NBA: New York Knicks vs. Brooklyn Nets Preview, Odds, Prediction

The battle for New York is set for Sunday, as the Knicks and the Nets clash at the Barclays Center. The Nets are eight in the East, while on the other side, the Knicks sit 12th, both having much higher ambitions than the current situation shows. Brooklyn is one of the top contenders for winning the title, while on the other side, the Knicks want to reach the playoffs, even if it is through the playoffs. This is the seventh straight event on the road for the NYK, who is now back in the home city, while on the other hand, the Nets are at Barclays following three away contests.

Preview

New York Knicks (28-39, +240) had a nice run during their journey through the West. After losing to the 76ers and the Suns, the Knicks were better than the Clippers, the Kings and the Mavericks, all three wins in a row. Yet, after these superb results, they would lose to the Grizzlies at the FedEx Forum, 118-114.

Knicks were better throughout most of the event, but they allowed the hosts to come back in the final 12 minutes and win the last period with 31-18, which eventually flipped the result in their favor. Memphis outscored them from the paint 72-51, which was the main reason for the defeat.

Julius Randle was the top scorer for the Knicks with 36 points and 12 boards, and he also had six assists with two blocks and steals. RJ Barrett played a nice match, with the young guard ending the night with 23 points and seven boards, while Alec Burks scored 18 points.

Brooklyn Nets (34-33, -166) won the past two events. The first one was in Charlotte against the Hornets, 132-121, and the next one in Philly, where they trashed the Sixers, 129-100. It was nice to see the Nets in their rhythm, dismantling one of the biggest rivals from the East, especially going after James Harden who only recently left Steve Nash’s crew.

The Nets were shooting 18-for 40 for three and had 56% of shooting from the field. On the other side, the Sixers made only 32.3% of their shots. One more factor that went in their favor was fast-break points, 28-8.

Kevin Durant had 25 points with 14 boards and seven assists. Kyrie ended the night with 22 buckets, while Seth Curry scored 24, missing only four of his 14 shots from the field, all that in 27 minutes.

Head to Head Games

This will be the third game between these two sides this season. Both of the previous ones ended in Brooklyn’s favor, with them beating the Knicks at home 112-110 and later on at the Madison, 111-106. By the way this was the fifth consecutive victory for the Nets in direct meetings with the NYK.

Prediction

We can’t believe that the spread on the Nets is only -3.5 points. The difference between these two sides is massive, and despite not having Kyrie, the hosts are still way better than the NYK. We respect those three wins on the road New York posted, but that was just a temporary spark, and we expect to see the Nets solving this game easily in their favor.

Pick: Nets -3.5