Knicks vs. Celtics Prediction, Odds and Best NBA Prop Bets for Playoffs Game 1

Boston is favored at home in Game 1 after going 4-0 against the Knicks in the regular season.

Boston is favored at home in Game 1 after going 4-0 against the Knicks in the regular season. / John Jones-Imagn Images

The quest for back-to-back championships continues for the Boston Celtics on Monday night as they welcome the New York Knicks to TD Garden for Game 1 of the second round.

These teams are very familiar with each other, matching up four times in the regular season, but the C’s have been by far the superior team, beating the Knicks in all of those games. In fact, Boston is 8-2 against the Knicks in their last 10 meetings heading into this matchup.

Oddsmakers have set Jayson Tatum and the Celtics as nine-point favorites at home after they made quick work of the Orlando Magic in the first round, winning that series in five games. 

The Knicks, on the other hand, are coming off a hard-fought series with the Detroit Pistons that they won in six games on the back of a Jalen Brunson game-winning shot in Game 6. 

Can New York finally get over the hump against Boston with this current core? It seems unlikely with the C’s set as -800 favorites to win the series.

Here’s a look at Game 1, including the odds, players to bet on in the prop market and my game prediction. 

Knicks vs. Celtics Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

• Knicks +9 (-110) 
• Celtics -9 (-110)

Moneyline

• Knicks: +310
• Celtics: -395

Total

• 213 (Over -112/Under -108)

Knicks vs. Celtics How to Watch

• Date: Monday, May 5
• Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
• Venue: TD Garden
• How to Watch (TV): TNT
• Series: Tied 0-0

Knicks vs. Celtics Injury Reports

Knicks Injury Report

• None to report

Celtics Injury Report

• None to report

Knicks vs. Celtics Best NBA Prop Bets

New York Knicks Best NBA Prop Bet

• OG Anunoby UNDER 15.5 Points (-110)

One of the craziest trends in the NBA is in action on Monday night. 

Knicks forward OG Anunoby has never scored more than 14 points in a single game against the Boston Celtics in his career. It may be shocking, but in 25 career games against Boston, Anunoby is averaging just 8.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists.

That hasn’t changed in his time with the Knicks, as he’s scored four, 10 and 13 points in his three meetings with the C’s this season.

Anunoby had a solid first round against Detroit, but he’s far from the No. 1 option in the Knicks’ offense. I’ll bet on this trend continuing until he’s finally able to snap the streak. 

Boston Celtics Best NBA Prop Bet

• Kristaps Porzingis OVER 1.5 3-Pointers Made (-180) – 0.5 unit

Earlier today, I shared in my NBA Best Bets column – Peter’s Points – why Porzingis is worth a bet against his former team: 

Kristaps Porzingis is a former Knick, and he’s loved torching his former team since being traded to Boston. 

In seven matchups against the Knicks as a Celtic, Porzingis has made at least two 3-pointers in all of them, shooting a combined 26-for-52 from deep (50.0 percent). He’s taken at least five shots from beyond the arc in all seven of those games.

Last season, the Knicks had issues guarding Myles Turner – another stretch big – and they have been awful against Boston’s pick-and-roll offense all season long. KP should get plenty of easy looks against a Knicks team that was in the bottom five in the NBA in opponent 3-point percentage during the regular season. 

Knicks vs. Celtics Prediction and Pick

I can’t get over Boston’s play against the Knicks in the regular season. Four wins, three by double-digits and a ton of big leads that New York seemingly had no chance to come back from. 

New York’s defense simply couldn’t hold up against the C’s, and even a shorthanded Boston team beat the Knicks in overtime late in the regular season. 

Brunson’s heroics against the Detroit Pistons kept the Knicks alive, but New York only had a plus-eight point differential in that series. That isn’t sustainable against a team of Boston's caliber. 

Boston finished the regular season with the second-best net rating in the NBA, and it can beat the Knicks in a ton of ways on offense, but mainly by spamming its pick-and-roll offense against Karl-Anthony Towns. 

In the first five games of the series against Detroit, New York was allowing more than one point per possession against Detroit’s pick-and-roll offense with Towns in the action. 

Not great. 

The C’s have dominated at home this season, going 28-13 in the regular season and 3-0 in the playoffs. They also covered the spread in both home games that Tatum played in during the Orlando series.

As for the Knicks, they are just 5-14 against the spread this season when they have a rest disadvantage. I’m not buying them to pull off the upset in Game 1. 

Pick: Celtics -9 (-110 at DraftKings)

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on  BetStamp here.

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