Sportsbook.ag Cavaliers Heat Monday NBA Betting Preview
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (43-25) at MIAMI HEAT (29-36)
The Cavaliers will be going for their fifth straight victory when they face the Heat in Miami.
Sportsbook.ag Line: Cleveland -3, Total: 200
The Cavaliers went into Orlando on Sunday and won 123-108 as 11-point road favorites. The team has now won four straight games and six of their past seven SU as well. Cleveland is 5-2 ATS in those contests and the team has now scored 123+ points in each of its past three games.
The Heat have now lost two of their past three games both SU and ATS. Their most recent game was in Toronto, where they lost 102-92 as 5-point road underdogs. These teams have met twice this season and the home team has won by an average of 15.0 PPG in those contests. Prior to the Cavaliers winning a game versus the Heat this season, Miami had won 11 straight games SU versus Cleveland. The Heat have won eight straight games in Miami SU in this series, but they’ve covered in just three of those contests. The last time the Cavaliers won SU at American Airlines Arena was Jan. 25, 2010.
However, Cleveland is15-7 ATS after covering in four or five of their past six games this season, and Miami is 74-55 ATS after a game where it failed to cover the spread over the past three seasons. PF Kevin Love (Back) is probable for the Heat, but SF LeBron James (Knee) is questionable in this one. C Anderson Varejao (Achilles) is out for the season for Cleveland and Miami is without PF Chris Bosh (Blood Clot) and PF Josh McRoberts (Knee) for the remainder of the year also.
SF LeBron James (26.0 PPG, 7.4 APG, 5.8 RPG, 1.6 SPG) had 21 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and three steals against the Magic last game. Unfortunately, James also twisted his knee and is listed as questionable for this meeting with his former team Monday. In two games against the Heat this season, he’s averaging 24.0 PPG, 7.5 APG and 6.5 RPG. If he were to sit this game out, PG Kyrie Irving (22.2 PPG, 5.2 APG, 3.3 RPG, 1.5 SPG) and PF Kevin Love (16.8 PPG, 10.1 RPG, 2.3 APG) will be just fine stepping in as the go-to-guys in this offense.
Irving has been on a tear lately, averaging 45.0 PPG, 4.5 APG, 3.5 RPG and 2.5 SPG over the past two games. He had 57 points against the Spurs two games ago and should be feeling extremely confident heading into this matchup with Miami. Love, however, was phased out of the offense in that victory over the Spurs. He had just eight points (2-for-10 FG) and played only 33 minutes, which is nothing considering the game went to overtime. David Blatt gave Love the night off against Orlando on Sunday, so maybe the extra rest will result in him turning things around against the Heat.
C Timofey Mozgov (9.5 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1.3 BPG) has played very well against Miami this season, averaging 14.5 PPG, 9.0 RPG and 1.0 BPG in two meetings with the team. He will need to be at his best on Monday, as he’ll need to hold his own against Hassan Whiteside in this game.
The Heat have struggled recently and the team will need to turn things around with the Cavaliers in town Monday. SG Dwyane Wade (21.4 PPG, 5.3 APG, 3.7 RPG, 1.2 SPG) has been on a tear, scoring 25+ points in each of his past four games. Wade was excellent in his only game against the Cavs this season, putting up 31 points with five assists and five rebounds in 37 minutes. Cleveland’s weakest position might be at shooting guard, so Wade should be able to dominate this one on Monday.
C Hassan Whiteside (10.9 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 2.4 BPG) had nine points, 12 boards and three blocks in his return from a suspension on Friday. Whiteside will need to be at his best on Monday as his team needs him to protect the rim and clean the glass against a solid rebounding team.
PG Goran Dragic (16.2 PPG, 4.2 APG, 3.5 RPG, 1.1 SPG) is averaging 17.5 PPG, 4.0 APG and 2.0 SPG over the past two games. Dragic’s speed and ability to get into the lane should give Kyrie Irving some trouble on the defensive end. Miami will need its new point guard to really be aggressive on Monday. He’s going to need to start knocking down outside shots though, as he’s a solid outside shooter (35% 3PT) but has made just 1-of-7 from behind the arc over the past two games.
SF Luol Deng (14.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.0 SPG) has really struggled recently. Over the past three games, Deng is averaging just 9.7 PPG (30% FG, 20% 3PT) on miserable shooting. If he doesn’t turn it around quickly then his team will not have much of a chance of playing postseason basketball.
