NBA futures odds: Will the Knicks make the playoffs and win 44 games?
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The NBA season is past the halfway mark, and it’s time to separate the contenders from the pretenders. No team had a better first half of the season than the Boston Celtics, who finished with a 42-17 record and led the Eastern Conference and the entire NBA. And a little further down in the Eastern Conference standings is the New York Knicks, who went into the break with a 33-17 record.
New York went into the break with three consecutive wins, which leapfrogged them over the Miami Heat. A big reason for that was trade-deadline acquisition Josh Hart, who brings the Knicks defense to a whole new level. We saw a glimpse of the potential that New York has with Hart, but the Knicks have only 22 games in the season, so can they reach 44 wins? And will they make the playoffs?
Our expert analyzed New York’s NBA futures odds at DraftKings Sportsbook and explained them below.
Join DraftKings today, and you can bet on a variety of NBA futures odds and earn $150 worth of bonus bets off a successful $5 money line wager.
At the all-star break, the Knicks have +15000 odds to win the NBA Finals at DraftKings Sportsbook. They have the same odds to win the championship as the Kings, Nets and Hawks. If you join DraftKings, you can back the Knicks to win it all for $10; if they do, you’ll earn $1,500 worth of profits.
Even with the addition of Josh Hart, a championship run does not look in the cards for New York this season. To just win the Eastern Conference, the Knicks’ NBA futures odds are priced at +5500, but they will have to get through several giants, such as the Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers to accomplish that.
New York is expected to make the playoffs this season. They are currently priced at -380 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook to make it past the regular season as part of their NBA futures odds, so a $38 bet on the Knicks to advance to the playoffs would profit $10.
New York should make the playoffs because they are currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, and the top eight teams from each conference advance to the playoffs. Even if the Knicks have a few losses in their final 22 games of the season, it seems hard to imagine that three teams would pass them in the standings.
In seventh and eighth place in the Eastern Conference are the Heat and Hawks, who are both fighting for their playoff chances. But after that, only the Wizards and Raptors seem to pose a threat to steal a playoff spot. It’s a steep price to pay, but the Knicks should advance to the playoffs, and we predict they will qualify for the postseason.
The Knicks’ win total for the season has been set at 43.5. That means in order for New York to go over their win total, they need to go 11-11 in the second half of the season. While it sounds easy to go .500, the Knicks have the eighth-hardest strength of schedule left this season.
That includes playing the Celtics twice, Nuggets, Cavaliers, Nets and Kings twice. But they have eight games against the Rockets, Hornets, Magic, Lakers and the Pacers and Wizards twice. If New York can capitalize on those sinking teams and steal a few games from decent opponents, they have an excellent chance of winning 44 games.
Therefore, our experts’ favorite NBA futures odds wager related to New York is for them to win over 43.5 games (-135 at DraftKings Sportsbook).
If you plan on betting on any Knicks game or NBA futures odds pick in the second half of the season, make sure to do it at DraftKings Sportsbook. You can earn $150 in bonus bets if your first $5 pre-game money line wager is correct. Whether you’re betting on New York to win or lose, to do it at DraftKings for a chance to win $150 in bonus bets.
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