76ers vs Cavaliers Prediction, Game Preview, Live Stream, Odds and Picks

· Mar 15 - 6 minutes read

Possible Eastern Conference Contenders Meet

The Philadelphia 76ers have a firm grasp of the third seed in the Eastern Conference, with the Cleveland Cavaliers in fourth, three games back. The two will meet on Wednesday for the third and final time. Out of the two, the 76ers have the more realistic NBA odds.

On Sunday, the 76ers beat the Washington Wizards 112-93 behind impressive performances from Joel Embiid and James Harden. The Cavaliers won the first game of a back-to-back, beating the Charlotte Hornets 120-104 on Tuesday.

76ers vs Cavaliers Prediction, Game Preview, Live Stream, Odds and Picks

76ers Elite Duo

While the 76ers are in a good position being the third seed in the East, they could potentially move up to second. Philadelphia is only a game back from the Boston Celtics and just four behind the first-place Milwaukee Bucks. Moving up the standings would put the team in a much better position to make it out of the playoffs, increasing their NBA title odds.

The dynamic duo of Embiid and Harden is a massive part of this surge. They have led the 76ers to a five-game win streak, propelling them up the standings. Embiid is making NBA news by being one of three legit candidates for the league MVP. Stephen A Smith is already pushing Embiid as his choice for MVP.

I don’t wanna hear ANYTHING about Jokic being a frontrunner for the MVP…especially with how Denver has looked.

JOEL EMBIID has to be up there IF NOT number one. pic.twitter.com/7fJOsiHK9p

— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) March 13, 2023

Through this win streak, Embiid has not hurt his case. He averages 37 points per game, 6.6 rebounds, and five assists. That includes 31 points, six rebounds, and 10 assists in a win over the Bucks, ending their 16-game win streak.

Harden has been no slouch, either. He is averaging 22.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 13 assists in the win streak, then a stat line of 38-9-10 to beat the Bucks.

Cavaliers Getting Playoff Ready

Last season the Cavaliers missed the playoffs, finishing with the eight-best record in the East but losing two straight play-in games. This season is different, with Cleveland seemingly a lock for the playoffs and likely having home-court advantage in the first round.

However, with the season winding down and only 11 games left, the Cavaliers need to start getting playoff ready. The team is relatively young and lacks experience. Donovan Mitchell is the only player with legitimate playoff minutes from his time with the Utah Jazz.

That lack of experience can be an issue for any team making their first attempt in the playoffs, but even more so for the Cavaliers. The team is anchored by their defense, arguably the best in the NBA, and while that will be important, offensively, they sometimes struggle. They average 112.1 points per game, ranked 25th. However, Cleveland’s offensive rating is ninth, which means it is efficient but lacks possessions.

That lack of possessions is mainly because of how slow their offense operates, last in pace. The games might speed up in the playoffs, which could hurt Cleveland.

76ers vs Cavaliers Game Injuries

76ers vs Cavaliers Head-to-Head

This will be the tiebreaker between the 76ers and Cavaliers, each team winning once at home. In both games, the team favored by the NBA lines won and covered.

76ers vs Cavaliers Game Information

Game: 76ers (45-22) vs Cavaliers (44-27)
Location: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, OH
Day/Time: Wednesday, March 15, 7:30 p.m. EST
76ers vs Cavaliers Live stream: NBA Game Pass

76ers vs Cavaliers Betting Lines

Betting Odds Calculator

76ers vs Cavaliers Prediction

These two teams match up well due to their star power, solid offenses, and strong defense. A seven-game series of these teams in the playoffs would be great.

Even with the 76ers being the road team, the way they are playing might make them the best choice for NBA picks. They are the hotter team of the two, and while the Cavaliers’ defense is strong, the offensive question marks are still there.

The Philadelphia 76ers are listed at -140 in our Vegas NBA lines. This means that if you wager $100 on the 76ers, you have a chance to win $71. The Cleveland Cavaliers is +120, offering a chance to win $120 on a $100 wager.

The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives the Philadelphia 76ers a 58.33% chance to win, with the Cleveland Cavaliers at 45.45%.

BET THIS PICK: Philadelphia 76ers -2½

The odds and predictions in the article are based on the time of writing and publication. They may differ as to when the actual event takes place.