The New York Knicks will host the Indiana Pacers for Game 1 on 05/21 to tip off the Eastern Conference Finals. The star power is loaded! Jalen Brunson spearheads the list of superstars, whereas Tyrese Haliburton is a force to be reckoned with, too.
Karl-Anthony Towns, Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, and Myles Turner are among other players to keep an eye on. Anyway, here are the best bets from FanDuel and BetMGM.
Brunson is continuing his 2024 playoffs form in the current postseason. He has averaged 28.8 PPG as the leading scorer of the team. His average against the Boston Celtics in the ECSF came down from 31.5 PPG in the first round to 26.2 PPG.
He did have a 39-point effort in Game 4 but fell “under” the projections in four of six battles. However, I see him turning around against the Pacers, which allowed Donovan Mitchell to have 30+ points nights throughout the series. I believe Brunson will hit “over” here.
KAT was a monster on the boards against the Celtics. He pinned down 12.7 rebounds per game, which was just about his season average of 12.8 RPG. The center went “over” the mark in four of the six instances.
He will be up for another big-time effort here, and I see him clasping 12+ rebounds in Game 1.
Turner’s shot-blocking numbers have come down in recent years. Despite that, he unlocked his shot-rejection ways in the previous series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Pacers center notched 2.8 BPG in the five games, as he crossed the 2.5 mark in three of the four games. I believe he will reject 3-4 shots in Game 1, too.
Bridges is not a knockdown long-range shooter by any stretch, but he has his moments. The Knicks Wing averaged 1.7 makes on a 33.3% clip against the Celtics. It was pretty much the same output, he had against the Detroit Pistons in the first round.
Overall, he has hit more than one triple in seven of the 12 postseason matches. I expect him to make 2 again.
The Pacers’ PG was on fire as a playmaker in the series against Cleveland. He averaged 7.2 APG, going “Over” the mark on four of the six occasions. It was a huge jump from the first round series against the Milwaukee Bucks, when he averaged 4.8 APG.
The bookmakers have faith in the Knicks’ tight perimeter defense to restrict passing lanes, thus they are skeptical about his chances to dish over 5 assists. However, I see him distributing 6 helpers at least.
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