The Eastern Conference playoffs are off and running this Saturday, with the Bucks and Pacers getting things going in the first game of the day and the Pistons visiting the Knicks in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference series at Madison Square Garden on Saturday at 6:10 p.m. ET. The Garden is sure to be rocking as the Knicks try to jump out ahead of the upstart Pistons, who will be looking to make a statement of their own on Saturday night. Let’s take a look at my best bets from Knicks vs. Pistons Game 1 on DraftKings Sportsbook.
In the bigger picture, the Knicks are seven-point home favorites with the total set at O/U 220 points. The only name on the Pistons’ injury report is Jaden Ivey (leg, out) while Ariel Hukporti (knee, questionable) is the only member on the Knicks’ injury report.
Knicks vs. Pistons Best Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Pistons +7 (-108)
The Pistons beat the Knicks in three of their four meetings this season, with their only loss coming back in November. They beat the Knicks by nine in New York at the beginning of December and by five in the middle of January. They hosted the Knicks last week and beat them by nine in Detroit.
The Knicks just got Jalen Brunson back from injury and dropped three straight before finishing the regular season with a win against the woeful Nets. They definitely don’t come into the playoffs firing on all cylinders, but neither do the Pistons, who dropped four of their last five games before the playoffs.
While the Knicks are the more proven team, the Pistons will be hyped for their first playoff game since 2019 and looking for their first playoff win since 2009. While I’m not bold enough to pick them outright, I will take them with the points to at least keep this contest close in what I’m hoping is a tight, competitive game throughout.
This pick was also highlighted in today’s NBA Betting Group.
Mikal Bridges over 3.5 Assists (-140)
With Brunson out and then playing a limited role, Bridges has picked up more work in terms of ball-handling and creating for his teammates. He went over this mark in 42 of 81 games (52%), not counting the seconds he played in the season finale to keep his ironman streak alive.
Bridges had at least four assists in five straight games before that limited playing time and in nine of his last 10 games. In those 10 games, he averaged 5.6 assists in 36.9 minutes per game. Granted, lots of that is without Brunson on the floor, but having Bridges create more could help lessen the workload for Brunson.
If you want to be more aggressive, there’s definitely a nice assist ladder to consider with Bridges as well. Bridges to get 5+ assists is +155, and him to get 7+ assists is +700. He got to five assists in six of those 10 games and at least seven assists in four of those games, including each of his last two before the season finale.
Malik Beasley 15+ points (+120)
Beasley had a great season as a veteran presence for the Pistons, averaging 16.3 points in 27.5 minutes per game and playing in all 82 games for Detroit. He scored at least 14 points in 71% of the games this season and scored 16 points or more in 11 of the Pistons’ last 12 road games against the Eastern Conference.
Beasley only had 10 points against the Knicks last week, but dropped 22 and 23 points in his two games in New York earlier this season. He also went over this line in one of his two games in New York last year when he was with the Bucks.
Before playing limited minutes in the meaningless season finale, Beasley had played over 25 minutes in eight straight games and finished with 15 points or more in five of his last nine games. Getting him at plus-money to get to 15 points is a great way to back Beas in my top Knicks vs. Pistons prop bets.
