Having won their last three straight, the New York Knicks (40-27) will be looking to make it four in a row when they head out on the road on Monday night to take on the Golden State Warriors (35-31) at Chase Center, San Francisco.
The visitors are firmly in the playoff spots right now, occupying fourth-place in the Eastern Conference standings, but all could change if they don’t remain consistent. Meanwhile, the Warriors are three games back from the playoffs in the Western Conference, and will be looking for a second successive win after beating the Los Angeles Lakers last time out.
With tip-off set for 10:00 p.m. ET, plenty of NBA fans will be watching a crucial prime-time matchup between two teams looking to confirm their spots in the postseason. Points Bet currently has the hosts listed as 6-point favorites (-110) with the game total set at O/U 211.5.
Last Time Out
It’s the Knicks’ defense that has been catching the eye of late as they have given up 93 points or less over their last five consecutive games. In three of those matchups, the opposition has failed to even hit 80 points. One man that can be credited to that rock solid D is OG Anunoby, whose return to the side has been crucial.
New York managed to hold the typically high-scoring Sacramento Kings to just 91 points in their last game on Saturday as they ran out 98-91 victors. A 42-point game from All-Star guard Jalen Brunson aided them in the win, with his recent return from injury also proving significant.
Despite going 5-1 in their first six games following the All-Star Break, Golden State has been a little more inconsistent since, going 3-4 over their past seven games. However, the reason is that Stephen Curry was injured for all four of those losses, and he marked his return against the Lakers with 31 points and the win.
The Warriors will feel confident about beating anybody as long as Curry is out on the court, and they aren’t in bad shape considering they went 2-1 over their recent three-game road trip. Nevertheless, they will be looking for an improvement at Chase Center tonight as they have lost three of their last four on their own court, and are just 17-17 in San Francisco on the season.
Injuries & Team News
In spite of Anunoby’s recent return to action, he has been listed as questionable on the injury report for the game here due to an elbow issue, and is expected to be out tonight. Meanwhile, two key players in Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson still won’t be able to feature due to respective shoulder and ankle injuries.
As for the hosts, they do not have anybody present on the injury report and are expected to head into the game at full health.
Head-to-Head
A win for Golden State in this one would mean they would close out the season series 2-0 after recording a 110-99 victory at Madison Square Garden at the beginning of the month. The Knicks were without Anunoby, Randle and Robinson for that clash, whilst a game-high 31 points from Curry ensured the triumph for the Warriors.
Betting Trends & Stats
Averaging 118.4 points per game (ppg) on the season, the Warriors boast the seventh-highest offense in the NBA. The recent absence of Curry has seen that average drop to 114.8 ppg over their past five, however. Defensively, Golden State needs some improvement as they have allowed the 12th-most ppg in the league (116.8).
As for New York, they have struggled to put up points on offense at times this season, and they average just the 24th-most ppg in the NBA (111.9). That average has even dropped to a measly 96.0 ppg over their last five, despite going 4-1 in that time. However, they have allowed the second-least ppg on the season (107.8), giving up just 83.2 ppg over their past five outings.
Both franchises rank inside the top 10 against the spread (ATS) this season, with New York going 34-30-3, whilst Golden State are 36-29-1. However, the Warriors have covered significantly less at home (42.4%), with the Knicks covering better on the road (56.7%). Although, Tom Thibodeau’s team haven’t fared the best as underdogs (11-16-2), whilst the Warriors have covered in just 50% of games as favorites.
Steve Kerr’s men have the fourth-worst ATS record when they are home favorites, going 10-17-0. New York have performed marginally better ATS as road underdogs with a record of 8-10-1. However, the Knicks’ -2.3 point differential as away underdogs is the sixth-best in the NBA.
Key Players
The road team are 15-2 with Anunoby in the lineup so the expected loss of him will make a massive impact. Brunson has had back-to-back games of 45 and 42 points so will be the key difference maker offensively. His average of 27.5 ppg is the fifth-best in the league.
Averaging 27.0 ppg this season, Curry ranks inside the top 10 across the league, and his performance against the Lakers was the difference between a loss and a win for Golden State. Draymond Green also impressed against LA, having himself a double-double of 12 rebounds and 13 assists.
Best Bet
Now that Anunoby has been ruled out, the Knicks are significantly weaker, especially with Randle and Robinson still sidelined as well. That trio were also out for the loss at home to Golden State earlier this month, and New York are playing in their third straight road game tonight too.
With Curry healthy again, and Golden State having everybody ready to go, we’re backing them to get the win here. The Warriors are a different animal with Curry out on the court, whilst the rest of the squad looked in good form against the Lakers.
Golden State Warriors -6 (-110 with Points Bet)
