New York Knicks vs Boston Celtics Prediction, Odds and Picks
The Knicks did play yesterday, but it was an early tipoff against one of the weaker teams in the league, so I don’t think that will have too much of a negative effect. The good thing about the Knicks is you can always count on their defense. They own the second-best defensive rating in the league and have been one of the more consistent teams on that end ever since hiring Tom Thibodeau. I’m also encouraged by the play of Julius Randle, who has now scored 20+ points in 3 games in a row, while also improving on his efficiency from the floor. He always seems to do well against the Celtics for some reason – in the past 5 meetings he’s averaging 26.8 points and 9 rebounds per game, while making an average of 3.8 threes per game.
Boston is on a 2-game win streak coming into this one, winning both of those games by double-digits vs Brooklyn and Toronto. However, over their last 4 they’re just 2-2 SU and we’ve seen them have their issues against teams like Minnesota and Philadelphia. The Knicks have been a tough nut to crack for them. In the last 7 meetings at TD Garden, the Celtics have covered the spread just twice. There are some question marks surrounding Jaylen Brown, who hasn’t gotten off to the start to the season everyone hoped he would. He had only 11 points at MSG a couple of weeks ago.
As soon as I saw this line it seemed a bit too big for my taste, after all the Knicks have won 6 of the last 10 meetings head-to-head, so I wouldn’t discount them so easily. New York is also off to a strong start in road games having covered in 3 of 4 outings. The first meeting of the season was won by the Celtics 108-104, but the game was pretty much in the balance with 90 seconds left in the 4th quarter. Boston still might win here, but I am expecting another close finish — which is why I like New York to cover.
Knicks +9 available at time of publishing. Playable at that number
