2018 Finals Preview: Warriors at Cavaliers Game 3 NBA Odds & Pick

2018 Finals Preview: Warriors at Cavaliers Game 3 NBA

Written by on June 5, 2018

No team has ever rallied from a 3-0 series deficit to win a playoff series in the NBA. That’s what the Cleveland Cavaliers will be facing if they lose Game 3 of their series Wednesday night at home against the Warriors. MyBookie oddsmakers favor Golden State in the NBA odds and do expect another Dubs victory.

How to Bet Warriors at Cavaliers NBA Odds & Game 3 Info

When: Wednesday, 9 PM ET Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland TV: ABC Stream: WatchESPN Radio: 95.7 FM (Golden State) / 1100 AM (Cleveland) NBA Odds for Game 3: Warriors -4.5 (217)

Why Bet on Golden State’s NBA Odds?

Let’s be honest here: This series is over. The Warriors aren’t going to lose four of the next five games. They might not sweep, but they will win a third title in four years barring injury. After getting very fortunate in Game 1, the Warriors’ dominance was on full display in Game 2 Sunday, beating Cleveland 122-103. It was the Warriors’ 13th win against the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals but their first in which they didn’t trail at any point. The Warriors were outscored in the 3rd quarter of Game 2 but still went on to win. The Warriors were 14-18 this season (including 1-2 in the playoffs) when losing the 3rd quarter entering Sunday. They were 57-11 when winning the 3rd. Stephen Curry scored 33 points and made a Finals record nine 3-pointers as well as having seven rebounds, eight assists and one steal. Not only were his nine 3-pointers a Finals record, but also a career playoff-high for Curry. He’s now averaging 31 points, 6.5 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game for the series and is the early NBA Finals MVP Favorite. It’s the basically the only award Curry hasn’t won.

How Was Durant in Game 2?

Kevin Durant scored 26 points (10-of-14 FG, 4-of-4 FT) and had nine rebounds, seven assists and two blocks in Game 2. He scored the same amount of points in Game 1 on Sunday but took eight more shots from the field and six more free throws. Durant made his first five shots of the night and had his best field goal percentage, 71.4 percent, since before the All-Star break. Klay Thompson was questionable with an ankle injury but scored 20 points, hitting three 3-pointers, and had two rebounds, one assist and one steal. He played 34 minutes and shot well throughout the entire game. After the game, he said, “he can be sore this offseason.” The Warriors could get back a key piece in Game 3 in Andre Iguodala. He has missed the past six games with a leg injury but as been “pain-free” over the last few days and plans to return sometime during the NBA Finals. “I aim to play in Game 3, but I’ve aimed to play in Game 2 and Game 3,” Iggy said Monday. “We’ll just have to see.”

Why Bet on Cleveland’s NBA Odds?

Are the Cavs a safe bet in the NBA odds to win Game 3? Teams to take a 2-0 series lead in the NBA Finals have a 29-4 record overall in that series. But the last team to overcome a 2-0 deficit in the Finals? The 2016 Cavaliers. In addition, the Warriors are just 4-4 on the road in the past three Finals. Cleveland is 8-1 at home in these playoffs. Over their current eight-game home win streak, Cleveland is outscoring its opponents by an average of 12.0 points (109.0-97.0), shooting .488 from the field and .391 from beyond the arc. LeBron James again was stellar in Game 2 with 29 points and had nine rebounds, 13 assists and two steals. He likely would have played all 48 minutes and notched a triple double had the game not turned into a blowout. At home in the 2018 playoffs, James is averaging 38.1 points per game. LeBron finished Game 2 with 1,327 points in his NBA Finals career. He now stands 2nd in NBA history, trailing only Jerry West. James has 80 points through the first 2 games of the Finals, the 4th-most in NBA Finals history. LeBron is setting up his teammates beautifully, but the other Cavs are 8-for-32 (25%) from 3-point off James passes in the Finals, including 5-16 (31%) when the attempt is uncontested.

What Records Did Lebron Break?

While James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1,318 points) for second place on the all-time Finals scoring list Sunday (in 47 games, compared to Abdul-Jabbar’s 56), he also passed Elgin Baylor for the second-most Finals losses in history, falling to 18-29 in the championship round. James is 3-4 in his career coming back from an 0-2 deficit in the playoffs, improving that mark in the Eastern Conference finals last month when James and the Cavs dropped the first two games in Boston only to complete the series comeback by beating the Celtics in Game 7 on the road. Kevin Love scored 22 points, hitting three 3-pointers, and had 10 rebounds, one assist, two steals and a block in Game 2. He had another good night after performing well in Game 1, despite coming out slow and shooting 2-of-10 from the field in the first half. Love has to be even better, though, if the Cavs are going to win a game this series. George Hill scored 15 points, hitting three 3-pointers, and had one rebound, three assists, two steals and one block Sunday. He said he stayed up all night rewatching his missed free throw that would have given the Cavs the lead with 4.7 seconds left in Game 1.

Latest NBA Finals Betting Trends

  • Golden State is 7-2-1 ATS in the last 10 games when playing Cleveland
  • Golden State is 4-1 SU in the last 5 games
  • The total wentUNDER in 9 of Golden State’s last 12 games
  • Cleveland is 5-2 ATS in the last 7 games
  • Cleveland is 5-0 SU in the last 5 games at home
  • The total went OVER in 4 of Cleveland’s last 6 games

Expert NBA Finals Betting Prediction for Game 3

The Cavaliers no doubt will play with much more energy, but they simply aren’t as good. Take the Dubs.