Among the top surprises in the 2020-21 NBA season is the play of the New York Knicks. In fact, the Knicks are on their way to the playoffs, a place they haven't been in since 2013 when Carmelo Anthony was still the team's alpha pacing up and down the court at Madison Square Garden. This time around, it's Julius Randle spearheading the Knicks.
But despite New York greatly exceeding extremely low preseason expectations, bettors are staying away from laying money on the Knicks' NBA futures odds to have a championship parade in Manhattan, according to Jeff Sherman of Westgate SuperBook.
Via David Purdum of ESPN Chalk:
“They still get faded a lot,” Sherman said. “People just aren't buying into it, even though they have such a strong record and they're on an incredible run against the spread.”
Indeed, the Knicks have been a highly profitable team against the spread this season. As noted too by Purdum, the team has a 15-2 ATS record, dating back to April 3.
As of this writing, the Knicks are 45-25-1 ATS. Their 64.3 cover percentage is the highest in the NBA, with the Phoenix Suns right behind them. Chris Paul and company are covering in 60 percent of their games thus far.
Perhaps it's because the Knicks are a team whose success is anchored more on defense, which requires quite a deeper level of appreciation from the fans. Then again, they're a big-market franchise that should always be getting a ton of action.
In any case, the Knicks have their chance to prove their naysayers wrong in the 2021 NBA Playoffs.
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