tuesday and will hope to be closer to full strength by then.