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NBA Preview: The Cavaliers have some questions to answer on Tuesday. Will LeBron James miss his first opening night game? Will Kyrie Irving be booed in his return to Cleveland in a Celtics’ uniform?
Boston Celtics (0-0) at Cleveland Cavaliers (0-0), Tuesday, 8 p.m. EST
Line: Cavaliers -3.5. Total 212.5.
When it comes to drama, the NBA got lucky with their matchup on Tuesday night’s season opener.
A blockbuster trade was announced between the Cavaliers and the Celtics just eight days after the NBA released their 2017-18 schedule on August 14. Kyrie Irving wanted out of Cleveland in July. He got his wish on August 22, when he was shipped to Boston for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn's 2018 unprotected first-round pick.
The trade set off a firestorm on Twitter and with all the talking heads on sports television. LeBron is allegedly angry at Kyrie. Thomas is allegedly ticked off at Danny Ainge for making the trade. Then the talk of Thomas's hip injury being more severe than everyone thought. As it turns out, Thomas may not return until January. Will Irving be cheered or booed on opening night? Will King James even play opening night due to his ankle injury?
After eight weeks, all of the drama can be set aside as the teams meet tonight at Quicken Loans Arena.
I felt this game would be an easy one to handicap after Irving was traded to Boston. LeBron James would want to exact revenge for being slighted by Irving as the reason he demanded the trade. The Celtics’ starting lineup had more turnover than the Cavaliers’ starting lineup did at the time.
Teams with more turnover in their starting lineups from one season to the next tend to get off to slow starts until the starting unit develops more cohesion. So six weeks ago, I was ready to select Cleveland as a double-digit winner on opening day against the Celtics.
However, the Cavaliers kept adding veterans to their squad. On September 26, Dwayne Wade signed a one-year deal with the Cavs. Kevin Love moved to center. Tristan Thompson will now be coming off to the bench. JR Smith moved to the bench to create a starting spot for Wade.
Suddenly, the Cavs have only two players from their postseason starting lineup on their opening day starting lineup. And Love is now playing a different position. Al Horford is the only remaining starter left from their final playoff game on May 25, a 135-102 loss in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.
So we have two teams with a lot of upheaval in their starting lineups from last season. If you look at the preseason games, the Celtics went 4-0 while Cleveland went 1-4. LeBron only played one preseason game, a loss to the Chicago Bulls 108-94 at home.
Can we take any stock in the results of preseason games? The Celtics new lineup is certainly playing with more flow and cohesion than the Cavaliers new lineup. Gordon Hayward is playing well and Irving was impressive in his final two preseason games.
King James is a game-time decision as of this minute for the opener due to his sprained ankle. So I will wait until Tuesday to have a selection on this game. I will re-post this article with an edit at the bottom with a selection.
NBA Fantasy Information
Best values: Derrick Rose averaged 35.7 fantasy points against Boston last year while playing for the Knicks. At $5500 on FanDuel, you can bypass two of the three big names at PG and use Rose.
Jayson Tatum of the Celtics is likely to start on Tuesday and is a play if you are looking for a low-rent play at SF for $3500.
Kyrie Irving is a must play at PG for Boston at $8200 due to his performance in the preseason.
Kevin Love also looks like a bargain to me for $7000 at PF as you are getting a Center at the power forward position and I think a lot of centers will have issues guarding him at the three-point line. Love will also get more rebounds with this Cavaliers starting five with Thompson coming off the bench. He will also be their second scoring option after LeBron now that Kyrie has left town, so his scoring should go up this year.
Houston Rockets (0-0) at Golden State Warriors (0-0), Tuesday, 10:30 p.m. EST
Line: Warriors -9. Total 230.5.
Golden State was able to retain the core of their championship team from last year. The Warriors are a big favorite to repeat as champs this season.
How big of a favorite are they?
News from Las Vegas is that the Warriors are the biggest preseason favorite in the history of the four major North American sports to win the championship this year. Their preseason win total opened at 66.5 wins, which is a new record for the NBA.
And why not? Golden State has a bench is deeper than it has ever been and they have something that nobody else has: the Big 4. No team has four players who can match the talent level of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
The addition of Chris Paul has the talking heads putting the Rockets high up on the list of Western Conference contenders looking to dethrone the Warriors.
Golden State beat the Rockets three out of four games last season. The Warriors only loss came in their first matchup with Houston at Oracle Arena, in overtime, 132-127 on December 1.
Can Houston repeat that feat this season? Golden State lost 129-100 in their season opener last year at Oracle to the San Antonio Spurs. However, that was the Warriors first regular season game with Durant, and they were admittedly a bit out of synch.
However, Golden State finished the regular season 67-15 and then set multiple playoff records by finishing 16-1 and winning their first 15 playoff games last season.
I do not see the Warriors being out of sync on opening night this year.
Since Green is a game-time decision for Golden State with a lower back issue, I will hold off on making a selection until later on Tuesday.
NBA Fantasy Information
Best selections: Durant (SF) averaged 67.5 fantasy points per game (PPG) against Houston last year in four games based on the new scoring system FanDuel has for the 20017-18 season.
James Harden averaged 55.2 fantasy PPG last year vs. Golden State in four games. I am not sure how the addition of Chris Paul will affect his fantasy points for the season, but for this game, he should get over 50 as this should be a run-and-gun contest from start to finish as the 230.5 Vegas game total dictates.
Sleeper: If you are looking for a bargain that will afford you to buy a few more big-name players, then I would suggest Jordan Bell of the Warriors. This rookie is a stud. Coach Steve Kerr will have no choice but to give him more and more minutes as the season progresses. Bell had 38.2 fantasy points in 25 minutes of the Warriors’ final preseason game as a starter. He will not start for Golden State in the regular season barring an injury or a player resting but he will come off the bench. Bell also scored 21.2 fantasy points in just 7 minutes off the bench in another preseason game. He shot over 60% in all four of his preseason games. He is quick and athletic. His minutes will be low early in the season but keep an eye on him.
Edit: 7:32 p.m. EST
Selections:
Sides: (1) Hou +9, (2) Bos +4.
Totals: (1) Hou ov 228.5, (2) Bos ov 214.
I am not going to bet any of these on opening night. Do not like betting totals early in the season. Second half bets are in play this year and I will post them as fast as I can.
Notes: Cleveland’s roster looks impressive from top to bottom and King James has an ax to grind with Kyrie, but Boston played better as a unit in the preseason and I expect a big game from Irving.
Golden State has their best roster from top to bottom ever and has the potential to blow anyone out on any given night. Lines will be inflated against the Warriors all season long, but for good reason. I will be curious to see how many games Golden State can cover this year battling those inflated Vegas numbers. I am tempted to bet the Rockets because I generally like to go against teams having their ring ceremony on opening night. Houston is getting 9 points for crying out loud. The Rockets won at Oracle in overtime in their first trip in on December 1, 2016.
Boston Celtics (0-0) at Cleveland Cavaliers (0-0), Tuesday, 8 p.m. EST
Line: Cavaliers -3.5. Total 212.5.
When it comes to drama, the NBA got lucky with their matchup on Tuesday night’s season opener.
A blockbuster trade was announced between the Cavaliers and the Celtics just eight days after the NBA released their 2017-18 schedule on August 14. Kyrie Irving wanted out of Cleveland in July. He got his wish on August 22, when he was shipped to Boston for Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic and Brooklyn's 2018 unprotected first-round pick.
The trade set off a firestorm on Twitter and with all the talking heads on sports television. LeBron is allegedly angry at Kyrie. Thomas is allegedly ticked off at Danny Ainge for making the trade. Then the talk of Thomas's hip injury being more severe than everyone thought. As it turns out, Thomas may not return until January. Will Irving be cheered or booed on opening night? Will King James even play opening night due to his ankle injury?
After eight weeks, all of the drama can be set aside as the teams meet tonight at Quicken Loans Arena.
I felt this game would be an easy one to handicap after Irving was traded to Boston. LeBron James would want to exact revenge for being slighted by Irving as the reason he demanded the trade. The Celtics’ starting lineup had more turnover than the Cavaliers’ starting lineup did at the time.
Teams with more turnover in their starting lineups from one season to the next tend to get off to slow starts until the starting unit develops more cohesion. So six weeks ago, I was ready to select Cleveland as a double-digit winner on opening day against the Celtics.
However, the Cavaliers kept adding veterans to their squad. On September 26, Dwayne Wade signed a one-year deal with the Cavs. Kevin Love moved to center. Tristan Thompson will now be coming off to the bench. JR Smith moved to the bench to create a starting spot for Wade.
Suddenly, the Cavs have only two players from their postseason starting lineup on their opening day starting lineup. And Love is now playing a different position. Al Horford is the only remaining starter left from their final playoff game on May 25, a 135-102 loss in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals.
So we have two teams with a lot of upheaval in their starting lineups from last season. If you look at the preseason games, the Celtics went 4-0 while Cleveland went 1-4. LeBron only played one preseason game, a loss to the Chicago Bulls 108-94 at home.
Can we take any stock in the results of preseason games? The Celtics new lineup is certainly playing with more flow and cohesion than the Cavaliers new lineup. Gordon Hayward is playing well and Irving was impressive in his final two preseason games.
King James is a game-time decision as of this minute for the opener due to his sprained ankle. So I will wait until Tuesday to have a selection on this game. I will re-post this article with an edit at the bottom with a selection.
NBA Fantasy Information
Best values: Derrick Rose averaged 35.7 fantasy points against Boston last year while playing for the Knicks. At $5500 on FanDuel, you can bypass two of the three big names at PG and use Rose.
Jayson Tatum of the Celtics is likely to start on Tuesday and is a play if you are looking for a low-rent play at SF for $3500.
Kyrie Irving is a must play at PG for Boston at $8200 due to his performance in the preseason.
Kevin Love also looks like a bargain to me for $7000 at PF as you are getting a Center at the power forward position and I think a lot of centers will have issues guarding him at the three-point line. Love will also get more rebounds with this Cavaliers starting five with Thompson coming off the bench. He will also be their second scoring option after LeBron now that Kyrie has left town, so his scoring should go up this year.
Houston Rockets (0-0) at Golden State Warriors (0-0), Tuesday, 10:30 p.m. EST
Line: Warriors -9. Total 230.5.
Golden State was able to retain the core of their championship team from last year. The Warriors are a big favorite to repeat as champs this season.
How big of a favorite are they?
News from Las Vegas is that the Warriors are the biggest preseason favorite in the history of the four major North American sports to win the championship this year. Their preseason win total opened at 66.5 wins, which is a new record for the NBA.
And why not? Golden State has a bench is deeper than it has ever been and they have something that nobody else has: the Big 4. No team has four players who can match the talent level of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
The addition of Chris Paul has the talking heads putting the Rockets high up on the list of Western Conference contenders looking to dethrone the Warriors.
Golden State beat the Rockets three out of four games last season. The Warriors only loss came in their first matchup with Houston at Oracle Arena, in overtime, 132-127 on December 1.
Can Houston repeat that feat this season? Golden State lost 129-100 in their season opener last year at Oracle to the San Antonio Spurs. However, that was the Warriors first regular season game with Durant, and they were admittedly a bit out of synch.
However, Golden State finished the regular season 67-15 and then set multiple playoff records by finishing 16-1 and winning their first 15 playoff games last season.
I do not see the Warriors being out of sync on opening night this year.
Since Green is a game-time decision for Golden State with a lower back issue, I will hold off on making a selection until later on Tuesday.
NBA Fantasy Information
Best selections: Durant (SF) averaged 67.5 fantasy points per game (PPG) against Houston last year in four games based on the new scoring system FanDuel has for the 20017-18 season.
James Harden averaged 55.2 fantasy PPG last year vs. Golden State in four games. I am not sure how the addition of Chris Paul will affect his fantasy points for the season, but for this game, he should get over 50 as this should be a run-and-gun contest from start to finish as the 230.5 Vegas game total dictates.
Sleeper: If you are looking for a bargain that will afford you to buy a few more big-name players, then I would suggest Jordan Bell of the Warriors. This rookie is a stud. Coach Steve Kerr will have no choice but to give him more and more minutes as the season progresses. Bell had 38.2 fantasy points in 25 minutes of the Warriors’ final preseason game as a starter. He will not start for Golden State in the regular season barring an injury or a player resting but he will come off the bench. Bell also scored 21.2 fantasy points in just 7 minutes off the bench in another preseason game. He shot over 60% in all four of his preseason games. He is quick and athletic. His minutes will be low early in the season but keep an eye on him.
Edit: 7:32 p.m. EST
Selections:
Sides: (1) Hou +9, (2) Bos +4.
Totals: (1) Hou ov 228.5, (2) Bos ov 214.
I am not going to bet any of these on opening night. Do not like betting totals early in the season. Second half bets are in play this year and I will post them as fast as I can.
Notes: Cleveland’s roster looks impressive from top to bottom and King James has an ax to grind with Kyrie, but Boston played better as a unit in the preseason and I expect a big game from Irving.
Golden State has their best roster from top to bottom ever and has the potential to blow anyone out on any given night. Lines will be inflated against the Warriors all season long, but for good reason. I will be curious to see how many games Golden State can cover this year battling those inflated Vegas numbers. I am tempted to bet the Rockets because I generally like to go against teams having their ring ceremony on opening night. Houston is getting 9 points for crying out loud. The Rockets won at Oracle in overtime in their first trip in on December 1, 2016.
