Cavaliers vs. Celtics Odds: Why Boston Is Favored To Beat Cleveland, LeBron James

It took just two games for the Boston Celtics to go from the clear underdogs to the prohibitive favorites in the Eastern Conference Finals. After cruising to a 2-0 series lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston is nearing an unlikely trip to the 2018 NBA Finals.

Having the best player in the series--as well as the world--hasn’t been enough for the Cavs to challenge the Celtics on the road. Boston held LeBron James to just 15 points in their 25-point Game 1 victory. Even as James managed to produce a 42-point triple-double in Game 2, Boston won 107-94, pulling away in the fourth quarter.

James was able to carry Cleveland past the Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors without much help. It appears this Celtics’ team is too good to let one player beat them.

Boston has shown why they finished the regular season with the NBA’s best defensive efficiency. They’ve got a slew of long, athletic players that can defend multiple positions, giving Cleveland few opportunities to exploit mismatches. The Celtics rotate and help on defense better than anyone, making the Cavs work for every basket.

Look no further than the second half of Game 2 when Boston outscored Cleveland by 20 points. The Cavs had just three uncontested field-goal attempts compared to 20 for the Celtics.

Cleveland has been forced to rely on players that lack lateral quickness and seemingly refuse to defend sometimes. Boston puts five players on the court at a time who know how to play defense as a unit.

Too often the Cavs stand around on offense and wait for James to create a play. The Celtics are constantly moving and sharing the basketball.

“I think you can actually take a lot from the Boston Celtics,” Kevin Love told reporters after Game 2. “They had all their starters in double figures, and that comes a lot, I think, with not only Stevens putting them in the right position but their level of activity. They move the ball, they continue to cut. [Marcus Smart] was a plus-21 in this game. He just seems to do everything out there on the floor. I think we can definitely learn from them, and we have guys that are very capable, too, so we just need them to be themselves.”

Much of the credit goes to Brad Stevens, who might be the best head coach in the entire league. Stevens puts Boston in a position to best maximize its talent. The Celtics won’t beat themselves like the Raptors did at times against Cleveland, making Boston’s series lead that much safer.

Ninety-five percent of teams that win the first two games at home in the best-of-seven series go on to win that series. Boston is a perfect 38-0 when leading a series 2-0.

The series isn’t over, not when the Cavs haven’t even played a home game. The Celtics won the first two games of the first round before the Milwaukee Bucks won three times at home and forced a deciding Game 7. Boston is 1-4 on the road this postseason, and Cleveland is 5-1 at Quicken Loans Arena.

But a fourth straight meeting between Cleveland and Golden State is in serious peril.