NBA Playoffs 2015: Odds Guide and Picks for Wednesday's Semifinals Matchups
It's tough to put much stock into Game 1 of an NBA playoff series—unless the home team loses. The old adage is the series doesn't really start until somebody wins on the road, and that's exactly what the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers did in their respective opening contests of the conference semifinals.
Going home for Games 3 and 4 with a 2-0 advantage could effectively end the series right there. The Cleveland Cavaliers will have to do a better job adjusting without Kevin Love and J.R. Smith, and the Houston Rockets will need a much better performance out of MVP runner-up James Harden. Otherwise, both teams could face the wrath of the vaunted broom.
Here are the odds and the predictions for both Game 2 matchups.
Chicago Bulls vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (Bulls lead 1-0)
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Location: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
TV: TNT
Odds (via Odds Shark): Cleveland -5.5
The Bulls capitalized on a short-handed Cavs squad in Game 1 by getting back to their basics: defense and fundamentals.
The absence of Love might hurt more than many originally thought. LeBron James played much of the game at power forward, while Mike Miller and James Jones played a bunch of uninspired minutes at the 3.
LeBron may still be the best player in the world, but as noted by Dave McMenamin of ESPN, he's had a lot on his plate—maybe even too much:
Not only that, ESPN Stats & Info (h/t Chris Fedor of the Northeast Ohio Media Group) noted how often Chicago's best defender, Jimmy Butler, was glued to him throughout the night:
Is a 30-year-old James capable of delivering a vintage performance in Game 2 to flip the script? He did contribute 15 rebounds and nine assists in the 99-92 Game 1 loss, but Cleveland is going to need him to score in order to win. The Cavs got just nine points from their bench, which is short-handed.
Chicago has the unique ability of being able to take it to LeBron on both ends with incredible efficiency. Butler is as good as any perimeter defender in the NBA, and continuing to feed Pau Gasol on offense will force Cleveland's hand. If James has to expend too much energy on defense trying to stop Gasol and/or Butler, it hurts the Cavs offense immensely.
Most impressively from the Bulls, they shot 10-of-18 from three-point range in the first game. Cleveland can kiss this series goodbye if it allows the Bulls to do that, so keep an eye on that in Game 2.
We knew this series was going to be a bloodbath. Cleveland went eight days between games after sweeping the Boston Celtics in Round 1, and it has plenty it can improve upon in Game 2. Expect the Cavaliers bench to contribute more and the overall defense to strap up. Butler, Gasol and Derrick Rose are not all scoring 20-plus points again, and Chicago isn't hitting 55.6 percent from deep.
Prediction: Cleveland 102, Chicago 93
Los Angeles Clippers vs. Houston Rockets (Clippers lead 1-0)
Time: 9:30 p.m. ET
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
TV: TNT
Odds (via Odds Shark): Houston -6.5
One would think this game starts and ends with Chris Paul. But after the Clippers' convincing 117-101 victory in Game 1, does it really?
Paul's absence allowed us all to take a step back and admire just how unbelievable Blake Griffin has been throughout the playoffs. The league's best power forward logged his second consecutive triple-double (third this postseason) and eighth double-double in eight playoff contests thus far. He went off for 26 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists, making Clips fans forget Paul wasn't there.
Griffin was also noticeably more vocal without CP3. It just makes you wonder if the Clippers truly turned a corner by getting over the San Antonio Spurs hump. When Paul comes back, is this team for real?
The Rockets came out in the second half looking flat. LA outscored them 71-51 after the intermission, which should serve as a wake-up call. Houston cannot turn the ball over 23 times and allow the Clippers to hit 13 threes without Chris Paul.
The onus now falls on one man for Houston—the man who narrowly missed out on being named the MVP, James Harden.
The bearded one took only 13 shots in Game 1, turned the ball over nine times and attempted just six free throws. With J.J. Redick, Jamal Crawford and Austin Rivers presumed to be guarding him most of the night, he will have to be more aggressive in the second game of the series.
Paul's status for Game 2 is still up in the air, which leads us to bold prediction time. Should CP3 miss another contest, Harden is going for 40 points in a victory. Book it.
Prediction: Houston 113, Los Angeles 108
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