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Phoenix Suns vs Boston Celtics: Are the Suns a real challenge for the Celtics?
The Phoenix Suns are visiting the Boston Celtics on Thursday at TD Garden.
The Suns have dropped off the top 6 in the West
The Phoenix Suns are seventh in the Western Conference with a 38-27 record, the same as the Sacramento Kings. The Suns have won three of their last four games and are coming off a 117-111 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Suns are fifth in the league with 49.3% shooting from the field and are ranked seventh with 37.6% shooting from three-point territory. Kevin Durant is the Suns leading scorer with 28.5 points per game.
The Celtics are the best team in the league
The Boston Celtics are on top of the Eastern Conference with the best record in the league of 51 wins and 14 losses. The Celtics have won the last three games and are coming off a 123-107 win over the Utah Jazz. The Celtics are second in the league, averaging 120.8 points per game, and are ranked third, shooting 38.5% from three-point territory. Jayson Tatum leads the Celtics with 27 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.
Betting Trends
The Celtics are 9-2 ATS in the last 11 games overall and 6-1 ATS in the last 7 games against teams from the Western Conference. The Suns are 1-6 ATS in the last 7 games overall, 11-5 ATS in the last 16 games against Boston and 1-5 ATS in the last 6 games against teams from the Atlantic Division.
Prediction and Conclusion
The Celtics are back home after going 3-2 in the five games on the road trip. Those were the only two losses for the Celtics in the last six weeks. The Suns have a long way to go to secure a playoff spot. Kevin Durant has been playing excellent lately, scoring at least 35 points in the last four games. Devin Booker missed a couple of games lately, but he is back in action just in time to go back to the place where he had his career-low dropping of 71 points in 2017. The Suns have more players than can go off on any given night, but that will not be enough tonight, and the Celtics will cover the -5.5-point spread.
