NBA Odds: Celtics Favored Vs. Magic As They Look To Chase Down Raptors
The Boston Celtics will be looking to move into first place in the Atlantic Division standings on Friday night when they host the Orlando Magic as betting favorites on the NBA lines at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Boston ended a three-game straight-up losing streak with a 120-109 win over the Houston Rockets as a 4-point home underdog Wednesday and now sits just 1/2 game back of the faltering Raptors going into Friday night?s Magic vs. Celtics betting matchup at TD Garden.
The Celtics opened a busy week with a 123-108 loss in Washington as 1.5-point underdogs on Monday, extending the defensive woes that resulted in Boston giving up a massive 122.3 points per game during its recent slide.
But with the Raptors mired in a five-game SU losing streak, the Celtics have been able to gain ground on the three-time Atlantic champions despite posting a middling 4-4 SU record over their past eight, including a 114-106 loss in Toronto as 5.5-point underdogs two weeks ago.
Despite their recent inconsistency, the Celtics maintain a respectable 14-8 SU home record, including wins in eight of their past 10 at home, but are just 7-10 against the spread in their past 17 outings at TD Garden, according to the OddsShark NBA Database.
Orlando kicks off a three-game road trip in Boston looking to break out of a two-game SU losing streak, during which the Magic have averaged just 95 points per game. The Magic own a dismal 3-11 SU record since Dec. 28.
The Magic fell 100-92 to the Chicago Bulls as 3-point home underdogs on Tuesday following a 118-98 blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors as 13.5-point home underdogs two days earlier.
Wins have been hard to come by for the Magic in recent visits to Boston. Orlando?s last victory at TD Garden was almost seven years ago, and the Magic have lost 12 straight SU since then while going 10-1-1 ATS.
The Magic also topped 96 points just once during that losing stretch, averaging just 89.3 points per game, with the point total playing UNDER on seven occasions.
The Celtics keep busy with a visit from the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday. Milwaukee also has endured a difficult January, with just one SU win in seven games ahead of its visit to Toronto for Friday night?s Bucks vs. Raptors betting matchup at the Air Canada Centre.
The Bucks also are winless SU in two visits to Boston, and just 3-6 SU and ATS in their past nine overall against the Celtics, who are 7-1 SU and 5-3 ATS over their past eight in the second part of back-to-back games.
Thumbnail photo via Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports Images
