Handicappers Picks

NBA Finals betting action wraps up on Thursday night from Tinseltown, as the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers meet for the final time to decide who will be the champions of the NBA.
CLICK HERE TO OPEN A BETTING ACCOUNT AT BETUS

This series has been tight every step of the way, as neither team ever took more than a one game edge in the proceedings. Los Angeles, facing its first deficit of the series, came out with guns blazing and scored an 89-67 victory in Game 6 to force the do or die, winner take all seventh game.

Boston Celtics (65-40, 48-55-2 ATS) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (72-32, 45-56-3 ATS)
Game Date/Time: Thursday, June 17th, 9:00 ET
Game Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
TV/Radio Broadcast: ABC, TSN, Sirius

NBA Finals Odds: Boston Celtics +7 vs. Los Angeles Lakers -7: Game Total 186

C Kendrick Perkins was knocked out of Game 6 with a knee injury, and he is going to be out of the lineup for Game 7. There is still a question about who will step into the starting lineup, but regardless of who it is, he will have to play better than he did in Game 6. The bench for the Celtics was absolutely embarrassing on Tuesday night, as the unit shot just 15.3 percent from the field collectively and scored just 13 points. The other stars for HC Doc Rivers shined as G Ray Allen, G Rajon Rondo, F Paul Pierce, and F Kevin Garnett all scored in double figures.

For Los Angeles, it was clearly the defense which did the trick. Offensively, G Kobe Bryant put up a not-so-spectacular 26 points on 9/19 shooting. The team only shot 41.8 percent from the field. The difference, once again, was on the glass. The Lakers pulled down a whopping 52 rebounds against just 39 for the Celtics. Three players, including Bryant, F Pau Gasol, and F Lamar Odom, each reached double digits in boards. Gasol had a particularly strong game, as he had 17 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists to go with three blocked shots. F Ron Artest was a star as well. After having a rough series that had only seen him averaging 7.8 points per game, Artest exploded for 15 points, including three triples. C Andrew Bynum, who had just had his knee drained once again before Game 6, only scored two points in the victory.

NBA Finals Insider Tip: The Celtics have covered five straight spreads following a game in which they were defeated by double digits.

It’s hard to imagine the Lakers losing a Game 7 at home, but it was equally hard to envision the Celtics losing a seventh game at home to the Orlando Magic last year in the Eastern Conference semifinals. It was also just as hard to fathom the C’s knocking off the Cavs and the Magic as well in these playoffs.

We’ve ridden the Celtics for the mass majority of this series, and we are going to finish it that way as well. Back Boston plus the points in Thursday night NBA Finals betting action!

My NBA Playoff Prediction: Boston by 3
Source: BetUS Locker Room Featured on: Handicapperspicks.com

BetUS Sportsbook is back with our NBA Finals betting picks for the sixth, and what could be the final game of the NBA season, as the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers duke it out in Tinseltown in Game 6. The Celtics have turned a pair of one game deficits into a 3-2 series lead by winning both Games 4 and 5 at TD Banknorth Garden, and now, they are just one victory away from becoming champions of the world for the second time in three seasons.
CLICK HERE TO OPEN A BETTING ACCOUNT AT BETUS

Boston Celtics (65-39, 48-54-2 ATS) vs. Los Angeles Lakers (71-32, 44-56-3 ATS)
Game Date/Time: Tuesday, June 15th, 9:00 ET
Game Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
TV/Radio Broadcast: ABC, TSN, Sirius

NBA Finals Betting Odds: Boston Celtics +6.5 vs. Los Angeles Lakers -6.5: Game Total 187.5

It’s not often that a team can hold Los Angeles under 95 points in four straight games, but that’s exactly what the C’s have done and why they are on the verge of winning the title this year. In Game 5, HC Doc Rivers went under the mentality that G Kobe Bryant was going to get his points and make his shots, but that the rest of the team was going to be held under wraps. Mission accomplished! If you discount the 13/27 and 38 points that Kobe put up in Game 5, the rest of the team combined shot just 35.3 percent from the field and scored just 48 total points. The only man to reach double digits in scoring in purple and gold aside from Bryant was F Pau Gasol, who had a dozen points and a dozen boards.

For Boston, F Paul Pierce played his most important game of the season, shooting 12/21 from the field and scoring a team high 27 points. F Kevin Garnett had 18 points and ten rebounds in one of his best efforts in the series. G Rajon Rondo is back on the horse after a bad Game 4, as he scored 18 points on 9/12 from the floor with eight assists and five rebounds.

NBA Finals Insider Tip: The Celtics are 12-4-1 ATS in their L/17 NBA betting battles against the Lakers.

All season long, the Celtics have been told what they can’t do. They couldn’t figure out how to win games at home. They couldn’t overcome being the #4 seed in the Eastern Conference. They couldn’t stop LeBron James and the Cavs. They couldn’t figure out how to cope with the Orlando Magic. There was no way that they were going to be able to finish off the Magic in Game 6 after losing Games 4 and 5. They weren’t going to stop Kobe and the Lakers in the Finals. Now, Boston is staring two major trends in the face. No team has ever beaten a HC Phil Jackson coached squad after falling behind 1-0 in a series, and no team has ever won an NBA Finals in the 2-3-2 format after losing Game 3 to fall behind 2-1 in the series. That all ends tonight! The Celtics are our NBA Finals pick to win it all on Tuesday.

My NBA Playoff Prediction: Boston by 8
Source: BetUS Locker Room Featured on: Handicapperspicks.com

The last time that the Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics took the Parquet Court in Beantown, the hosts had to feel as though they were right there on the verge of sweeping away the visitors and reaching the NBA Finals for the second time in three years. However, just five days later, the Eastern Conference Finals are still alive, and the C’s are just one slip away in NBA playoff betting action from having to deal with a deciding seventh game in Orlando.
Click here to open a betting account at BetUS online sportsbook

The Magic inched just a tad bit closer to becoming the first team in NBA history to erase a 3-0 series deficit on Wednesday night when they took out Boston 113-92 in their most impressive game since the close out game against the Atlanta Hawks back on May 10th.

Orlando Magic (69-26, 55-38-2 ATS) vs. Boston Celtics (61-37, 44-52-2 ATS). Game Date/Time: Friday, May 28th, 8:30 ET. Game Location: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, MA. TV/Radio Broadcast: ESPN, Sirius

NBA Playoff Odds
Orlando Magic +3 vs.Boston Celtics -3 : Game Total 189
Click here to bet on this game at BetUS

After waiting for four games, the Orlando offense finally showed up in Game 5 in the Sunshine State, as the team shot 52.2 percent from the floor and nailed 13 three pointers. That marked the first time the squad had shot better than 42.0 percent from the field or 38.0 percent from long range in this series.

F Rashard Lewis finally made an acceptable appearance as well, as he scored a series-high 14 points on 6/11 shooting. C Dwight Howard chipped in 21 points and ten boards for his second straight solid game.

The key to victories in Games 4 and 5 has arguably been the heart of G Jameer Nelson. Nelson has scored 47 points over the L/2 NBA playoff betting affairs the Magic have engaged in.

Boston fans have to be wondering what is next for their team. The C’s only got three baskets all night long from F Paul Pierce in Game 5.

F Rasheed Wallace scored 21 points, but he has an injured back that could keep him out of Game 6. He wasn’t the only casualty on the night for HC Doc Rivers.

F Glen Davis had a tooth knocked clear out of his mouth and was concussed on the court thanks to an elbow from Howard that, though it was most likely a foul, wasn’t a dirty play. C Kendrick Perkins was ejected after playing just 17 minutes of action, and because his second ‘T’ marked his seventh of these playoffs, he would have been suspended for Game 6 had the NBA not rescinded either of the technical fouls.

NBA Playoff Insider Tip: The underdog and the road team are now 8-2 ATS in the L/10 NBA betting battles between these Eastern Conference opponents.

The bottom line here is that the Magic are starting to play with some swagger, while the Celtics are starting to wonder if they really have what it takes to close this series out. The fans in Beantown might become restless, especially if their C’s ultimately get off to a poor start on Friday night. With the Bruins already blowing a 3-0 series lead to the Flyers in the second round of the NHL playoffs, the TD Garden is going to be on tilt throughout the games entirety.

Orlando will put the chokehold on the Celtics in NBA playoff betting action and shockingly send this series back to Orlando for a seventh and deciding game.

My NBA Playoff Prediction: Orlando by 5
Source: Betus Locker Room