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Free NBA Picks New York Knicks: Season-Long Handicapping and Specialization 12/27/2024

by Spencer Toth - 12/27/2024

Free NBA picks New York Knicks season long handicapping Miles McBride

Don’t look now, but the New York Knicks are storming up the Eastern Conference standings after collecting their fifth consecutive win on Christmas Day. Doc’s Sports is the place to get all your New York Knicks betting needs this season, as we will be breaking down every single game while providing best bets along the way. 

On Christmas Day, the Knicks narrowly edged the Spurs 117-114. Victor Wembanyama scored 42 points and hauled in 18 rebounds, but it wasn’t enough for the Spurs to pull off the stunning upset. New York overcame a late deficit on the back of a season-high 41 points from Mikal Bridges. Bridges was effective all over the court, shooting 17/25 from the floor and 6/9 behind the arc. 

From a betting perspective, we went 1-1. The Knicks were able to pick up the win, but they fell short of covering the -9 point spread at home. However, we had one of the season's biggest wins on Mikal Bridges Over 16.5 points. Bridges erupted for his career high with this soft matchup, and we didn’t even have to sweat for this victory after he poured on 41 points. 

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Tonight, the New York Knicks (20-10) will look to extend their win streak when they head to Florida to take on the Orlando Magic (19-13). Orlando lost to the Miami Heat 89-88 last night in the lowest-scoring game of the NBA season. A scoreline like that should tell you all you need to know about the Magic’s priorities, as they are certainly a defense-first team. The Magic are third in the league in defensive rating, as they generate plenty of turnovers and have the best defensive rebounding percentage in the NBA. Their ability to clamp down defensively has allowed them to cling onto their fourth-place seed in the East. 

Even with good defense, it is impressive that the Magic have been able to stay afloat despite missing their two leading scorers. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner are averaging 29 PPG and 26.4 PPG, respectively, and have both been out for considerable stretches. Now that Moritz Wagner is also hurt, the Magic only have one player averaging double figures in scoring on their roster. Jalen Suggs is in the team for his impact on the defensive end, but he has a real opportunity to show he can be a threat on the offensive end now that he is the Magic’s primary scoring option. His 16.5 PPG is by far his career high. And after finishing 10th in DPOY voting last season, he has become a real threat on both ends of the court. 

Orlando has done a great job at leaning on their defense to remain competitive, but it would be a real disappointment if the Knicks were unable to walk away with a big victory tonight. New York has a well-rounded offense that will inevitably break down the Orlando defense. The Magic had a tough game last night against Miami. And when tired legs creep into the equation for Orlando, only one team will emerge victorious. 

New York struggled with depth in the early stages of the season but has quickly been transformed into one of the most well-rounded teams in the league. Their starting unit of Brunson-Towns-Anunoby-Hart-Bridges has a 7.6 net rating across 492 minutes of action on the court together, which is one of the best marks in the league. Not only that, but they have more than 100 more minutes on the court together than any other five-man combination in the league, and only three other starting fives have had more than 250 minutes on the court together. Building chemistry was always going to be a priority for the Knicks in the early stage of the season, and injuries to their bench players allowed Tom Thibodeau to give his starters heavy minutes. Now that Precious Achiuwa and Cam Payne are healthy once again, New York has settled into a healthy rotation on a nightly basis. 

The Knicks have a significant rest advantage over the Magic having not played since Wednesday afternoon and will look to pick up a crucial road victory in a battle near the top of the standings. These two teams may be mismatched at this stage of the season. However, once the Wagner brothers and Banchero get back on the court, this could be a game that we look back on at the end of the season. The Knicks must take advantage of these opportunities when they arise, and they will be able to clamp down defensively against the Magic tonight. While we won't be touching the -7 point spread in what could be a close game, there are a pair of other Knicks props that have caught my eye. First is the -275 moneyline. New York has shown they can step up when they need to most and will certainly pull out the win against the Magic. Orlando’s defense makes laying points on the road a tough task, but New York’s offensive superiority will ensure they get the win even if they can’t cover the spread. The second prop to take is Orlando Magic Under 103.5 points at -110 odds. The Magic have been held to double digits in three of their last five games, and the second night of a back-to-back with a banged up roster is a recipe for another under. New York held them to just 91 points when these two teams met two weeks ago, and they won’t have Moritz Wagner’s 32 points off the bench this time either. 

For the final bet of the night, we will be taking Miles McBride to score 10+ points at +130 odds. McBride has been cold in recent games, but it hasn’t been for a lack of shot attempts. He has only hit double figures in four of his last 10 games but has taken five or more shots in all of those appearances. He is averaging 8 shots per game and will get plenty of minutes against a wounded Magic team. McBride looks poised for a big game, and all the value is on 10+ points rather than Over 8.5 at -110 odds. 

Pick: New York Knicks Moneyline -275 8 Units

Pick: Orlando Magic Under 103.5 -110 5 Units

Pick: Miles McBride 10+ points +130 6 Units

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