Cavaliers vs. Nets Prediction, Odds and Best NBA Prop Bets for Thursday, Feb. 20

Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers are in possession of the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference as they look to close out the regular season strong, starting on Thursday against the Brooklyn Nets.

Brooklyn was supposed to be tanking this season, but it has already surpassed its preseason win total of 19.5 and won three games in a row before the All-Star break. The Nets, who have the No. 1 defensive rating in the NBA in their last 10 games, are massive underdogs at home on Thursday.

While the Cavs are an impressive 13-8 against the spread when favored on the road, can they cover against this Nets team that may have a shot at sneaking into the play-in tournament?

Here’s a full breakdown of this matchup, including the latest odds, players to watch in the prop market and my prediction.

Cavaliers vs. Nets Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

Cavs -13 (-110)
Nets +13 (-110)

Moneyline

Cavs: -900
Nets: +600

Total

223.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

Cavaliers vs. Nets How to Watch

Date: Thursday, Feb. 20
Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
Venue: Barclays Center
How to Watch (TV): YES Network, Bally Sports Ohio
Cavs record: 44-10
Nets record: 20-34

Cavaliers vs. Nets Injury Reports

Cavs Injury Report

Ty Jerome – questionable
Isaac Okoro – questionable
Dean Wade – out
JT Thor – out

Nets Injury Report

Reece Beekman – out
Bojan Bogdanovic – out
Nic Claxton – available
Noah Clowney – out
Cam Thomas – out
De’Anthony Melton – out
Dariq Whitehead – out
Tosan Evbuomwan – out

Cavaliers vs. Nets Best NBA Prop Bets

Cleveland Cavaliers Best NBA Prop Bet

De’Andre Hunter OVER 2.5 3-Pointers Made (+124)

Since joining the Cavs, Hunter has shot 3-for-4 from 3 and 4-for-9 from 3, clearing this prop on both occasions.

He has a solid matchup on Thursday night against the Nets, who are just 26th in the league in opponent 3-point percentage. Hunter has shot 40.0 percent from deep in the 2024-25 season, and he’s cleared this prop in four straight games.

As long as Hunter continues to attempt a solid number of 3s, he’s worth a shot against Brooklyn tonight.

Brooklyn Nets Best NBA Prop Bet

Cameron Johnson OVER 20.5 Points and Rebounds (-125)

Brooklyn Nets forward Cameron Johnson has become arguably the top option in this offense since Cam Thomas injured his hamstring earlier in the season.

He’s averaging 19.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game, yet his combined rebounds and points prop is set at just 20.5. Johnson has cleared 20.5 points and rebounds in two of his last four games since returning from injury, and had 27 and 28 points and rebounds in his two meetings with the Cavs earlier in the season.

Cavaliers vs. Nets Prediction and Pick

This Brooklyn team is a tough one to figure out.

The Nets are 22nd in the league in defensive rating, yet they are No. 1 in the league in that metric over their last 10 games – despite making moves to offload veterans like Dorian Finney-Smith and Dennis Schroder.

While they’ve been much better than projected, the Nets have also struggled as home underdogs, going 8-11 against the spread with an average scoring margin of -9.0 points in those games.

Should we trust the Brooklyn defense of late to show up in this game, or will there be regression to the mean?

I’m siding with the latter, as the Nets have been a flawed defense against the 3-ball all season long, ranking 26th in opponent 3-point percentage.

Cleveland – the No. 1 offense in the NBA – had a 29-point win earlier this season in Brooklyn, and it should have the offensive firepower to cover this number against a Nets team that is just 27th in offensive rating and 25th in effective field goal percentage.

Pick: Cavs -13 (-110 at DraftKings)

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