The NBA’s hottest team, the Boston Celtics, faces off against the Toronto Raptors Monday night. As the playoffs draw near, the Celtics are missing some of their star players. This includes Robert Williams, who suffered a torn meniscus according to Adrian Wojnarowski.
This news came out after we found out that Jayson Tatum, Jaylon Brown, and Al Horford would not play on Monday. Despite having the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, the Celtics are in a tough spot in Toronto.
Still, there is some value in betting tonight’s game between the Celtics and Raptors, with a spot to bet on NBA player props.
Celtics vs. Raptors odds
Odds provided by BetMGM
Spread: Celtics +7.5 vs. Raptors -7.5
Moneyline: Celtics +260 vs. Raptors -350
Total: Over 208.5 | Under 208.5
Fred VanVleet shoots a 3-poiinter against the Cavaliers Getty ImagesCeltics vs. Raptors prediction: ‘Under’ 208.5, -110 (BetMGM)
With Williams out indefinitely due to a torn meniscus and Horford not playing, the Celtics are without most of their size. At this point, they are left with just Daniel Theis as the lone center on their roster.
Since the Celtics are such big underdogs and are leading the league in defensive rating, I am targeting a total here. In the last three games that these two teams faced off, each one has gone under 208.5. The current total is the lowest it has been since opening at 220.5.
No Tatum and Brown means that most of the scoring and playmaking needs to be done by Payton Pritchard and Marcus Smart. Not exactly the best combo.
Best NBA player prop: Fred VanVleet over 2.5 3-pointers, -125 (BetMGM)
By far the best odds on the market at the time of writing. VanVleet always has the green light with his jump shot. In his last eight games, VanVleet is averaging nine 3-pointers per game. At that rate, he just needs to hit 33.3% of them, which is a low expectation compared to his 37.9% 3-point rate this season.
