Cleveland Cavaliers vs Indiana Pacers Prediction, 12/31/2020 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Indiana Pacers

Date: Thursday, December 31, 2020

Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

TV: Fox Sports Indiana

Odds/Point Spread: Cleveland (+8)

Bankers Life Fieldhouse is the venue where and the Indiana Pacers (3-1) will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers (3-1) on Thursday. Indiana opens this matchup as 8-point favorites. The over/under opens at 219.5.

The Cleveland Cavaliers faced the New York Knicks and took a loss by a score of 95-86 in their last game. Cleveland ended with a 36.4% field goal percentage (32 of 88) and buried 7 of their 32 shots from downtown. At the free throw line, the Cavaliers converted 15 of 22 tries for a percentage of 68.2%. Concerning rebounding, they collected a total of 43 with 14 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 22 assists for the game while getting 13 steals and 10 rejections. In the matter of defense, Cleveland allowed their opponent to shoot 43.0% from the field on 34 out of 79 shooting. New York dished out 23 assists and had 9 steals for the matchup. In addition, the Knicks snagged 55 rebounds (14 offensive, 41 defensive) and had 6 blocked shots. New York ended up shooting 61.9% when shooting free throws by knocking down 13 of 21 attempts. They also knocked down 14 of their 25 shots from distance.

Collin Sexton is a player who was a factor for the contest. He racked up 20 points on 6 of 17 shooting. He was on the court for 40:35 minutes and also snagged 2 rebounds. Sexton finished 35.3% from the floor and also totaled 4 assists. Someone else that came through in this game for the Cavaliers was Andre Drummond. He grabbed 17 rebounds and also tallied 2 dimes. He finished the game shooting 53.8% from the field for the game via 7-of-13 (18 points). Overall, Drummond was on the court for 33:28 min.

Cleveland steps onto the hardwood with a mark of 3-1 on the campaign. They are averaging 113.3 points per contest (16th in basketball) while hitting 47.7% from the floor. The Cavaliers are connecting on 37.4% on shots from 3-point land (43 of 115) and 70.5% from the free throw line. As a unit, Cleveland is snagging 47.3 boards per contest and has racked up 116 assists this year, which is 1st in basketball in terms of passing. They are turning it over 17.3 times per contest and as a team they commit 21.3 fouls per game. When they are on defense, the Cavaliers are forcing 22.0 turnovers per contest while drawing 19.3 fouls. They are relinquishing 38.4% on shots from downtown and they are 5th in basketball in PPG allowed (105.5). The Cavaliers defensively are allowing a field goal percentage of 43.9% (88 of 77) and they relinquish 45.8 boards per game as a unit. They are ranked 22nd in basketball in allowing assists to the opposition with 100 relinquished so far this year.

When they last played, the Indiana Pacers went home defeated by a final of 116-111 against the Boston Celtics. The Pacers collected 32 defensive rebounds and 4 offensive boards totaling 36 in this contest. They blocked 5 attempts while earning 9 steals for the game. The Celtics had 16 fouls in this matchup which took the Pacers to the charity stripe for a total of 16 shots. They were able to bury 13 of the free throw attempts for a rate of 81.3%. In terms of three-point shots, Indiana converted 12 of their 33 attempts (36.4%). In all, the Pacers shot 43 for 84 from the floor which had them shooting 51.2%. The Pacers permitted the Celtics to convert 40 of their 80 attempts from the floor which had them at 50.0% in this matchup. They went 40.9% from three-point range by connecting on 9 out of 22 and finished the game at 27 out of 37 from the free throw line (73.0%). When it comes to how they cleaned up the glass, Indiana permitted Boston to pull down 43 overall (12 offensive).

Victor Oladipo was important for the Pacers in this contest. He made 10 out of 18 in this game giving him a rate of 55.6%, which earned him 24 points. Oladipo collected 6 rebounds in his 34:25 minutes of time on the court and accounted for 6 assists for the contest. An additional guy who came through for Indiana was Malcolm Brogdon. He notched 19 points in 34:35 minutes on the hardwood via 7 of 15 from the floor in the matchup. Brogdon ended the game having shot 46.7% from the floor in addition to earning 7 dimes and 3 boards.

Indiana has a mark of 3-1 this year. The Pacers have committed 23.8 personal fouls every game and they go 72.2% from the free throw line. They are earning an assist 28.0 times per contest (4th in the league) and they turn it over 15.0 times per contest. Indiana has totaled 465 pts on the campaign (116.3 per game) and they collect 43.0 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Pacers are connecting on 51.8% from the field, which has them ranked 1st in basketball. The Pacers on the defensive side of the court are 9th in the NBA in PPG given up with 109.0. They relinquish 22.5 assists and 41.0 boards every game, which has them ranked 6th and 5th in the NBA. The Indiana defense concedes 41.1% on shots from distance (46 of 112) and their opponents are knocking down 77.1% of their shots from the free throw line. They have forced 17.0 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 45.7% from the floor (12th in the league).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Cleveland (+8)

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