NBA: Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks Preview, Odds, Prediction

It’s Boston Celtics against the New York Knicks. Is there a better way to start the NBA season but to see two old foes going one against another? Madison Square Garden will be overcrowded from top to bottom, and that is something we waited to see for way too long. The Knicks have high ambitions this year, and the reason for that is Kemba Walker’s arrival. It is needless to say that he comes to NY after a disastrous adventure in Boston. On the other side, the Cs are starting a new era, with Ime Udoka as the new head coach.

Preview

Boston Celtics (+100) had a lot of changes this offseason. One of them was getting rid of Kemba Walker. The other was Evan Fournier’s departure. Guess what? Both of these guys ended up in Boston. But that is not all, the biggest change was at the head coaching position, where Ime Udoka replaced Brad Stevens. In our opinion, that is a step back, but we’ll see.

Enes Kanter, Dennis Schroder, Al Horford, and Josh Richardson are the newcomers in Boston. The Cs will be slim under the rim again, with Robert Williams and Kanter as the only big guys able to wrestle with the rivals. But that is why the trio – Smart, Brown, and Tatum – presents the heart and the soul of this team. They will be the leaders and the key players in all situations.

Boston wasn’t compelling during the preseason, winning two of the last five matches, against the Raptors and the Magic, both contests very closely. The most recent game was against the Miami Heat on the road, where they suffered a 21-point defeat.

New York Knicks (-120) are on the rise. The positive atmosphere is felt all around the Big Apple because everyone believes that this team can do big things. Especially now, when the playoff drought is over, and a few big names landed.

Tom Thibodeau will have the above-mentioned backcourt duo, Walker-Fournier, plus the already present core from the previous year that led them to the playoffs. So, we can say that it is a significant improvement for the Knicks, who are entering the regular season after four wins in a row during the preparations.

New York was better than Indiana Pacers at home, the Wizards on the road, and the Pistons and the Wizards again in Madison. In all these matches, they’ve scored at least 108 points.

Head to Head Games

The Knicks were better than the Cs in the 2020/21 season, winning two games and losing one. The first in TD Garden saw the guests rolling over the rivals, 105-75, the second at the same place ended with Boston’s tight win, 101-99, while the third in Madison finished with NYK’s 96-92 victory.

Prediction

New York is in better shape, and the recent preseason matches clearly showed that. On top of everything, they will have the crowd behind them and fired-up Kemba, who will have a massive motive to prove himself against the former teammates. Therefore, our pick is hosts to win, and we will go with them, covering a +1.5-point spread.

Pick: Knicks -1.5