The Dallas Mavericks will be hoping to halt a four-game losing streak when they host the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night. Dallas has plunged to 19-30 in overall and may be content to position itself for the NBA Draft lottery, while Boston comes in with a 31-18 record.
Let’s dive into my Celtics vs. Mavericks predictions.
Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks odds
Money line: Celtics -290 / Mavericks +235
Spread: Celtics -7.5 (-110) / Mavericks +7.5 (-110)
Total: Over 223.5 (-110) / Under 223.5 (-110)
Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks best bet #1: Under 223.5 (-110)
The Celtics are No. 1 in the Eastern Conference in scoring defense (109.1 points per game), trailing only the defending champion Thunder in that department in the entire NBA. Not only does Boston boast a stout defense, but it also plays at an extremely slow pace. In fact, head coach Joe Mazzulla’s squad ranks last in the league in that metric at 99.4 possessions per game. The Mavericks feature a much more up-tempo style in general, but in this case they might be content to slow it down against such a heavily favored and far superior opponent. Why not try to shorten the game as much as possible in an effort to keep it close?
Either way, Boston is the much better team and therefore should be able to control the tempo to its liking. Moreover, Dallas has scored 110 points or fewer in three of its last four outings. Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, and P.J. Washington are out, while Brandon Williams is questionable. Missing so much firepower is not a good recipe for success against one of the best defensive teams in the association. On the bright side for the Mavs, they lead the entire NBA in three-point shooting percentage defense. This will be a tough matchup for the Celtics’ offense given the extent to which they love to fork up three-pointers.
Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks best player prop bet: Klay Thompson Over 12.5 points (-110)
The Celtics are in the bottom half of the league in three-point percentage defense and they are allowing the fifth-most triples (more than 14 per game).
Thompson should be able to take advantage. With Davis, Washington, and Lively out and Williams potentially absent, Thompson will be among the Mavericks’ primary scoring options on Tuesday. The veteran has exceeded this 12.5 number in six of the last 11 contests and has reached double-figures seven times during this stretch. Thompson has drained multiple threes in 13 straight games, including four against Charlotte last Thursday and three against Houston on Saturday.
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