NBA Wednesday is here as we bring you a betting prediction and pick for this cross-conference showdown between storied franchises. The Golden State Warriors (33-35) will take on the Boston Celtics (45-23) as the two sides conclude their season series. Check our NBA odds series for the Warriors-Celtics prediction and pick.
The Golden State Warriors are ninth in the Western Conference after most recently taking down the Washington Wizards 125-117. The win broke a five-game losing skid, but they're still just 3-7 over their last 10 games and will need to keep pace to avoid losing playoff position.
The Boston Celtics are second in the Eastern Conference, trailing the Detroit Pistons by four games following their most recent 120-112 win over the Phoenix Suns. They've responded to consecutive losses with back-to-back wins, looking to take advantage here as the double-digit betting favorites.
NBA odds courtesy of DraftKings
Warriors vs. Celtics Odds
Golden State Warriors: +12.5 (-110)
Boston Celtics: -12.5 (-110)
Over: 214.5 (-110)
Under: 214.5 (-110)
Warriors vs. Celtics Key Injuries
Golden State: Gary Payton II (tibia – Probable) / LJ Cryer (hamstring – Questionable) / Quinten Post (foot – Questionable) / Jimmy Butler III (knee – OUT) / Seth Curry (abductor – OUT) / Stephen Curry (knee – OUT) / Al Horford (calf – OUT) / Moses Moody (wrist – OUT)
Boston: Nikola Vucevic (finger – OUT)
Warriors vs. Celtics Betting Trends
- The Boston Celtics are 23-10 at home this season. The Golden State Warriors are 14-20 on the road.
- The Celtics have gone 36-13 as betting favorites. The Warriors are 8-16 as underdogs.
- The Celtics are 39-29 ATS overall, 16-17 ATS at home. The Warriors are 31-37 ATS overall, 16-18 ATS on the road.
- The Warriors are 6-4 outright, 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games against the Celtics.
- The Celtics have gone 10-5 ATS in their last 15 games.
- The Warriors are 1-5 in their last six games.
- The total has gone UNDER in seven of Boston's last nine games.
- The total has gone OVER in four of Golden State's last five games.
Keys to Warriors vs. Celtics Matchup
The Celtics took the first meeting against the Warriors 121-110 in Golden State just a month ago, powered by a game-high 26 points from Payton Pritchard and a triple-double effort from Jaylen Brown. Brown also comes into this game following a 41-point outburst against the Suns in the Celtics' last win, further cementing his status as an MVP candidate. It was his sixth game with 40+ points as Jayson Tatum added 21 points as well.
Tatum will play his sixth game of season, likely his third game with an elevated minutes restriction of 32 as he continues to adjust his game to be fully dialed for the NBA Playoffs. The Celtics are 4-1 with Tatum back in the lineup this season (2-3 ATS), but they look like a very tough team to beat when both him and Brown are firing on all cylinders. They've been covering the spread at a much higher rate over their last 15 games than earlier in the season, so this double-digit margin shouldn't come as too much of a surprise.
While the Warriors won their last game behind a vintage 30-point performance from Kristaps Porzingis, they lost the previous five games including losses to sub-.500 teams in the Chicago Bulls and Utah Jazz. Playing against his former team, we could see Porzingis get involved in the scoring early with his advantage in the paint. Gui Santos has also been a positive revelation for the Warriors while Steph Curry has been out, averaging 18.2 PPG and quickly learning to create his own shot in space.
Still, the Celtics are clearly too deep and while the Warriors may have the slight advantage down low with Kristaps Porzingis and Draymond Green, the scoring from Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will be difficult to keep up with for a Warriors team averaging just 115.3 PPG.
Warriors vs. Celtics Prediction and Pick
This would be a much closer meeting if Steph Curry was available, but the Warriors will instead have to lean on Kristaps Porzingis to replicate his last performance against his former team in the Celtics. Watch for Brandin Podziemski and Gui Santos to be the recipients of some solid plays made by Draymond Green, but the Celtics are far too deep with their scoring to keep the Warriors competitive through all four quarters.
For our final prediction, we'll side with the Boston Celtics to cover the spread at home. With the implied total set rather low, we can hope for a lopsided scoring effort out of the Celtics to help bring the final tally over.
Final Warriors-Celtics Prediction & Pick: Boston Celtics -12.5 (-110); OVER 214.5 (-110)
