Dec 14, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) on the court against the Boston Celtics in the second half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
- The Cleveland Cavaliers visit the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal on Tuesday
- Boston took two of three from Cleveland in the regular season, including both at TD Garden
- See the Game 1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics predictions, odds, player props, and injury reports
Coming off a hard-fought, seven-game win over Orlando in round one, the #4 Cleveland Cavaliers (52-37, 22-22 away, 41-46-2 ATS) draw the top-seeded Boston Celtics (68-19, 39-5 home, 46-37-4 ATS) in round two. The Celtics opened as massive -1400 favorites to win the series, and they’re also huge -650 chalk to take Game 1, laying 12 points against the spread.
Game 1 tips off at 7:10 pm ET at TD Garden in Boston on Tuesday, May 7.
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics Game 1 Predictions
Cleveland advanced past Orlando thanks to four victories at home, going 0-3 in Orlando and dropping their road record to just 22-22 for the season as a whole. Not only did the Cavs lose all three games in Orlando, they also failed to cover the spread in any of them, losing by an average of 22.7 points per game.
Cleveland’s dismal performance away from home left the Cavs with a -4.9 Net Rating for the series as a whole, despite winning four of the seven games, including coming all the way back from 18 down in Game 7 to win by double-digits (106-94). Outside of Donovan Mitchell (28.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.4 APG), Cleveland’s offense was abhorrent. As a team, they had just a 49.3% effective field-goal percentage (14th out of 16 playoff teams).
Center Jarrett Allen (17.0 PPG, 10.0 RPG) was the team’s second-leading scorer and leading rebounder but he missed the last three games of the series and is questionable for Game 1 against the Celtics.
Boston, on the other hand, made quick work of #8 Miami in the first round, taking down the Heat in five (mostly lopsided) games. Boston’s four victories came by an average of 22 points per game and, outside of an anomalous 111-101 Game 2 loss, the Celtics didn’t give Miami a sniff; Boston led at halftime in all five games in the series by an average of 16 points per game.
That being said, Mitchell’s Cavs have a history of causing Boston problems. Over the last seven total head to head matchups, the Cavaliers have won four straight-up. Cleveland also covered two of three against Boston during the 2023-24 regular season and both losses were by single-digit margins.
CLE vs BOS Game 1 pick: Cavaliers +12 (-110)
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics Odds for Game 1
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Cavaliers | +12 (-110) | +470 | O 210 (-110) |
| Boston Celtics | -12 (-110) | -650 | U 210 (-110) |
Odds as of May 7 at DraftKings. Claim the DraftKings promos to bet on Cavaliers vs Celtics on Tuesday night.
The Game 1 Cavaliers vs Celtics point spread ranges from 11.5 at BetMGM to 12.5 at ESPN Bet but most books have the line at 12 flat. Boston’s moneyline ranges from -700 (FanDuel) to +650 (everywhere else), while the Cavs’ moneyline is as short as +460 at Caesars Sportsbook and as long as +700 at FanDuel.
With respect to the total, all sportsbooks have it at either 210 or 210.5.
The winner of the Cavaliers/Celtics series will face the winner of the Pacers/Knicks series in the Eastern Conference finals of the NBA playoff bracket. New York currently leads 1-0 on a controversial Game 1 victory last night, in which the Knicks benefited from a multitude of late calls. Boston is a -290 favorite in the Eastern Conference odds even before their series with the Cavaliers commences.
If the Celtics are going to get through the Cavaliers, they will likely have to do so without center Kristaps Porzingis (20.1 PPG, 7.2 RPG), who is unlikely to play in the second round due to a calf injury. Porzingis is the only player listed on Boston’s injury report ahead of Game 1. Allen is the only significant name on Cleveland’s injury report, questionable with a rib contusion.
CLE vs BOS Game 1 Player Props
| Player | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Three-Pointers Made |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Horford (BOS) | 9.5 (Ov -102 | Un -118) | 7.5 (Ov -100 | Un -120) | 2.5 (Ov -142 | Un +120) | 1.5 (Ov -120 | Un -100) |
| Darius Garland (CLE) | 15.5 (Ov -105 | Un -115) | 2.5 (Ov -170 | Un +142) | 5.5 (Ov -115 | Un -105) | 1.5 (Ov -142 | Un +120) |
| Derrick White (BOS) | 16.5 (Ov -112 | Un -108) | 4.5 (Ov +120 | Un -142) | 3.5 (Ov -170 | Un +142) | 3.5 (Ov +130 | Un -155) |
| Donovan Mitchell (CLE) | 27.5 (Ov -112 | Un -108) | 4.5 (Ov -135 | Un +114) | 4.5 (Ov -135 | Un +114) | 2.5 (Ov -155 | Un +130) |
| Evan Mobley (CLE) | 13.5 (Ov +102 | Un -122) | 9.5 (Ov -122 | Un +102) | 2.5 (Ov +114 | Un -135) | 0.5 (Ov +142 | Un -170) |
| Jarrett Allen (CLE) | 13.5 (Ov -118 | Un -102) | 10.5 (Ov +105 | Un -125) | OFF | OFF |
| Jaylen Brown (BOS) | 23.5 (Ov -115 | Un -105) | 6.5 (Ov +102 | Un -122) | 2.5 (Ov -162 | Un +136) | 2.5 (Ov +124 | Un -148) |
| Jayson Tatum (BOS) | 27.5 (Ov +105 | Un -125) | 9.5 (Ov +120 | Un -142) | 4.5 (Ov -148 | Un +124) | 2.5 (Ov -148 | Un +120) |
| Jrue Holiday (BOS) | 10.5 (Ov -122 | Un +102) | 4.5 (Ov -135 | Un +114) | 4.5 (Ov +102 | Un -122) | 1.5 (Ov -130 | Un +110) |
| Max Strus (CLE) | 9.5 (Ov -100 | Un -120) | 4.5 (Ov -100 | Un -120) | 2.5 (Ov -148 | Un +124) | 1.5 (Ov -148 | Un +124) |
| Payton Pritchard (BOS) | 7.5 (Ov -102 | Un -118) | 2.5 (Ov -130 | Un +110) | 2.5 (Ov -142 | Un +120) | 1.5 (Ov +150 | Un -180) |
| Sam Hauser (BOS) | 6.5 (Ov -115 | Un -105) | 2.5 (Ov -125 | Un +105) | OFF | 1.5 (Ov -175 | Un +145) |
NBA player props from DraftKings on May 7, 2024.
The Game 1 player props list Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum with game-high point totals of 27.5, followed by Jaylen Brown at 23.5. Darius Garland has the second-highest point total for the Cavaliers at just 16.5. Garland averaged just 14.9 PPG in the first round.
Despite playing a team-high 38 minutes per game in round one, Tatum only averaged 21.8 PPG against the Heat, behind both Brown (22.8 PPG) and Derrick White (22.4 PPG).
CLE vs BOS player prop picks:
- Tatum under 27.5 points (-125)
- Mitchell over 27.5 points (-112)
- Garland under 16.5 points (-108)
Sascha was a hockey player in his youth, a lawyer in his capricious mid-20s, and has been with SBD since 2014. He specializes in football, basketball, politics, baseball, and hockey.