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Free NBA Picks New York Knicks: Season-Long Handicapping and Specialization 5/10/2024

by Spencer Toth - 5/10/2024

Free NBA picks New York Knicks vs Indiana Pacers Jalen Brunson

You’ve found the right place for all your New York Knicks best bets and predictions. All season long, we have been breaking down every single New York Knicks game, and providing best bets throughout the season. The Knicks are poised to make a deep playoff run, and we will lean on the knowledge we have picked up from this team to stay in the green.

On Wednesday night, the Knicks secured a valuable 2-0 series lead, defending their home court. They once again found themselves in a high scoring affair, winning 130-121. While it was nice for the Knicks faithful to see their team pick up another win, the mood was soured throughout the night at Madison Square Garden. In the opening quarter, Jalen Brunson led the Knicks to a 24-17 lead, before getting injured and being forced to head to the locker room. All half long, the mood was muted in the Garden, as no update was provided until halftime from the dressing room. Without Brunson, the Knicks leaned on OG Anunoby on the offensive end. While Anunoby exploded for 22 first half points, the Knicks still found themselves trailing 71-61 at the break. Brunson returned to a massive applause to begin the second half, but the superstar was clearly not at 100%. He hurt his right foot and was seen limping around the court for the rest of the game. However, Brunson is a warrior, and still posted 29 points despite missing nearly half the game. As if things couldn’t get any worse for the Knicks, they then lost OG Anunoby to a tweaked hamstring in the third quarter. Anunoby left and did not return, and will be out for Game 3, if not longer going forward. It was a bittersweet victory for the Knicks, as their injury list grew even further, but it’s hard to complain about a 2-0 series lead, regardless of the circumstances.

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From a betting perspective, we had an even night. Precious Achiuwa cleared his 4.5 rebound line, which was the biggest bet of the night. The injuries certainly helped the big man get extra minutes, but it is sometimes better to be lucky than good. We lost on the Pacers (+4.5), as I expected the team to keep this one close after battling hard in Game 1.

Tonight, the series shifts to Indiana for what is virtually a must win game for the Pacers if they hope to keep their season alive. Tyrese Haliburton came to life in Game 2, after scoring just 6 points in Game 1. His 34 points and 9 assists will be required tonight once again, as the Pacers leaky defense ensures they need a boatload of points to secure a victory. Despite being mostly healthy, the Pacers have been running 9 men throughout this series. Usually in the postseason, head coaches cut the players playing meaningful minutes down to 7 or 8 players, but the Pacers are insistent on sticking to their rotation. We have already seen what happened to the Knicks health as they got overplayed, but only 30-35 minutes for the starters is simply too low. The Pacers need their best players on the court for as much as possible, or they will bow out of the postseason in the coming days.

It’s time to sound the alarm in New York. What was a promising Knicks team has turned into a lineup plagued with injuries. Julius Randle, OG Anunoby and Mitchell Robinson would all be starters on this team when healthy, and Bojan Bogdanovic is a key 6th man for New York. Robinson, Randle, and Bogdanovic are out for the season, while there is no real timeline for Anunoby, which is never good. Once you factor in a hobbled Brunson, it is truly a miracle the Knicks are where they are. Assuming Brunson plays, which is a big assumption, that still leaves Precious Achiuwa or Miles McBride being thrust into the lineup, with the other coming in as the 6th man. Going down the lineup, if Alec Burks or Jericho Sims are forced to play meaningful minutes, the Knicks will be in serious danger of flaming out of the playoffs.

There has been one man holding this fragmented team together, and it is not Jalen Brunson. The impact Josh Hart has made on both ends of the court can no longer be ignored. Hart has played 47 minutes per game in the postseason and hasn’t missed a minute of this series. His determination on the glass has been crucial to their success, as the 6 '3 guard leads the team, and entire series in rebounds. The fact Hart can play 48 minutes at a high level has kept the Knicks afloat during their injury crisis and is the perfect man for a Tom Thibodeau coaching scheme.

In Game 3, the Pacers will be desperate to pick up a victory. Falling into an 0-3 hole would all but seal their fate as second round exits, and they need to take advantage of the Knicks injuries to keep this series close. The spread is set at 7 points in favor of Indiana. And while they may be able to win, this spread is ridiculous. OG Anunoby will be out, but as long as Brunson plays, which all signs are pointing to yes, the Knicks will be able to keep this one close. The venue has changed, and Anunoby is out, but even with those two factors, a 12 point swing in favor of the Pacers from last games (+5) spread feels a little extreme. Indiana is still absolutely awful on the defensive end, and it’s easy to forget they got cooked on multiple occasions by a Bucks team missing Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. The Pacers cannot slow down the Knicks, and expecting a big win is out of the question, grab the free points.

For the second bet of the night, we have no choice but to take the Over. The Pacers will look to push the pace on their home court. And even though the total is all the way up at 222, the Over is still the way to go. These two teams combined for 238 and 251 points in the first two games and will fill up the hoop once again tonight. Anunoby being out hurts the Knicks defensively, and we should see plenty of shots from Donte DiVincenzo and Brunson tonight. It’s a high total for the Knicks, but on the Pacers home court, this one will soar over.

Pick: New York Knicks (+7) 2 Units

Pick: Knicks vs Pacers Over 222 3 Units

2023-24 Season record:

ML Record: 14-5

Spread Record: 24-23

Total Record: 17-15 

Player Props Record: 23-39

Total: 78-82

Up 1.6 Units

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