Milwaukee Bucks (30-20)

VS

New York Knicks (23-26)

Friday @ 10 pm EST, January 28th, 2022

Odds

The Bucks and the Knicks are two teams that are not living up to their potential this year. The defending champs are fifth in the Eastern Conference halfway through the season, while the Knicks sit at 11th, and are fighting for a play-in spot. The Knicks drastically improved their roster in the offseason, adding elite scorers like Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier, and recently traded for Cam Reddish, a solid young two-player, and former teammate and friend of RJ Barrett’s at Duke University. The pieces haven’t fit together quite as nicely as anticipated, and as they try to figure out what works for this team, the clock is going to start running out. This is a crucial time for the Knicks - with the all-star break coming up, it is time for the Knicks to start putting the pieces together. Tonight, they will face a Bucks team that is 5-5 in their last 10, and are coming off a blowout loss to a shorthanded Cavaliers team. As good as the Bucks are, I believe the Knicks are able to keep this one close, and we see some role guys step up.

In two contests between these teams so far this season, the pair is split. The Knicks beat the Bucks in Milwaukee by 15 the first time they played, while the Bucks beat the Knicks by 12 in New York the second time. I believe the third matchup will be tight, seeing as these two teams are familiar with each other by now, and this is a crucial time for the Knicks.

These teams have very contrasting play styles. The Bucks average 111.8 pts/game (5th best in the NBA), while the Knicks are only allowing 104.4 pts/game (5th best in NBA). In their last 5, they’ve allowed 104.2 pts/game, but are just 1-4, which means they are not getting the job done offensively. The Bucks are allowing 113.4 pts/game in their last 5, so I believe the Knicks have a chance to get going offensively against a team that is allowing a lot of points. Very excited for this matchup, in which I believe the Knicks will keep close.

Picks

Knicks match up well against the Bucks. Bucks struggling lately, shouldn’t be favored by 8.5. Expecting a close game.

Knicks +8.5 (-108)

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Knicks have a very good defense - expecting them to stop the Bucks from facilitating the ball. Middleton will be looking to score tonight.

Khris Middleton under 4.5 assists (+112)

Do not parlay these! Take them straight 🤑