Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics Expert Predictions and Player Props Feb 23
Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics Betting Preview
WagerTalk NBA handicapper Andy Lang offers his expert predictions and player props for tonight’s Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics battle from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN. The Celtics went into the all-star break winning four of their past five with the Pacers losing four of their past five games.
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Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics Betting Odds
| Thursday, February 23 | NBA Betting Notes, Courtesy of Caesars |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Indiana Pacers +8 vs Boston Celtics |
| Total: | 232.5 Points |
| Arena: | Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN |
| Game Time: | 7:00pm ET / 4:00pm PT |
| TV: | NBC Sports Boston |
Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics Betting Analysis
The Boston Celtics begin the second half of the NBA season on the road against the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night.
The Pacers snapped a five game losing streak with a 117-113 comeback victory over the Chicago Bulls last Wednesday. The Celtics beat the Detroit Pistons 127-109 at home in their last action before the break.
This will be the second of three games in a regular season series that Indiana leads 1-0 after a 117-112 in Boston on December 21st. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 PM EST/4:00 PST from Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Celtics Push For Top Seed
The Boston Celtics upped their record to an NBA best 42-17 on the season after winning against Detroit prior to All-Star festivities. Boston dominated the glass with a 43-35 rebounding advantage.
Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 38 points along with 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Malcolm Brogdon added 25 points off the bench on 10-14 from the floor while Derrick White chipped in with 11 points and 6 assists.
Boston still has the leagues best record but the Milwaukee Bucks are only a half game behind. The Celtics are an elite scoring team, ranking 4th with 117.9 points a game on 47.4% from the floor.
They also sit at 4th in defensive rating and 7th in defensive scoring with only 111.7 points allowed per game.
Everyone is healthy for the Boston Celtics coming out of the break, but it looks like Jaylen Brown will be sporting a mask after suffering facial fractures from a Jayson Tatum elbow.
Pacing Themselves
The Indiana Pacers improved to 26-34 on the season after beating Chicago in their last game before the break.
Free throws proved to be the difference as the Pacers went 21-22 95.5% from the charity stripe while Chicago went only 16-21 76.2%. Buddy Hield led his team in scoring with 27 points on an efficient 8-12 from the field and 6-10 from three-point land.
Aaron Nesmith added 21 points and 7 rebounds while Myles Turner chipped in with 17 points and 9 rebounds. Indiana currently occupies the 12th seed in the Eastern Conference, 16.5 games behind the first place Celtics and 2.5 games short of a spot in the play-in tournament.
The Pacers are middle of the pack in scoring with 114.5 points a game on 45.9% from the field. Defense has been a struggle as they sit at 23rd in defensive rating and 22nd in defensive scoring with 117.1 points allowed per game. Indiana sports a clean injury report, a breath of fresh air nowadays.
Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics Expert Player Prop Prediction
The Boston Celtics enter this contest as 8 point road favorites with a total set 232. The Celtics are a mission for an NBA Championship while the Pacers sit in no man’s land with no hopes of a title or high draft pick.
This is a great matchup for Jaylen Brown on paper based on the Pacers defensive liabilities but we will be looking to utilize a “fade the mask theory” tonight.
His Points + Rebounds + Assists total is set at 34.5 and he fell short of that in 5 of 8 games before leaving the game against Philadelphia on February 8th.
Brown also fell short of this mark in his lone game against Indiana as he landed on 31 PRA on December 21st in a game where Marcus Smart didn’t play. Now Smart is back in the lineup which will surely take away some assists and scoring opportunities.
Brown will need time to adjust to mask as a shooter and won’t be looking to stick his beak into tough rebounding situations.
The Celtics are as healthy as they have been in some time, so look for the minutes to be distributed accordingly. Brown hasn’t had actually game action in weeks so conditioning could also factor in.
Bottom line, Brown fell short of this number in December in a better situation. Let’s “fade the mask” tonight in Indianapolis.
Player Prop Prediction: Jaylen Brown Under 34.5 Points + Rebounds + Assists -110 Draftkings
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NBA Tip-Off Show | February 23
Join Joe Raineri and a rotating panel of professional handicappers for the NBA Tip-Off Show as we preview tonight’s NBA card from a betting perspective. We’ll go well beyond the Indiana Pacers vs Boston Celtics.
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Meet the Author
Andy Lang has lived in Indianapolis his whole life, and like most people from the Hoosier State, he became fascinated with motor sports. That interest in motor sports turned into a desire to make money off the sport through fantasy contests and sports betting. Like most, he took his lumps when he first got started, but now he is one of the most respected NASCAR bettors in the industry. Andy has expanded that sports betting experience to become profitable in a number of other sports, transforming this interest from a side hobby to a major source of income.
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