Boston Celtics (38-39) vs. Brooklyn Nets (51-25)
June 1, 2021 7:30 pm EDT
The Line: Brooklyn Nets -12; Over/Under: -231.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics meet Tuesday in game five of the NBA East Playoffs at the Barclays Center.
The Boston Celtics hope to save their season and force a game six on Thursday. The Boston Celtics are averaging 113 points on 43.4 percent shooting and allowing 123.5 points on 49.3 percent shooting. Jayson Tatum is averaging 30.3 points and five rebounds while Marcus Smart is averaging 18.8 points and 6.5 assists. Evan Fournier is the third double-digit scorer and Kemba Walker is grabbing four rebounds. The Boston Celtics are shooting 36.8 percent from beyond the arc and 83.3 percent from the free throw line. The Boston Celtics are allowing 41.6 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 41 rebounds per game.
The Brooklyn Nets look for another win to end the series and schedule a series with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Brooklyn Nets are averaging 123.5 points on 49.3 percent shooting and allowing 113 points on 43.4 percent shooting. Kevin Durant is averaging 34.8 points and three assists while James Harden is averaging 26.3 points and 6.5 rebounds. Kyrie Irving is the third double-digit scorer and Joe Harris is dishing 1.5 assists. The Brooklyn Nets are shooting 41.6 percent from beyond the arc and 92 percent from the free throw line. The Brooklyn Nets are allowing 36.8 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 42.3 rebounds per game.
The Celtics are 9-4 ATS in their last 13 road games and 5-12 ATS in their last 17 games overall. The Nets are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 home games and 8-1 ATS in their last 9 games overall. The under is 5-1 in Celtics last 6 road games. The over is 4-1 in Nets last 5 overall. The Celtics are 0-8 ATS in the last 8 meetings in Brooklyn and 1-6 ATS in the last 7 meetings.
The Brooklyn Nets are coming off their best performance of the series yet and that’s scary given what they’re capable of on the offensive end. The Boston Celtics have put up a fight in this series, but the bottom line is they lack little firepower outside of Tatum, and now the struggles are even more exposed with Kemba and others injured. This game could get ugly, and while it’s a big number, I have no choice but to lay the chalk with the Nets at home.
