Boston Celtics vs New York Knicks Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 13/11/2023, 08:37  by Joseph King | Modified on 13/11/2023 at 08:53 in NBA Predictions

An NBA Eastern Conference clash between two historic rivals sees the second-place Boston Celtics hosting the seventh-place New York Knicks. After a two-game losing skid, the Celtics have since recovered with two consecutive wins to push their record to 7-2 on the season. Boston’s most recent outing resulted in a dominant 117-94 home win over the Toronto Raptors on Saturday. It was arguably the team’s best defensive performance of the season so far as it was the first time they held their opponents to under 100 points. The Celtics will now turn their attention towards New York for the third and final game of their current three game home stand. Boston are the current betting favorites to lift the Larry O’Brien trophy and they rank towards the top of most advanced metrics. They lead the NBA in adjusted net rating and adjusted offensive rating and rank second in adjusted defensive rating.

The Knicks suffered a slow start to the 2023/24 season but have been able to turn things around in the past week. They come into this matchup riding a three-game winning streak following their big 129-107 home win over the Hornets on Sunday. The string of victories have boosted the Knicks record up to 5-4 on the season which places them seventh in the East. New York now takes to the road for the first of a lengthy five-game road trip as they face arguably the most impressive team in the NBA so far. As expected, Tom Thibodeau’s team is one of the top performing defenses in the league. Their 103.2 average points allowed ranks as the second best in the entire NBA behind only the Timberwolves’ 103.1. They also rank fifth in adjusted defensive rating, meaning that the results are not simply flukes.