The Miami Heat will travel to take on the New York Knicks in a Thursday night NBA matchup at the historic Madison Square Garden. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our NBA odds series, which includes a Heat-Knicks prediction and pick, laid out below.
Miami is set to make a run at the playoffs, going 29-23, good for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. Miami has won seven of their last 10 games to surge forward in the standings. Head coach Erik Spoelstra has continued his winning ways at the helm of the Heat.
New York has gone 27-25, seventh place in the Eastern Conference, in year three under Tom Thibodeau, who guided the team to the playoffs in his first season. The Knicks are currently on a two-game losing streak, which immediately followed a brief two-game winning streak.
Here are the Heat-Knicks NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Heat-Knicks Odds
Miami Heat: -2 (-106)
New York Knicks: +2 (-114)
Over: 215.5 (-110)
Under: 215.5 (-110)
How To Watch Heat vs. Knicks
TV: Bally Sports Sun, MSG Network
Stream: NBA, NBA League Pass
Time: 7:40 PM ET/ 4:40 PM PT
*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Heat Could Cover The Spread
Jimmy Butler leads the team with 22.0 points per game, dominating the offensive side of the ball for Miami. Ba, Adebayo is averaging a double-double, putting up 21.4 points and also pulling in 10.0 rebounds per game. Butler leads the team with 2.1 steals and ranks second with 4.9 assists per game. Tyler Herro has shot 37.2 percent from behind the 3-point line and ranks third on the team with 20.2 points per game. Kyle Lowry leads the team with 5.3 assists per game, also scoring 12.2 points per game. Max Strus and Victor Oladipo also average double-digit points, averaging 12.4 and 11.2 points per game, respectively. Oladipo has also averaged 1.7 steals per game.
Miami ranks third in the league with 8.5 steals, but New York is great at limiting their turnovers. Miami has turned the ball over just 13.5 times per game, which is fifth in the league. The Heat do not score much, ranking last in the league with 108.5 points per game. The team’s success relies on their defense, which has held opponents to 108.2 points per game, second in the league.
Why The Knicks Could Cover The Spread
Julius Randle leads the team with 24.7 points and 10.9 rebounds per game, the lone Knick putting up a double-double. Randle has shot 45.8 percent from the field, also taking the most shots per game on the team. Jalen Brunson, the team’s big free agent pickup this offseason after missing out on Donovan Mitchell, has scored 22.8 points while dishing out 6.2 assists per game, which leads the team. The combo of Randle and Brunson has proven to be a solid option.
New York does not dish the ball overly well, ranking 28th in assists. The good news for New York is their main scorers work at creating their own shots. RJ Barrett, the former third overall pick out of Duke, has averaged 20.1 points per game on 43.3 percent shooting. Barrett’s three-point shooting has suffered this season, but raising that number closer to his career average will likely increase his scoring output. Immanuel Quickley, coming mostly off the bench in his 42 appearances, has averaged 12.7 points per game.
New York ranks third in the league with 47.3 rebounds per game, while Miami is allowing just 42.2 per game. New York’s offense is pretty average, ranking 14th with 114.4 points per game. The defense has been great lately, ranking 12th by allowing 112.7 points per game.
Final Heat-Knicks Prediction & Pick
The mecca provides stability for the Knicks in this one.
Final Heat-Knicks Prediction & Pick: New York +2 (-114), under 215.5 (-110)
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