Knicks vs. Heat odds update: New York still underdogs after Game 2

After scoring their first playoff series win in a decade in the first round of this year’s NBA playoffs, the Knicks rallied from a late deficit to win Game 2 and even up their second-round series against the eighth-seeded Heat.

Yet oddsmakers are still doubting New York’s chances to advance in this semifinal matchup – and they’re even more dismissive of the team’s hopes of winning it all.

The Knicks (-105) are dealing as slim underdogs to outlast Miami (-115) in the second round, according to the latest odds at BetMGM, after Tuesday’s 111-105 win to split their first two games at home.

The series is also expected to last shorter than 6.5 games (-185), though New York winning in seven games (+250) is seen as the single-likeliest outcome on the board.

Knicks vs. Heat series odds

Even though the Heat are favored to advance in this second-round matchup, you wouldn’t know it from the championship betting market, where New York is curiously priced shorter to win it all (20/1) than Miami (25/1) despite dealing as an underdog to win the series.

That said, oddsmakers at BetMGM don’t give either team much of a shot to beat the Celtics (+200) or 76ers (+550) in the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Knicks and Heat are the only teams dealing at 10/1 or longer to win the NBA Finals.

New York entered Tuesday with the longest odds on the board to win it all (28/1), though a heroic effort from Jalen Brunson (30 points) and a gutsy return from Julius Randle (25) helped the Knicks avoid a dreaded 0-2 hole and boosted their title odds in the process.

Betting on the NBA?

Still, the betting market favors the Heat behind a recovering Jimmy Butler, who sat Tuesday’s loss with an ankle injury he suffered late in his team’s Game 1 win.

He’s officially questionable for Game 3, though he reportedly wanted to play through the sprain in Game 2 and should benefit from nearly a week of rest between the injury and Saturday’s game.

If he’s good to go this weekend, that could seriously limit the offensive output from Brunson, who scored just four points on 2-of-8 shooting when guarded by Butler in Game 1.

That said, Randle’s return could provide a continued jolt for the Knicks’ offense, which shot better than 45% for the first time all postseason on Tuesday.