Philadelphia 76ers vs Boston Celtics Prediction, 5/3/2023 Preview and Pick

Game: Philadelphia 76ers vs Boston Celtics

Date: Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Location: TD Garden in Boston, MA

TV: TNT

Odds/Point Spread: Philadelphia (+9)

The Philadelphia 76ers are traveling to TD Garden on Wednesday where they will compete against the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of their series. Boston opens this game as 9-point favorites from Vegas oddsmakers. The over/under comes in at 218.5.

The 76ers earned the victory with a final of 119-115 in Game 1. Philadelphia walked away from the game with a 50.6% FG percentage (45 of 89) and made 17 out of their 38 3-point attempts. At the free throw line, the 76ers made 12 of their 12 shots for a rate of 100.0%. In reference to rebounding, they earned 28 with 8 of them being of the offensive variety. They also dished out 17 dimes in this game in addition to forcing 16 turnovers and getting 10 steals. In terms of defending, Philadelphia allowed the other team to go 58.7% from the floor on 44 of 75 shooting. Boston earned 26 dimes and had 3 steals for the game. On top of that, Boston totaled 38 boards (8 offensive, 30 defensive) and got 4 rejections. Boston went 94.4% at the charity stripe by making 17 of their 18 shots. They converted 10 of their 26 shots from 3-point land. Concerning fouls, the 76ers ended up with 20 while the Celtics had 10 fouls.

James Harden is someone who was a major contributor in this game. He ended up finishing with 45 points on 17 of 30 shooting. He saw the court for 39 minutes played and also totaled 1 board. Harden shot 56.7% from the field and also recorded 6 dimes.

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Philadelphia steps onto the hardwood with a win-loss record of 54-28 on the year. They turn the ball over 13.7 times per contest and as a squad they are committing 20.4 fouls every game. As a unit, Philadelphia is pulling down 40.9 boards per contest and has accounted for 2,063 assists this season, which has them ranked 16th in the league in terms of passing. The 76ers are shooting 38.7% on shots from beyond the arc (1,035 of 2,675) and 83.5% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 115.2 points per game (14th in the league) while hitting 48.7% from the floor.

On defense, the 76ers are forcing their opponents into 14.3 turnovers every game and they draw 19.6 fouls. They rank 6th in the NBA in allowing assists to the opposition with 1,986 relinquished for the campaign. The 76ers are allowing a FG percentage of 47.3% (3,312 of 7,005) and they concede 41.2 rebounds per game as a basketball team. They are giving up 34.8% from beyond the arc and they are 3rd in the NBA in points per game allowed (110.9).

When talking about how they attacked the glass in Game 1, Boston permitted Philadelphia to get 28 in total (8 on the offensive glass). They shot 44.7% from beyond the perimeter by connecting on 17 of 38 and finished the game at 12 of 12 at the free throw line (100.0%). The Celtics permitted the 76ers to bury 45 of their 89 tries from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 50.6% for this game. When the final whistle was blown, the Celtics finished the game shooting 44 for 75 from the field which had them shooting 58.7%. When discussing shooting from distance, Boston converted 10 out of 26 attempts (38.5%). They were able to convert 17 of them for a rate of 94.4%. The 76ers were called for 20 fouls in this contest which took the Celtics to the charity stripe for a total of 18 attempts. They also gave up possession 16 times, while earning 3 steals in this contest. The Celtics earned 30 defensive boards and 8 offensive rebounds totaling 38 for this game.

Jayson Tatum was important for the Celtics for this game. Tatum had 39 points in his 44 minutes on the court and earned 5 dimes in this matchup. He made 14 out of 25 in this game for a rate of 56.0%, and totaled 11 rebounds.

Boston has a mark of 57-25 on the season. The Celtics commit 18.8 fouls per contest and they hit 81.2% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 26.7 times per contest (7th in basketball) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 13.4 times per game. Boston has scored 9,671 pts on the season (117.9 per game) and they collect 45.3 rebounds per game. As an offensive team, the Celtics are shooting 47.5% from the floor, which is 14th in the league.

The Celtics on defense are ranked 5th in the NBA in points allowed per contest with 111.4. They are able to force 12.7 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 46.3% from the floor (5th in the league). The Boston defense surrenders 34.5% from downtown (954 of 2,763) and opponents are converting on 76.9% of their shots from the free throw line. They surrender 23.1 dimes and 44.0 boards per contest, ranking them 2nd and 18th in basketball.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Philadelphia (+9)

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