Upcoming Match-ups

Celtics Championship Odds Take a Hit with Kyrie Surgery

Ryan Murphy

by Ryan Murphy in NBA Basketball

Updated Apr 5, 2018 · 11:58 AM PDT

Kyrie Irving and Russell Westbrook
Can Kyrie Irving and the Celtics pull off an improbable three-game comeback against the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks? Photo by Torrey Purvey/Icon Sportswire.
  • Kyrie Irving’s first season in Boston has come to a premature end with his second knee procedure
  • Can the Celtics get past the first round without their leading scorer?
  • Who will step up in Irving’s absence?

So much for the luck of the Irish. The Celtics are reeling today after learning Kyrie Irving will miss the remainder of the regular season and the playoffs as he recovers from surgery to remove a pair of screws from his left knee.

This is the second surgery in two weeks for Irving, who underwent a minimally invasive procedure on March 24th to address irritation in the same knee. That particular operation was only supposed to sideline him for 3-6 weeks, but doctors discovered a bacterial infection during a follow-up visit and advised Irving to undergo a second – and hopefully final – surgery to correct the matter.

YouTube video

Irving averaged 24.4 points, 5.1 assists, and 3.8 rebounds in 32.2 minutes per game during his first year in Boston and was the driving force behind the Celtics’ 16-game winning streak at the beginning of the season. The 6’3” dynamo was the team’s unquestioned leader and Boston will sorely miss his ability to create shots for himself and others.

Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Al Horford will all have to step up in Irving’s absence and share the burden of leading the Celtics into the postseason. All three players are excellent secondary options, but lack the playmaking and creative flair that made Irving such a challenging player to contain.

Expect Boston’s title odds to drop like a stone over the next day once sportsbooks have had a chance to fully digest the news.

Expect Boston’s title odds to drop like a stone over the next day once sportsbooks have had a chance to fully digest the news and quantify the impact Irving’s absence will have on the Celtics. In the meantime, we’ve created some fresh odds of our own to reflect Boston’s bleak new reality.

Celtics Playoff Odds

Prop Odds
Celtics 2018 title odds with Kyrie Irving 20/1
Celtics 2018 title odds without Kyrie Irving 100/1
Prop Odds
Over/Under 2018 playoff wins for Boston 2.5
Over/Under number of games in Boston’s 2018 first round playoff series 6.5

Odds to Lead Boston in Playoff Scoring

Player Odds
Jaylen Brown 3/2
Jayson Tatum 4/1
Al Horford 5/1
Marcus Morris 9/1
Terry Rozier 10/1
FIELD 20/1
Author Image