Can Celtics Actually Sweep Nets? How Oddsmakers View Shocking Scenario

The conversation has shifted in wake of the Boston Celtics defeating the Brooklyn Nets in the first two games of the teams’ first-round NBA playoff series.

Now, it’s not simply a matter of whether the Celtics can beat the Nets. Rather, there’s some debate as to whether Boston could sweep Brooklyn.

Admittedly, this feels like putting the cart before the horse as it relates to the Celtics, who won at the buzzer in Game 1 and overcame a 17-point deficit in Game 2. The series shifts to Brooklyn for Games 3 and 4, and the Nets are capable of exploding offensively thanks to the superstar tandem of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving — both of whom have endured struggles in the series.

But, we can’t completely write off the possibility of Boston dispatching Brooklyn in four games. Celtics head coach Ime Udoka has drawn up a brilliant game plan to slow the Nets’ top dogs, with Durant’s performance being especially bad, and Boston is playing inspired basketball so far this postseason.

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So, what do the odds say?

DraftKings Sportsbook has odds for how many games each best-of-seven NBA playoff series will go, and oddsmakers still are leaning toward there ultimately being a winner-take-all showdown in Boston. A four-game sweep, meanwhile, has the longest odds ahead of Game 3.

Here are the odds, courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook, for how long the Celtics-Nets series will last:

Seven games +180
Six games +260
Five games +260
Four games +400

These numbers obviously will change again after Game 3. If the Celtics win, pushing the Nets to the brink of elimination, a sweep will become far more attainable and the odds will reflect such.

With that in mind, if you like Boston to take care of business at Barclays Center, now is the time to act — although we’d probably advise against it given Brooklyn’s talent and the tightly contested nature of the first two games at TD Garden.