Outside of the Houston Rockets, there may not be a team in the association playing worse basketball lately than the Orlando Magic. The Magic enter tonight having lost 8 straight, and half of those games weren't even competitive.
The New York Knicks continue to hover around .500 and their schedule in the second half is a brutal one. They return to Madison Square Garden with a very good opportunity to scoop up a win against a deflated Magic team. Let's continue our NBA odds series and make a Magic Knicks prediction and pick.
Here's how the sportsbooks are lining up this one:
NBA Odds: Magic – Knicks odds
Orlando Magic +5 (-110)
New York Knicks -5 (-110)
Over 206.5 points (-115)
Under 206.5 points (-105)
Why the Magic Could Cover the Spread
The Magic beat the Knicks with conviction one month ago, the final score was 107-89. While the Knicks have been a trendy story this year in the NBA with how well they've looked under Tom Thibodeau, they aren't a top-tier team in the Eastern Conference.
Orlando is catching the Knicks at the right time. The Knicks are coming off back-to-back heartbreaking losses on the road in Brooklyn and in Philadelphia where the starters played heavy minutes and exhausted plenty of energy. They will also be without Mitchell Robinson and Derrick Rose yet again, and Elfrid Payton is doubtful. Rookie sensation Immanuel Quickley has found his way onto the injury report and is listed as questionable.
With the Knicks' injuries piled up and coming off two straight nail-biting, sinking defeats, there's a chance for the Magic to snap their skid.
Why the Knicks Could Cover the Spread
The confidence is still there with the Knicks. Sure they are 1-3 in the second half, but those three losses came to the Bucks, Nets, and 76ers. In other words, arguably the three best teams in the Eastern Conference.
Tom Thibodeau's bunch has played well at home this year straight up and against the spread. The Knicks are 6-1 in their last seven at the Mecca and are four games over .500 straight-up protecting their home floor on the season.
New York had a chance late to tie the Nets with a three and less than a minute two games ago and fell just short. In their last game, they led throughout against the 76ers before Philly took the lead late, edging out New York by three. The Knicks have proved their worth, they just can't get over the hump against that upper-echelon competition. Thankfully for them, the Magic are not that.
Final Magic – Knicks Prediction and Pick
Losses come in different varieties folks. They all count the same, no doubt, but they come in different waves. The Knicks had a chance to beat Brooklyn and Philadelphia. The record in the second half doesn't reflect it, but they are still playing really good basketball. The Magic meanwhile, have been miserable.
They've scored and average of 92.3 points per game over the last three. That's horrible by any metric.
Add on top of it Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier didn't play in their last game and both are on the injury report tonight, the Knicks have to be licking their chops to get on the court with Orlando.
I like the Knicks to cover the spread tonight and win this one by double digits against the Magic. Orlando has shown no signs of life the last few weeks, the Knicks are playing well just losing to tough competition
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION: ORL 95, NYK 108 (NYK -5)
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