With both teams handling the Boston Celtics in their season openers, the game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Milwaukee Bucks is a perfect opportunity to invoke another punch to a big team and give themselves a nitro boost early in the season.
Cavaliers at Bucks
Spread: Cleveland -2 (-110) at BetDSI Sportsbook
Total: over 211 (-110)
Cleveland fans boo Kyrie Irving, Cavs barely win opener
It’s never easy to play the first game of the season, and the circumstances of the Cavs playing one against the rival Celtics and recent fan favorite Kyrie Irving made thing even harder. The Cavs responded well, even with the game interrupted with gruesome Hayward’s injury, enjoying a good shooting first half to get an 18-point lead. The Celtics responded and Cavs head coach Lue got outcoached again as the Cavs lost all of their big lead by playing static offense and got lost in weird rotations. James wouldn’t let his team lose, but they were also lucky to see some open Celtics threes bounce off the rim in the last minutes of the game. In the end, it was a good win, but not an encouraging one. Love at center and the small lineup of Cavs were quickly figured defensively, and the lack of their former strong suit, rebounding, was very obvious as soon as their shots stopped falling. Rose and Wade had a decent enough game, and they should combine their qualities with the rest of the Cavs better over time, but when all’s said and done, it was mostly James and Love. This was barely enough on Tuesday, and it doesn’t get much easier with a trip to Wisconsin.
The Bucks are young, but not Boston young, they have been playing together for a couple of seasons, so the Cavs will have to step it up. Their next opponent plays with four smalls, so there will be no need to tinker with the lineups much if at all. This is where Jae Crowder’s abilities come into play, as he can spill James and guard Antetokounmpo. On the other hand, penetration of Wade and Rose, and James of course could break down Bucks defense that tries to hold the ball in front of them all. Mostly, for the Cavs, it will come down to execution. They won’t win too many games scoring around 100 points, not in today’s NBA.
There are no new injury concerns with the Cavs, but it’s worth mentioning that James may have tweaked his painful ankle by the end of the last game, so keep an eye on the team news.
Place: BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Date/Time: Friday, October 20th, 2017. 7:00 PM ET
TV Coverage: ESPN
The Bucks win in Boston, 108-100
The Milwaukee Bucks are this season’s dark horse to make some significant damage in the East, and they get to showcase their talents against both conference finalists in their first two games of the season. On Wednesday, the Bucks won a nailbiter against the physically and emotionally tired Celtics and will open up the home season against the James and the Cavaliers.
Similar to what had Cavaliers accomplished, a close win over Boston doesn’t give the Bucks much reason to cheer, as they played nothing more than a solid game. They struggled in the half court, failing to generate enough movement and good passing angles against compact Celtics defense, but capitalized in transition, forcing the young and inexperienced Boston players to make decisions on the fly. It’s similar to what had been working for the Bucks last year. It will work against most teams, especially those with less attention on protecting the ball. The Bucks haven’t been able to steal the ball from Celts too frequently but did play a very good defense. They contested shots, playing a big part in holding their opponents to below 43 percent shooting. Still, it’s worth mentioning that they only created separation by an 11-1 run in the fourth quarter, and that the Celtics shot just 11-of-21 from the free throw line.
Antetokounmpo has the high point man with 37 points, as he couldn’t be stopped after a slow start to the game. He got help from the usual suspects, with Dellavedova picking up a highlight three-pointer to secure the win. Despite their so-so game, there’s no reason not to believe that they can beat the Cavaliers as well if their division rivals fail to play their best.
Cleveland Cavaliers at Milwaukee Bucks Game Trends & Prediction
The Cavaliers failed to cover the spread in the first game, as the 3-point win counts as an ATS loss compared to the closing line. If you had jumped on them early, you may have earned yourself a push. The game was also played will low shooting percentages and failed to reach anywhere near the expected total points line.
The Bucks had opened as a 6/6.5 points underdogs, but the spread was changed after Hayward’s injury, aiding them with only about 2 points at most bookies. As they managed to win outright, they have also covered this spread. The total points counts as an over, but the market had been spot on with the expectation here, as the closing line was topped by just a few points.
A unique ranking system – AdmiRank helps you understand how good NBA teams are on a scale to 100. Not counting for the home court advantage, the Cavaliers are still claiming the high rank, but the Bucks are trending in the right direction and could catch up with the three-time NBA finalists in last three seasons.
The Bucks won only one of the last season’s meetings, at home, playing another home game to overtime. Kyrie Irving caused most damage besides James, averaging 28.5 points per game, so with him out of the picture, the Bucks do have a better chance to protect their home court in this game.
The Cavaliers have been set as a 2 point favorite in Milwaukee, and I don’t like the number. Yes, James is always impressive, and the matchup is more natural for the Cavs, but these Bucks shouldn’t be ignored. I’m going with pick ‘em here and will be taking both the Bucks to cover and win outright and the over, which is also valuable enough. Both teams will play small, can shoot a high percentage on threes and will look to push the ball. That’s giving me enough confidence despite the importance of the game.
My Pick: Milwaukee +2 (-110) and ml (+115)
Total: over 211 points
