Two playoff hopefuls meet in a cross-conference clash Thursday evening when the Sacramento Kings (44-31) face the New York Knicks (44-31) at Madison Square Garden. The Kings have won two in a row but still sit in the play-in zone in the West, while the Knicks have lost three in a row but are the No. 5 seed and two games up on the Heat in sixth. New York won the first meeting between these teams a few weeks ago 98-91.
The Kings are going to be without Kevin Huerter for the rest of the season, while Malik Monk is also expected to miss significant time with a sprained MCL. The Knicks have officially shut down Julius Randle for the rest of the season with shoulder surgery, while OG Anunoby remains out with an elbow issue. Mitchell Robinson is listed as questionable but is expected to play.
The Knicks are 3-point favorites according to DraftKings Sportsbook, with the total sitting at 213.5. New York is -148 on the moneyline while Sacramento is +124.
Kings vs. Knicks, 7:30 p.m. ET
Pick ATS: Kings +3
Sacramento is 15-9 ATS as an underdog this season and 13-7 ATS as a road underdog. The Kings have a bit less missing on the injury front, which will benefit them in this rematch. The Knicks are no pushover at 26-15-1 ATS as a favorite and 16-11 ATS as a home favorite but they’ve had a relatively easy stretch prior to games against the Heat and Thunder recently.
Even with Jalen Brunson putting up ridiculous numbers and the Knicks being a stellar home side, I’ll have to back the Kings as underdogs tonight.
Over/Under: Over 213.5
The last game went well under this number. The Kings have gone under their totals in eight of the last 10 games but only two of those totals were set under 220. The Knicks have hit the over in five straight games and seven of their last eight. I think Sacramento’s offense finds its footing in a relatively favorable matchup with New York missing some key players, and the Knicks are forced to keep up. I’ll take the over in this contest.