Brooklyn Nets vs Boston Celtics Prediction: Two red-hot squads collide

NBA midseason brings to us a bunch of trade scenarios and we are bound to see the battles heat up even further as the race to Playoffs is inching to its second half. There are rumors mill churning out content now and let us see which teams pull the major plug to dominate Twitter and the headlines. Anyway, Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics have dominated the headlines through their amazing play and they will meet here.

The Nets enter the game after a thrilling 102:101 win against the Miami Heat as Kyrie Irving slipped in 29 points. This was the second straight win for Brooklyn and they have been in great touch, winning 18 of their last 20 games, courtesy of which they have improved from 9 wins and 11 losses to 27 wins and 13 losses. This dramatic turnaround has been a result of some amazing defense and the duo of Kyrie and Kevin Durant obliterating defenses.

Brooklyn has held teams in the 100-107 points range in six of the last eight games and many of their amazing defensive efforts have been away from home. The one big downside recently has beent the injury to Kevin Durant but with a motivated defense, a solid rhythm, and Kyrie Irving at the helm, things are looking promising for the ever-improving Nets team.

The Celtics march into this game after overcoming the New Orleans Pelicans 125:114 behind an electric 41 points performance by Jaylen Brown. This marked fourth straight win for the Celts which has won eight of its last ten games to recover from a period where they lost five in six. However, thanks to a peerless 21 wins and five losses start, they have reached 30 wins and just 12 losses.

The duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum is one of the best in the league and has averaged over 56 for the season implying that either one of them can get red-hot from the floor. The team has a deep defensive guard rotation with Marcus Smart(injured right now) and Derrick White while Malcolm Brogdon is a blessing off the bench. The frontline of Grant Williams and Al Horford is solid too.

• Nets: OUT: Kevin Durant. PROBABLE: Nic Claxton;
• Celtics: OUT: Robert Williams, Marcus Smart, Danilo Gallinari.

• Expected Leading Scorers: Jayson Tatum(32-36 Points), Kyrie Irving(29-35 Points);
• Expected Leading Rebounders: Nic Claxton(8-11 Rebounds), Jayson Tatum(7-9 Rebounds);
• Expected Leading Playmakers: Ben Simmons(7-9 Assists), Derrick White(6-8 Assists).

The Celtics have been playing electrically away from home but the Nets’ defense has caused troubles too. Without Durant, matching the duo of Brown and Tatum will be tenuous but Kyrie can explode for a big night too, and in absence of Marcus Smart, the defensive job will be tougher for the Celts. I believe the Celtics will start red-hot and finish red-hot to take the game away. I predict a scoreline of 113:107 in favor of Boston.