5 Eastern Conference First Round NBA Betting Picks

Will LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers sweep Paul George and the Indiana Pacers?  Can Isaiah Thomas and the suddenly reeling Boston Celtics overcome personal tragedy and a suddenly dangerous Chicago Bulls team to advance? Last but not least, what about John Wall and the Washington Wizards and that ‘Greek Freak’ fellow in Milwaukee? With the first round of NBA betting playoff action at its unofficial midway point, now is the perfect time for some expert Eastern Conference playoff predictions on just what will take place over the next few days of first round action. Let’s get down to business.

5 Eastern Conference NBA Playoff First Round Betting Predictions

   

Not Quite Ripe for the Picking

If you thought LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers were ripe for the picking following their narrow 109-108 series-opening win over Paul George and the Indiana Pacers, think again. Sure, Cleveland has failed to cover the spread in both of the opening two games following their 117-111 win in Game 2 on Monday, just as I predicted on both occasions, but the Cavs are clearly the better team and will simply not be dispatched by the Pacers. I’m predicting the Cavs to lose either Game 3 or 4, but to eventually win their opening round matchup 4-1 – while going 1-4 ATS along the way.

Out of the Frying Pan…

Yup, Isaiah Thomas and the top-seeded Boston Celtics are officially out of the frying pan and into the fire in their first round playoff series against the eighth-seeded Chicago Bulls following their humbling 111-97 Game 2 loss to Jimmy Butler and company on Tuesday night. Boston has been outplayed at both ends of the floor and really, never had a chance to win either game while getting out-rebounded by a whopping 21 boards in Game 1. From where I’m sitting, it’s now crystal clear that the Celtics simply don’t have enough offensive firepower to keep up with Jimmy Butler, Dwyane Wade and hell, even Rajon Rondo. Boston is going down and going down hard as I suspect they may get swept. The good news is that, by now, you should have recorded two winning wagers on this series if you took my pair of picks on Chicago to cover the spread. The Bulls sweep while going 3-1 ATS.

LeBron Who?

While I’m not quite prepared to say the Washington Wizards will beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in what looks like a second round meeting just waiting to happen, I am definitely going on record to say that John Wall and company present the biggest challenge to Cleveland’s conference dominance. After the Wiz dispatch Atlanta 4-1 in their opening round series (while going 4-1 ATS) Washington will take Cleveland the full seven games. You heard it here first.

The Freaks Come Out at Night!

Apparently, legendary rap group Whodini as right – the freaks really do come out at night! All jokes aside, even in Tuesday night’s 106-100 Game 2 loss to the Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis ‘The Greek Freak’ Antetokounmpo dominated by putting up 24 points and 15 rebounds, seven assists and two steals. His performance came on the heels of a Game 1 outing in which he put up 28 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and a pair of steals. Right now, I’m thinking the Toronto Raptors are in serious trouble against the Greek Freak and a Milwaukee Bucks team that is going to have a ton of motivation an extra confidence as they head home for Games 3 and 4. I’m smelling a Bucks series upset 4-2 while the Bucks go 5-1 ATS along the way.

Go See the Wizard

The Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks all need to ‘go see the wizard’ because all three team are severely lacking in the heart department, well, outside of Boston’s Isaiah Thomas that is. The trio of Eastern Conference title hopefuls has gone a combined 0-6 ATS heading into their respective Game 3 matchups and I believe all three will only cover the spread once before ultimately being jettisoned by their first round rivals.