Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics Game 2 Odds, Analysis, NBA Betting Pick

The second-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers will look to go up 2-0 on the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals as solid road favorites for Game 2 on Friday. The Cavaliers blew out the Celtics 117-104 in Game 1 on Wednesday to cover the spread easily as four-point chalk.

Point spread: The Cavaliers opened as five-point favorites; the total is at 219.5, according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark. Line updates and matchup report.

NBA betting pick, via OddsShark computer: 118.2-102.4, Cavaliers (NBA picks on every game)

Why the Cavaliers can cover the spread

As long as Cleveland has LeBron James, this team should be favored in the playoffs against any opponent in the NBA not named the Golden State Warriors, at home or on the road. Even against the Warriors, the Cavaliers are playing so well right now that they should be favored in that potential NBA Finals matchup at home.

Regardless, James is the best player in the NBA again this season despite what regular-season MVP voting will say. His 38 points, nine rebounds and seven assists were huge in Game 1, as were teammate Kevin Love's 32 points and 12 rebounds.

Why the Celtics can cover the spread

Boston has looked bad multiple times this postseason only to surprise doubters and turn in a valiant effort, especially at home. While the Celtics have lost the past two home meetings with Cleveland by a combined 36 points, they went 2-0-1 against the spread on the Vegas odds in the previous three games between the teams.

Boston point guard Isaiah Thomas shot poorly in Game 1, finishing with 17 points on 7-of-19 attempts from the field. But Thomas did dish out a game-high 10 assists and may need to rely on his teammates even more in Game 2.

Smart betting pick

The Celtics were brutal in the series opener, there's no getting around that. They trailed the Cavs by 22 points at halftime before making the final score a little more respectable in the final two quarters. This is a must-win for Boston in order to avoid the possibility of a sweep, as Cleveland is not the Chicago Bulls.

The Cavaliers are not a perfect team, and they still have flaws. Look for the Celts to expose some of those weaknesses in Game 2 to pull off the upset victory and head to Quicken Loans Arena tied 1-1.

NBA betting trends

Cleveland is 4-0-1 ATS in its last five games.

The total has gone over in four of Cleveland's last five games.

The total has gone over in four of Boston's last five games.

All NBA lines and betting trends courtesy of Bleacher Report’s official odds partner, OddsShark. All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line-movement updates and the OddsShark YouTube page for picks and analysis, or download the free odds tracker app.