NBA Picks: Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks

Boston Celtics (44-12 SU, 25-28 ATS) vs. New York Knicks (34-22 SU, 32-24 ATS)

When: Saturday, February 24th, 8:30 PM (ET)

Where: Madison Square Garden, NY, New York

TV: ABC

Point Spread: Bos -7/NY +7

Total: 224

Money Line: Celts -268/NYK +216

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Notable Injuries

Celtics

None

Knicks

• Julius Randle (Out) Shoulder
• OG Anunoby (Out) Elbow
• Mitchell Robinson (Out) Ankle

At 8:30 ET, the 1st place Boston Celtics (-268) will take on the 4th place Knicks (+216) in a divisional matchup. The Celtics have won 7 straight games and are favored by 7 points over the Knicks.

This game will be played at Madison Square Garden in New York and can be seen on ABC. The over/under line for this game is currently sitting at 224 points.

Recent Form

The Celtics have won seven straight games and are currently in first place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 44-12. In non-conference games, they are 13-6 compared to 31-6 against the East.

On the road, the Celtics are 18-9 this season and have won seven straight games away from home. Their average scoring margin on the road is +6.6 points per game.

This season, the Celtics have been favored in 53 of their 56 games and have a record of 42-11 as the favorite. Against the spread, they are 23-27 when favored and have covered the spread in their last two games.

In their most recent game, the Celtics defeated the Bulls by a score of 129-112. The O/U line for that game was 223.5, and the Celtics were favored by 8.5 points going into the game.

Boston’s O/U record for the season is 28-28, and their games have averaged 231.4 points per game. Today’s O/U line is set at 224.

In Knicks games this season, the average over/under line is 225.8, which is slightly higher than today’s line of 224. The team’s games have averaged a combined 224.1 points.

New York’s O/U record for the season is 22-33-1. In non-conference games, the Knicks are 11-10 compared to 23-12 against other Eastern Conference teams.

As the underdog, the Knicks have gone 9-15 straight-up and 11-13 against the spread. Today, they are getting 7 points and are 4-8 ATS in their last four home games.

The Knicks are coming off a 110-96 win over the 76ers. They covered the spread as 1-point underdogs, and the game finished with a combined 206 points, going under the O/U line of 228.5.

Overall, the Knicks are 34-22 this season, which puts them in 2nd place in the Atlantic Division and 4th in the Eastern Conference.

The Historicals

When looking at how these teams have performed against the spread in recent matchups, the Knicks hold the edge at 3-2. However, the average scoring margin in these matchups has been tight, sitting at just -2 points per game. In these contests, they averaged a combined 228 points per game, leading to an over-under mark of 2-3.

Analysis

Heading into their matchup with the Knicks, the Celtics are one of the most potent offenses in the league, averaging 120.8 points per game (5th). On the road, they have been even better, ranking 4th in the league at 119 points per game.

So far this season, the Celtics have outscored the NBA scoring average in 71.4% of their games. They are also one of the top three-point shooting teams in the league, leading the NBA in both three-point attempts and made threes.

When it comes to two-point shooting, the Celtics are 3rd in the league at 57%. Overall, they are shooting 48% from the field (12th) and have the 4th-best true shooting percentage.

Boston’s defense has been playing well, ranking 5th in the NBA with 110.6 points allowed per game. Boston’s defense is currently forcing 11.9 turnovers per game, which is 5th in the league. Additionally, they enter the game ranked 2nd in blocked shots, with an average of 6.6 rejections per game.

This season, the Knicks have been a below-average offensive team, ranking 18th in scoring at 114.4 points per game. At home, they are averaging 114.2 points per game, which is 21st in the NBA.

When it comes to three-point shooting, the Knicks are 13th in the league in both attempts and makes. Overall, they are shooting 37% from beyond the arc.

So far, the Knicks have outscored the NBA scoring average in 46.4% of their games. However, they have struggled to get out in transition, ranking 30th in pace at 95.9 possessions per game.

Not only do the Knicks’ overall defensive numbers look good, as they are 3rd in the league in points allowed. New York has also been playing well on defense of late, ranking 4th in the league over their last three games at 106.3 PPG allowed. Most recently, the Knicks’ defense put together a solid performance, giving up just 96 points to the 76ers.

Betting Trends

• In their last five road games, Boston has averaged 123 points per game while allowing 109 . The team’s record in this stretch was 5-0 while going 3-1-1 vs. the spread.
• Across their ten previous home games, New York has an ATS mark of 6-4. Their straight-up record in these matchups was 6-4 while averaging 113 points per game.
• The last three games that New York was the underdog, they have an ATS mark of 1-2 while going 1-2 straight up.
• Spanning across their last ten games as the betting favorite, the Celtics have gone 3-6-1 vs the spread. Their overall record in these games was 9-1.

Joes Pick To Cover The Spread

Despite playing at home, the Knicks are still just too banged up to hang with the Celtics. Jalen Brunson has been excellent this year, and he has the ability to make things interesting for a while, but ultimately the Celtics are going to be too much to handle. I like Boston at -7. Did you know that you could be betting your picks at -105 odds instead of the more expensive -110 you’re laying? Quit wasting money TODAY and start saving big bucks by making the switch to reduced juice sports betting at BetAnySports Sportsbook! We’ve advertised them over a decade with ZERO complaints!