Boston Celtics vs Cleveland Cavaliers Prediction, 3/8/2026 Preview and Pick

Game: Boston Celtics vs Cleveland Cavaliers

Date: Sunday, March 8, 2026

Location: Rocket Arena in Cleveland, OH

TV: ABC

Rocket Arena is the location where the Cleveland Cavaliers (39-24) will attempt to defeat the Boston Celtics (41-21) on Sunday.

The Celtics faced the Hornets and took a loss by a final of 118-89 in their last contest. Boston finished having earned a 38.0% field goal percentage (30 out of 79) and knocked down 10 out of their 36 three-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Celtics converted 19 of their 20 shots for a rate of 95.0%. In reference to hauling in boards, they earned 45 with 9 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 18 dimes for the matchup while forcing the opposition into 5 turnovers and earning 1 steal. When talking about the defense, Boston allowed 46.1% from the floor on 41 of 89 shooting. Charlotte recorded 26 dimes and had 10 steals in the matchup. Additionally, Charlotte grabbed 43 rebounds (11 offensive, 32 defensive) and had 3 blocks. Charlotte ended up shooting 81.0% when shooting free throws by burying 17 of their 21 tries. They buried 19 of their 49 attempts from long range. Concerning personal fouls, the Celtics ended up with 14 while the Hornets finished the game with 19 personal fouls.

Derrick White is a guy who played a role for the game. He ended up walking away with 29 points on 9 out of 17 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 29 minutes played and pulled down 2 boards. White finished 52.9% from the field and also totaled 3 assists.

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Boston will take the court with a record of 41-21 so far this season. They currently have an average of 114.5 points per outing (21st in basketball) while going 46.5% from the field. The Celtics are connecting on 36.4% on shots from downtown (955 of 2,627) and 79.6% from the charity stripe. As a unit, Boston is collecting 46.2 boards per game and has accumulated 1,514 assists this season, which is 28th in the league in terms of passing the rock. They turn the ball over 12.2 times per contest and as a group they are committing 19.3 personal fouls per contest.

Defensively, the Celtics are forcing 12.7 turnovers per game while drawing 18.3 personal fouls. They are ranked 6th in the league in allowing assists with 1,540 conceded for the season. The Celtics defense is giving up an opponent FG percentage of 44.1% (2,366 of 5,370) and they surrender 41.8 rebounds per game as a group. They relinquish 36.1% on 3-point shots and they are 1st in the league in opponents PPG (107.1).

For their last game, the Cavaliers walked away with a victory by a final of 113-109 when they faced the Pistons. Regarding attacking the glass, Cleveland allowed Detroit to grab 44 in total (10 on the offensive side). They finished the game shooting 37.5% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 9 out of 24 and finished the contest at 22 of 29 from the charity stripe (75.9%). The Cavaliers permitted the Pistons to convert 39 out of their 77 tries from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 50.6% in this game. When the final whistle was blown, the Cavaliers went 38 out of 86 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.2%. In terms of three-point attempts, Cleveland converted 17 of 46 tries (37.0%). They were able to knock down 20 of the free throw tries for a rate of 76.9%. The Pistons earned 23 personal fouls in this contest which got the Cavaliers to the free throw line for 26 tries. They coughed up the ball 10 times, while recording 7 steals for this game. The Cavaliers were able to snag 27 defensive rebounds and 11 offensive boards for a total of 38 for this game.

Jaylon Tyson ended up being a major contributor for the Cavaliers for the game. He knocked down 8 of 15 for the game giving him a rate of 53.3%, and added 3 rebounds. Tyson scored 22 points in his 32 minutes on the hardwood and had 4 dimes in the game.

Cleveland has a mark of 39-24 this season. As an offensive unit, the Cavaliers are connecting on 47.6% from the floor, which is ranked 9th in the NBA. Cleveland has accounted for 7,505 points so far this season (119.1 per game) and they pull in 44.4 rebounds per game. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 28.4 times per contest (8th in the NBA) and they are turning it over 14.4 times per game. The Cavaliers are responsible for committing 19.8 fouls per contest and they hit 77.8% from the free throw line.

The Cavaliers on the defensive end are ranked 14th in the league in PPG surrendered with 114.9. They are forcing 15.8 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 46.2% from the field (8th in the NBA). The Cleveland defense concedes 37.0% on shots from beyond the perimeter (875 of 2,368) and opponents are converting on 79.1% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 26.8 assists and 43.7 total boards per game, which is ranked 15th and 14th in the league.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Boston

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