NBA

Cleveland Cavs vs. Golden State Warriors 5/31/18 Prediction & Preview

Cavs vs Warriors

Game 1 of the NBA Finals is Thursday night at 9:00 p.m. ET. Will the Golden State Warriors roll or will the Cleveland Cavs cover the spread as a double-digit underdog?

Game Snapshot

501 Cleveland Cavs at 502 Golden State Warriors

Thursday, May 31, 2018

TV: ABC

Public Betting Information

The Warriors opened as 11.5-point favorites but the line has jumped to 13. As for the total, the number hit the board at 216 but was bet down to 214.5. As of this writing, 54% of betting tickets wagered at online sports books are on the Cavs to cover as double-digit underdogs.

Cavs’ Love won’t come off bench in return

If Kevin Love (concussion) can play, he will not come off the bench in his return to action. Coach Ty Lue is still unsure if Love is going to be able to return for Game 1 on Thursday. He’s still going through the protocol and there’s no word of him being symptom free yet.

Considering Love had multiple concussions in his career with one as recently as March, there’s a very good chance he won’t be able to recover for Game 1 from the injury sustained on May 25. If he’s out, Tristan Thompson may have to start again along with Jeff Green.

Warriors’ Iguodala optimistic he’ll return during NBA Finals

Andre Iguodala (left knee bone bruise) is optimistic that he’ll return during the NBA Finals.Iguodala has already been ruled out for Game 1 with persistent pain and “inflammation of the nerve surrounding the left knee.” He admitted that his progress has been “slower than expected,” but said he doesn’t have “too much doubt” that he’ll be cleared to play before the Finals conclude.

If necessary, Game 7 would be played June 17 at Oracle Arena, potentially giving him more than two weeks to convalesce. Until he returns, we should continue to see Kevon Looney starting with more minutes available for Shaun Livingston and Nick Young.

Betting Trends

Cleveland

The Cavs are just 1-4 against the spread in their last five games played in Oakland. They’re also 2-6 against the number in their last eight games versus the Warriors overall.

Golden State

The favorite has covered in six of the last eight meetings between these two teams. The under, meanwhile, is 8-2-2 in the last 12 meetings played in Oakland.

Our Prediction

The Cavs have covered in four of their last five games overall and are 4-1 against the number in their last five games versus Western Conference foes. On the other side, the Warriors are 6-17 at the betting window in their last 23 games coming off a win. They’re also 8-21-1 against the number in their last 30 games coming off an ATS win and are 1-6 against the spread in their last seven Eastern Conference matchups.

NBA Finals Game 1 Prediction: Cleveland Cavs +13

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