Heat vs. Cavaliers prediction and odds for Tuesday, January 31 (Bet the under)
By Josh Yourish
The Cleveland Cavaliers are 31-21, in fifth place in the eastern conference, 5.5 games back of first and 2.5 games ahead of the sixth place Miami Heat.
The Cavs got Donovan Mitchell back on the floor Sunday, and with him came a 122-99 win over the L.A. Clippers, though Mitchell played for 20 minutes and scored just 11 points.
The Cavs have their star back, but will Jimmy Butler be on the floor for the Heat in this one? That’s the important question as he’s questionable with a quad contusion.
With Butler’s health up in the air, the Cavaliers are favorites over the Heat in Cleveland. Here are the odds for this eastern conference matchup:
Heat vs. Cavaliers odds, spread and total
Heat vs. Cavaliers prediction and pick
Whether Butler plays or not, there are two things that both of these teams have in common, defense and a slow pace. The Cavaliers are 30th in NBA.com’s Pace metric and the Heat are 28th. Cleveland is 10th in offensive rating, but because of this slow pace of play, it is 26th in points per game.
Miami is 27th in offensive rating, and it is buried in 30th in the NBA in team points per game.
Despite all of that, these are both clear cut playoff teams in a pretty loaded Eastern Conference because they’re No.1 and No. 5 defensive efficiency.
With Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley inside, but also able to guard on the perimeter in switches effectively, Cleveland is the best defensive team in the NBA. Miami has Bam Adebayo who, if he can stay healthy for an entire season, is one of the favorites to win Defensive Player of the Year.
Erik Spoelstra coaching the team doesn’t hurt either, because he’s been one of the best defensive coaches in the NBA for a while.
Vegas knows this and has stuck us with a super low total, but I’m not scared off, the under has hit in four of Miami’s last five and same goes for Cleveland.
Follow all Josh Yourish’s bets HERE
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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change