For ‘Uncle Drew’ it’s against the old colleagues!

This pairing easily had the potential to pass for the Finals in the East, but the visitors’ interlude of weakness means this great duel is coming up in the postseason opener.

Boston Celtics – Statistics & current form

Boston once again showed their current strength on the last matchday of the regular season. In the duel of the runners-up in the East and West, the Grizzlies were clearly defeated.

Although they were without Ja Morant, the victory was nevertheless impressive, as it was achieved away from home and by 29 points. However, Boston are not without worries at the moment.

The reason is the very painful loss of Robert Williams III, who was an important factor in the home side having the best defence at the end of the regular season.

Now the best rebounder of Head Coach Ime Udoka’s squad has to miss the game due to a meniscus injury and his absence has already left a negative mark on the Bean City hoopsters: Three of the last seven games without him were lost.

Brooklyn Nets – Statistics & current form

The New Yorkers only punched their ticket to the playoffs this week. Thanks to a win against Cleveland in the play-in tournament in the East, they were able to book the postseason in seventh place.

The fact that it took this diversions was quite a surprise, because Head Coach Steve Nash’s team is a top favourite for the title.

This is mainly due to the duo of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Both players are extremely offensively strong and “Uncle Drew” will be very motivated against Boston.

After all, it is against his previous franchise and he mercilessly proved his enormous scoring ability in the last game against the Cavs.

Against the men from Ohio, Irving sank every attempt from the field in the first half and in the end he had a fabulous field goal rate of 80 percent!

Boston Celtics – Brooklyn Nets Tip

The home side have won the last three meetings with the basketballers from the Big Apple and are now hoping for home court advantage as well. Miami alone narrowly topped the East’s 68.3 percent home winning percentage after the regular season with one more victory.

For the clash between the Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets in Game 1, however, betting on an away win or a narrow defeat for the visitors with a maximum difference of five points seems promising.

The hosts have lost some ground recently, as they are missing an important defensive player in Robert Williams III due to injury. On the other hand, the visitors’ form has been on the rise recently.

This is especially true of Kyrie Irving, who has made at least 75 per cent of his attempts from the field in the last two games and will be extra committed at his old stomping ground anyway. Against this backdrop, there is at least no indication of a clear home victory.