Cavs-Nets Play-In Prediction, Best Bets, Prop Picks, TV Info

In a matchup between two teams who were not expected to be in their position, the Nets host the Cavs in the first game of the 2022 NBA play-in tournament.

Nets Host Cavs with First-Round Matchup Against Celtics on the Line

The Nets were–and still are–one of the top 2022 NBA championship favorites. But a host of factors dropped them down the NBA standings, and they were left with too much ground to make up to get into the top six of the Eastern Conference.

Instead, they finished seventh in the Eastern Conference, two games behind the Chicago Bulls.

The Cavs, meanwhile, were projected to be better this season than they were in their first three seasons following LeBron James’s second departure from Cleveland.

But Cleveland has done much more than just improve, finishing in the #8 spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

The Cavs posted their first winning record without LeBron since the 1997-98 season, and with a win in this game or against either the Atlanta Hawks or Charlotte Hornets on Friday, will be in the playoffs without Lebron for the first time since that season as well.

Like the Nets, the Cavs finished with a record of 44-38 in the regular season, one game ahead of the Atlanta Hawks and Charlotte Hornets, who will face off in Wednesday’s #9 vs. #10 matchup.

But the Nets earned the right to host Tuesday’s play-in game due to winning three of four head-to-head matchups with the Cavs in the regular season.

The winner of this game will advance to a first-round matchup with the Boston Celtics, the East’s #2 seed. But the loser will have another bite of the cherry come Friday at home against the winner of the Hornets vs. Hawks matchup, with the winner of Friday’s game booking a first-round showdown with the Miami Heat, the East’s #1 seed.

Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Brooklyn Nets 2022 NBA Play-In Tournament Game Betting Odds and Matchup Information

Matchup Information

• Game Matchup: Cleveland Cavaliers (44-38, 8th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Brooklyn Nets (44-38, 7th in the Eastern Conference)
• Venue & Location: Barclays Center (Brooklyn, New York)
• Date: Tuesday, April 12, 2022
• Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
• How to Watch the Cavs vs. Nets Play-In Tournament Game: TNT

Cavs vs. Nets Betting Odds

BetOnline Sportsbook

• Spread: Cleveland Cavaliers +8.5 (-110), Brooklyn Nets -8.5 (-110)
• Total: OVER 228.5 (-110), UNDER 228.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: Cleveland Cavaliers +315, Brooklyn Nets -400

Bovada Sportsbook

• Spread: Cleveland Cavaliers +8.5 (-110), Brooklyn Nets -8.5 (-110)
• Total: OVER 228.5 (-110), UNDER 228.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: Cleveland Cavaliers +320, Brooklyn Nets -420

BetUS

• Spread: Cleveland Cavaliers +8.5 (-110), Brooklyn Nets -8.5 (-110)
• Total: OVER 228.5 (-112), UNDER 228.5 (-109)
• Moneyline: Cleveland Cavaliers +310, Brooklyn Nets -400

Can the Cavs Win in Brooklyn Without Former Net Allen?

In unfortunate but not unexpected news, it was revealed in Monday’s injury report that Cavs center Jarrett Allen would miss the play-in game against the Nets as he continues to recover from a fractured left middle finger.

Allen suffered the injury against the Toronto Raptors on March 6 and has not played since, missing the Cavs’ final 18 regular season games.

The Cavs went on to beat the Raptors in that game without Allen, but wins have been scarce since. At the time, a top-six finish in the East wasn’t out of the question, even after losing six of seven in February and early March.

But after improving to 37-27 on March 6, the Cavs went 7-11 to close out the regular season.

That includes a 2-6 record in road games, with five of those losses coming by double digits. Their only road wins since Allen’s injury were against the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks, both of whom finished the season with a losing record at home.

In other words, Cleveland faces an imposing challenge without the imposing Allen. Allen, who turns 24 on April 21, was named an NBA All-Star for the first time this season and a big part of the Cavs’ success on both ends of the court.

2021-22 Stats for Cleveland’s Jarrett Allen

• PPG: 16.1 (career high)
• RPG: 10.8 (career high and 11th in the NBA)
• Offensive Rebounds Per Game: 3.4 (career high and 8th in the NBA)
• Defensive Rebounds Per Game: 7.3 (18th in the NBA)
• Blocks Per Game: 1.3
• Field Goal Percentage: 67.7 (2nd in the NBA to Utah’s Rudy Gobert)

Allen played his first three-plus NBA season with the Nets before being traded to Cleveland as part of the trade that sent James Harden from the Houston Rockets to the Nets in January 2021.

Allen has played against the Nets five times since the trade, but his only visit back to Brooklyn was in last season’s regular season finale, a 123-109 loss in which he had nine points and 11 rebounds.

That happens to be his lowest-scoring game against his former team, as he has scored in double figures in the other four games.

In the five games, he has averaged 14.2 PPG and 10.6 RPG and posted three double-doubles. So, he will no doubt be disappointed to miss this matchup, and the Cavs will certainly feel his absence.

This past Friday, the Nets recorded a 118-107 win over the Cavs at Barclays Center. Brooklyn led by 15 after the first quarter, but Cleveland rallied and entered the fourth quarter with an 88-83 lead.

However, a 36-point night for Kevin Durant featured multiple big shots in the fourth as the Nets pulled out the win, which proved to be rather decisive.

Cavs vs. Nets Play-In Prediction and Best Bets

Prediction: Nets 123, Cavs 113 (Best Bets: Nets -8.5 & OVER 228.5)

While it has been quite the rollercoaster of an NBA season for the Nets, they are rounding into form at the right time. Ben Simmons may not be available yet, but Kyrie Irving has been fully available after New York’s vaccine mandate was lifted recently.

With Kyrie no longer going in and out of the lineup, the Nets have been able to start building some continuity and consistency. They finished the regular season with four straight wins, scoring at least 110 points in each game and winning each one by at least eight points.

In Friday’s win over the Cavs, the Nets outrebounded Cleveland 45-31, with Andre Drummond (15 points, 12 rebounds) and Bruce Brown (18 points, 10 rebounds) both posting a double-double and combining for nine offensive rebounds.

Evan Mobley may have had some rust to shake off, as it was his first game back after a five-game injury layoff. But with Allen still sidelined, it is hard to envision this matchup going any differently than Friday’s.

Best Prop Picks for Cavs vs. Nets

Caris LeVert OVER 17.5 Points (-108 at BetOnline Sportsbook)

Like Allen, LeVert is a former Net who was part of the Harden trade, though he went to Indiana in the trade before being traded to the Cavs in February of this year.

In Friday’s game, LeVert was 5 of 10 from the field and 6 of 8 from the stripe in scoring 16 points. He was only 2 of 7 with six points in 29 minutes in Sunday’s win over the Milwaukee Bucks, a game that was in hand well for the Cavs by halftime.

But in the four games prior, he shot 50 percent from the field, and he has logged 30+ minutes in seven of Cleveland’s past nine games.

With him likely logging a lot of minutes and getting his share of shots–he has put up 10+ shots in 14 of his 19 games with the Cavs–this is excellent value for LeVert against his old team.

Darius Garland OVER 33.5 Points & Assists (-140 at Bovada Sportsbook)

You can get over 34.5 elsewhere, but with props like these, there is no harm in sacrificing a little bit of value to get the most favorable total.

I backed Garland to have a big game against the Bucks on Sunday, and he fell well short of that because he played only 23 minutes in Cleveland’s 133-115 win. But in his time on the court, he put up 11 points, two rebounds, and eight assists. So, we go again, and we go with confidence.

For the Cavs to have a shot at a win without Allen, Garland will need a big game, which he has delivered frequently since the All-Star break.

That likely won’t involve many rebounds, however, as he averaged only 3.3 rebounds per game in the regular season and has had zero rebounds twice in five April games.

So, it is more sensible to go for points + assists instead of points, rebounds, and assists and making life harder for ourselves.

In 21 games in March and April, Garland has had over 33.5 combined points + assists 13 times. In Friday’s game against the Nets, he had 31 points and three assists.

Do that again, and this one gets over the line.