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Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks: Picks, Predictions, Odds and Player Props

The 2024/25 NBA season is in full swing, and Saturday’s card features a couple of compelling matchups, including the Boston Celtics facing off against the Dallas Mavericks in an NBA Finals rematch from last summer. 

Ahead of this intriguing matchup in Dallas, it’s time to get into our expert’s Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks betting picks and predictions for Saturday’s big game. 

Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks betting picks and predictions

Dallas Mavericks +8.5 (-110)

After a split against the two Los Angeles teams earlier this week, the defending champion Boston Celtics head out to Dallas for a date with a Mavericks team that has been struggling of late.

For what it’s worth, neither side — especially the Celtics — is playing up to the level they were when they made that postseason run last year. It’s still unclear what is bothering Boston this season, as Joe Mazulla’s team has gone just 5-5 over their last 10 games while only covering the spread only five times in 15 games in January. 

Many people are pointing the finger at Jaylen Brown, whose numbers have dropped a bit over the past 10 games. Brown is averaging 19.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5.2 assists, while shooting just 41.7% from the field and 30% from beyond the arc, not exactly numbers that you often see from the reigning NBA Finals MVP.

Dallas is coming off a shocking win as massive underdogs against Oklahoma City, where they beat a Thunder team that was significantly favored at home. Spencer Dinwiddie and P.J. Washington stepped up in a big way with 28 and 22 points respectively. Washington also had a whopping 19 rebounds in the win, while Kyrie Irving added his standard 24 points. 

Luka Doncic will miss his 16th straight game on Saturday, as he’s not expected to return until after the All-Star break. Due to his absence, we are once again getting a solid spread on the Mavs as home underdogs.

Dallas has been pretty solid at home this year with 13 wins in 22 games, and our expert is anticipating that the Mavericks will show up in this spot. 

As for Boston, Derrick White is on the injury report heading into this game, which spells trouble for a Celtics team that could have a hard time defending Irving here.

Boston has been rather inefficient over their last 10 games, including four games of shooting under 40% and just two games of shooting over 50%. Not exactly a recipe for success on the road against a playoff-caliber team. 

The Mavs are very short-handed in this matchup, but they are playing at home and should have a chip on their shoulder going up against the team that beat them soundly in the NBA Finals last season. Given how uninspiring Boston has looked, let’s take our chances with the home team in this one.

Under 224.0 (-110)

While an over game script would traditionally go hand-in-hand with the healthier version of these teams, our expert is of the opinion that we’ll see a bit less scoring than usual in this one. 

There just aren’t many avenues for Dallas to succeed on offense. After all, the Mavericks are still missing their best shot creator in this game, and it’s hard to expect the rest of the supporting cast to pick up the slack against a high-level opponent. Dallas is averaging just 109.5 points per game since December 27, which is the eighth-worst mark in the NBA in that span.

As for the Celtics, Boston is putting up just 110.4 points per game in January — a far cry from the 121.2 they were averaging through the first two months of the season. Boston’s defense still ranks sixth in opponent points per game, and Dallas’ offense doesn’t present too much of a challenge, even if White ends up sitting this one out. 

There is a real possibility for the Mavs to cover the number in this game while still going under the total of 224.5, and that is the only way our expert can look in this matchup.

Read more betting picks and predictions for the NBA on site.

Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks odds

Boston Celtics

-340 ML

Dallas Mavericks

+270 ML

Spread

DAL Mavericks +8.5

Total Points

O/U 224.0

Boston Celtics vs. Dallas Mavericks player props

Player Points

Jayson Tatum (BOS Celtics)

O/U 25.5

Jaylen Brown (BOS Celtics)

O/U 21.5

Kristaps Porzingis (BOS Celtics)

O/U 19.5

Kyrie Irving (DAL Mavericks)

O/U 25.5

PJ Washington (DAL Mavericks)

O/U 15.5

Spencer Dinwiddie (DAL Mavericks)

O/U 14.5

Read the latest NBA news on site.

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.

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