Kyrie Irving Odds and Props: Celtics Have Him Figured Out

It was unfortunate timing that Luka Doncic’s worst game of the season came just as Kyrie Irving put together his best, and now the Dallas Mavericks find themselves in a daunting 3-0 series hole. 

Kyrie’s play will again be a crucial battleground on Friday vs. the Boston Celtics, and my NBA picks for Game 4 detail where I think the best value lies.

Kyrie Irving prop picks for June 14

• Kyrie Irving Under 3.5 rebounds
• Under 3.5 rebounds/Over 24.5 points/Over 2.5 made 3s

Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.

Kyrie Irving best bet

Under 3.5 rebounds (+130)

The Dallas Mavericks are on the brink of elimination, in large part because their role players have wilted under the pressure of the NBA Finals, but the inconsistencies of their superstars have hurt them as well.

One of the reasons the Boston Celtics' best players are so good is that even when they aren’t scoring well, they have excellent floor games that allow them to contribute in other ways. While Kyrie Irving had a breakout scoring game in Game 3, his floor game remains largely absent in the series, and his inability to rebound has proven costly.

In part, Irving is rebounding less than in the regular season because he’s shouldering more of the offensive burden. With the Mavs outside of Luka Doncic nearly afraid to shoot, it falls to Kyrie more often than not to step up when he’s not initiating. Irving very rarely rebounds his own misses and is almost always at a length and strength disadvantage in his matchups in this series.

Kyrie has had three or fewer rebounds in seven of his last 10 games and is yet to have at least four in any game against Boston. These Kyrie Irving odds are offering significant plus-money value for something that seems at least more likely than not to continue. 

Irving averaged just 2.3 rebounds per game in the Oklahoma City Thunder series despite playing north of 40 minutes per game. While that bumped to 3.6 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Celtics are more structurally similar to OKC. Boston is capable of putting length on both Luka and Kyrie without compromising their backline defense one bit, and with multiple matchup options to keep their defenders fresh.

Irving has also consistently rebounded worse in the playoffs. Whether it is his more demanding offensive burden or simply an inability to match the increased physicality, the numbers are clear. 

After defensive rebounding that ranks in the 87th percentile among all combo guards per Cleaning the Glass this season, Irving is in the 17th percentile during these playoffs, nabbing just 6.8% of potential defensive rebounds. 

Whatever the reason, or confluence of reasons, Irving is reliably less impactful on the glass on this stage.

Kyrie Irving prop: Under 3.5 rebounds (+130 at DraftKings)

Kyrie Irving same-game parlay

Kyrie Irving Under 3.5 rebounds

Kyrie Irving Over 24.5 points

Kyrie Irving Over 2.5 made 3s

+495 at DraftKings

The Celtics have the right combination of length and size to bother Kyrie, and they also know him well from their time as teammates and many years as Eastern Conference rivals.

The Celtics made Kyrie largely irrelevant in the first two games by playing his tendencies. They sat on his right hand, aggressively playing him to go left. Forcing Kyrie left has traditionally weakened his ability to step into his jump shot.

Kyrie Irving was actually born left-handed, but he has trained and played as a right-hand dominant player all his life. While he practices finishing with his left and is arguably the most ambidextrous finisher in NBA history, he still has executed the footwork required of making a right-handed play infinitely more times than those that come with his left.

The Celtics knew this and overloaded to his right side in Games 1 and 2, and it was one factor that depressed his scoring output. But as great players do, Irving made the adjustment in Game 3.

In order to get shots going to his right, he attacked much more quickly, without giving his defender as much of a chance to load up on his right. 

But when the defender was in place, he aggressively sought out his shot. Instead of continuing his dribble in order to get back to his right, Kyrie simply attacked the gap Boston was leaving on his left, either driving into a floater or frequently stepping back into a three going left. With the amount every Celtic was leaning to take away his right hand, those were clean shots.

Irving finished with 35 points on 13 of 28 shooting from the field with a 4-for-6 mark from deep. By expanding the kind of shots he was willing to take in Game 3, he was able to get himself into a much better rhythm. With the Celtics unlikely to make adjustments to their defensive matchups up 3-0, I expect that to continue.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

Stay updated with the latest picks, odds, and news! Tap the to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.

Pages related to this topic