NBA Odds: Celtics Heavy Home Favorites Vs. Knicks On Thursday
The Boston Celtics will be looking to extend their current straight-up win streak to four games when they host the New York Knicks on Thursday as heavy 12-point favorites on the NBA odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Boston has been firing on all cylinders during its current surge, averaging over 123 points per game, capped by a 118-109 victory in Minnesota over the Timberwolves that lifted its SU record on the season to 13-10 going into Thursday night’s game at TD Garden.
The Celtics’ win streak also brings to a close a shaky 4-8 SU run that has left them lagging in sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings. Boston’s middling start to the season also has been felt on the NBA futures, where it has dipped to +1100 on the NBA championship odds and trail the Toronto Raptors as a +235 bet to claim their first conference title since 2010.
However, Boston’s recent turnaround has not been limited to the hardwood. Along with claiming outright wins in four of five, the Celtics also have gone 4-1 against the spread, putting the brakes on a dismal 2-8 ATS run.
The Celtics’ recent slide at the sportsbooks featured a stunning 117-109 loss to the Knicks as 14.5-point home chalk on the NBA odds on Nov. 21. However, Boston has otherwise dominated its division rivals from the Big Apple, going 13-4 SU in the past 17 meetings with New York including a 6-2 SU record on home court.
The Knicks arrive in town looking to tally consecutive SU wins over the Celtics for the first time since December 2014. New York, though, is coming off a 110-107 loss to the visiting Washington Wizards as 2.5-point dogs that dumped the team to 1-3 SU in their past four.
Consistency has been a huge problem this season for the Knicks, whose lone back-to-back victories came during a three-game win streak two weeks ago.
That run has contributed to the club’s respectable 4-3 SU recent record and halted a six-game SU slide, and New York also has posted a reliable 6-2 ATS mark over its past eight contests. But the road has been hard to New York during 2018, with the team going 11-29 SU in 40 dates away from Madison Square since New Year’s Day, and 4-10 SU this season.
