NBA predictions, picks Monday: Knicks vs. Celtics best bet
It feels like every single night in the NBA has the potential to bring us something spectacular or even historic. That was certainly the case on Sunday when the Lakers capped off the biggest comeback by any team this season (27 points), and Blazers star Damian Lillard tied the mark for the most points in a game all year (71 points) – which doubled as the eighth-most points in league history.
Somehow, those two performances were just some of the craziness that we enjoyed over the weekend, and we’ve got a chance for more on Monday with eight teams in action for their final games of the month. Here’s how we’re betting the board at BetMGM:
- Knicks +2.5 vs. Celtics
- Magic +3.5 @ Pelicans
Knicks vs. Celtics prediction and analysis
(7:30 p.m. ET., MSG)
Finally, the Celtics are starting to get healthy again after clearing all but two names from their injury report entering the week. There’s only one problem: one of those names is Jaylen Brown (personal), who had finally returned from a lengthy absence on Thursday only to sit out Monday’s game against the Knicks.
Boston has lost just five of its last 23 games dating back to Jan. 5, and Brown has been sidelined for two of those losses, including the team’s most recent loss on Feb. 14 against the Bucks. The C’s nearly pulled that one out thanks to the heroic play of guard Derrick White, who is fighting through an ankle sprain but will likely still play in this one.
Conversely, New York is hitting its stride with five straight wins (5-0 against the spread) by an average of 14.6 points following Saturday’s 22-point beatdown of the Pelicans. The Knicks won by three points when these teams met in Boston a month ago; with Brown sidelined and White hobbled, I’ll gladly take the points on the home side in Monday’s rematch.
Knicks vs. Celtics pick
- Knicks +2.5 (BetMGM)
Betting on the NBA?
Pelicans vs. Magic prediction and analysis
(8:10 p.m. ET.)
The Pelicans were one of my favorite teams to bet on earlier this season – well before Zion Williamson suffered a right hamstring strain that’s sidelined him since Jan. 3. They haven’t been worth backing. They are clear fades in a rare favorite spot on Monday.
New Orleans ousted the lowly Rockets in the team’s first game sans Williamson on Jan. 4. Since then; they have been favored just five times (3-2 ATS) with two outright losses and a combined plus-one scoring differential in those contests. That shouldn’t come as a surprise: the Pelicans have lost 17 of 23 games outright (9-13-1 ATS) since Jan. 5, and they own the fifth-worst net rating (-5.3) in the entire league in that span.
That’s even worse than the Magic (-0.9), who have posted a surprising 11-12 record straight up in that stretch, even with Paolo Banchero cooling off from his torrid start to the year. If he can heat up on Monday, we could have an outright upset on our hands.
