The Indiana Pacers know they let Game 1 get away. Can they even up the Eastern Conference Finals tonight against the Boston Celtics?
The odds rather strongly suggest no. Indiana will most likely fall into a 2-0 hole, a three-bucket spread too large to expect an upset. Then again, the same could have been said in Game 1.
Let’s put together a same-game parlay to keep the game — and our NBA picks — intriguing, all part of our full Pacers vs. Celtics predictions before tip at 8:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 23.
Pacers vs Celtics parlay picks May 23
- Celtics -9
- Tyrese Haliburton Over 3.5 made threes
- Jayson Tatum Over 10.5 rebounds
(+700 at BetRivers)
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Best Pacers vs Celtics parlay picks for Thursday
NBA parlay pick
Celtics -9
Tyrese Haliburton Over 3.5 threes
Jayson Tatum Over 10.5 rebounds
The Boston Celtics have lost or nearly lost three times in this postseason. They lost Game 2 in each of their first two series, and then they needed luck, a few Indiana Pacers mistakes, and overtime to pull out Game 1 of this series.
In each of the two previous setbacks, Boston responded resoundingly, covering two spreads akin to tonight's -9 (-9.5 at Miami and -7.5 at Cleveland) by 10.5 and 5.5 points, respectively.
And as well as Indiana played in Game 1, it was the beneficiary of some lousy shooting. The Celtics were just 15 of 45 from deep, well below their postseason average of 38.5% before that game. Taking 45.5% of their shots from deep was a slight drop from their postseason average of 47.1%, but not a noticeable one.
Hitting a couple more threes should be expected, and that will not only boost Boston’s scoring but will also reduce a few Indiana fast-break opportunities.
Without transition chances, Tyrese Haliburton has shown a reluctance to drive into the lane in these playoffs. He has taken at least 10 3-point attempts in nine of his last 12 games and is shooting from beyond the arc on 64.9% of his field-goal attempts.
More long shots lead to more long rebounds and more chances for Jayson Tatum’s positioning and athleticism to pay off. He already had a rebounding edge against Indiana before Haliburton changed his shot selection. In five games against the Pacers this year, Tatum has grabbed at least a dozen rebounds in four of them, averaging 11.2 rebounds per game compared to 7.9 rebounds in his 70 other regular-season games.
Tatum had already leveled up his rebounding in this postseason, averaging 10.4 boards before Game 1 against Indiana, when he grabbed 12. This prop should be raised to 11.5, but until it is, it should be included in just about every piece of action in this series.
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