By Kevin Taylor

The Cleveland Cavaliers are in a tough spot, something not many predicted. When the NBA playoff odds first came out for this series, the Cavaliers were huge favourites and most online sportsbooks reported taking very little action on the underdog Orlando Magic.

Now the sports betting public who backed Lebron James and the Cavaliers are starting to sweat. Cleveland is playing Game 4 on the road, off a loss as a 1.5-point underdog in Game 3. If they lose Tuesday night and go down 3-1, this will be a very, very difficult road to come back and win.

However, a win for the Cavs in this critical game gives them new life and will put the Magic in a defensive position. Orlando and the bettors who backed them will have to feel like an opportunity has been lost if they head back to Cleveland tied 2-2. They are a desperation Lebron 3-point shot away from being up 3-0 and looking to close the series out at home in a sweep...but King James hit that amazing shot at the end of Game 2 to pull out an improbable victory for the Cavs.

Currently, online sportsbook SPORTSBETTING.com has the NBA odds on this game listed at Pick’em with an Over/Under number of 188.5.

Handicapping this game, the big issue for Cleveland is finding a way to stop the Magic’s frontcourt from dominating, which means Lebron is left on his own to combat them.

This Magic team boasts impressive scoring depth and when they get hot, forget about it. And how good is Hedo Turkoglu. He has the size of a power forward, he can move the ball around like a point guard and we know he can shoot the lights out. But even when he isn’t able to contribute as much with points, he creates matchup issues for Cleveland.

There are plenty of great NBA playoff prop bets available at sports betting sites. Bettors can wager on how many points Lebron will score, head-to-head matchups between Lebron and Howard, and other players, as well you can bet on the number of rebounds, assists, fouls, etc.....whatever you can think of, online sportsbooks have listed as betting propositions. SPORTSBETTING.com has one of the largest and most diverse NBA prop betting menu board of any online sportsbook.

Looking at where the money is going on this game, bettors are pretty evenly split with the early volume. SPORTSBETTING.com is reporting 54% coming in on the Cavaliers. The best way for them to win might be for Lebron to only have 25 points, but get him focused on defending more and taking double teams with the intent of dishing off. Even if he does get more fatigued due to the additional defensive responsibilities, it might be the best way to go.

I’m looking at playing the Cavs at pick’em to tie the game up.

Good luck with your betting on this game.

Author: Kevin Taylor is a veteran sports handicapper and student of the sports betting world. He has written for several media outlets, focusing on sports, sports betting and online poker.