Atlantic Division rivals meet to begin the 2023-24 NBA season on Wednesday. The New York Knicks welcome the Boston Celtics to Madison Square Garden for the season opener between teams with sky-high aspirations. New York reached the second round last season and won 47 games before retaining the core of a strong team. Boston won 57 games and reached the Eastern Conference Finals before adding Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis in the offseason.
For this game, SportsLine consensus lists Boston as 3.5-point favorites, and tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. The total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, or the over/under, is 223 in the latest Celtics vs. Knicks odds. Before making any Knicks vs. Celtics picks, you need to see the NBA predictions and betting advice from SportsLine's advanced computer simulation model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past five seasons. The model finished the 2022-23 NBA season on a 72-39 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, returning nearly $2,800. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Celtics vs. Knicks and just locked in its picks and NBA predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model's picks. Now, here are several NBA odds and betting lines for Celtics vs. Knicks:
- Celtics vs. Knicks spread: Celtics -3.5
- Celtics vs. Knicks over/under: 223 points
- Celtics vs. Knicks money line: Celtics -166, Knicks +141
- BOS: The Celtics are 56-46 against the spread last season
- NYK: The Knicks are 50-39-4 against the spread last season
- Celtics vs. Knicks picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why the Celtics can cover
Boston has tremendous star power, led by a top-10 player in Jayson Tatum and a trio of supporting standouts. Tatum, a three-time All-NBA selection, averaged 30.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per game last season, and he is a spectacular two-way force. Jaylen Brown was second on the team with 26.6 points per game, and he shot 49.1% from the field with 6.9 rebounds per contest. Since last season, Boston also added Porzingis and Holiday, both of whom should bolster the Celtics on both ends.
Porzingis is a former All-Star with 23.2 points and 8.4 rebounds per game a year ago, and he produced a 62.7% true shooting mark. Holiday is a two-time All-Star and five-time All-Defense selection, and the two-way guard shot 49.4% from the field and 39.5% from 3-point range over the last three seasons combined. He also averaged 19.3 points, 7.4 assists, and 5.1 rebounds per game in 2022-23 as a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. See which team to pick here.
Why the Knicks can cover
New York is led by the duo of Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle. Brunson enjoyed a breakout in 2022-23, averaging 24.0 points and 6.2 assists per game. Randle added 25.1 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, and the pairing keyed the Knicks to a top-tier offense. The Knicks scored 1.17 points per possession, No. 4 in the NBA, and they put consistent pressure on the rim. The Knicks averaged 25.5 free throw attempts and 16.2 second-chance points per game last season, and were No. 2 in the league with a 31.8% offensive rebound rate.
On the other end, New York led the NBA with 45.9 points allowed per game in the paint, and the Knicks were in the top five in opponent shooting (46.2%) and fast break points allowed (12.7 per game). The Knicks were also in the top 10 of the NBA in defensive rebound rate (72.7%) in 2022-23. See which team to pick here.
How to make Celtics vs. Knicks picks
SportsLine's model is leaning Under on the point total, with Tatum and Brunson projected to fall short of their season-long scoring averages from 2022-23. The model also says one side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations. You can only get the model's NBA picks and analysis at SportsLine.
So who wins Knicks vs. Celtics, and which side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Celtics vs. Knicks spread you need to jump on Wednesday, all from the model that returned nearly $2,800 on its NBA picks in 2023-23, and find out.
