Can that level of inspiration strike twice for the Boston Celtics? Playing without their superstar for the second game of this series? Or will the Knicks show up with just a touch of urgency, unlike Game 5? Let’s break this one down.
Boston Celtics vs. NY Knicks – Game 6
Many had the Celtics as roadkill, left on the side of the road, awaiting a final few gasps before calling it a season. No Jason Tatum (something they’re going to have to manage for most, if not all, of next season as well), and down 3-1 in the series, it looked bleak. But fear not…Luke Kornet was not ready to let the season go quietly into the night. With help from Jaylen Brown and Derrick White, who lit up the Knick defense, Boston embarrassed a curiously disinterested New York side.
We all know about recency bias, and if you’re betting on sports, you should really be familiar with the persuasive power of it. We think that has some application in tonight’s matchup. Game 6 shifts to one of the world’s most famous venues, with the Knicks as small favorites (-2.5). As referenced above, New York’s Game 5 effort was pretty putrid. Jalen Brunson got into foul trouble early, playing like he went to a Karl Anthony-Towns summer camp on how to rack up completely meaningless, contextually stupifying fouls…but we digress. While Boston was being gifted open looks all over, the Knicks’ offense sputtered, including down the stretch. A time where they can typically rely on their roster to hit shots. But without Brunson, it was clunky. We do not expect a repeat performance in front of what will be a rabid MSG crowd and a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals on the line.
New York played Game 5 like a team that was all too aware of a Game 6 safety net. Now it’s time to cash in on that comfort gap you built in. Yes, the Celtics have playoff-tested veterans and they did go 8-2 without Tatum in the regular season, but none of those games carried the weight of this one.
Tonight, brush off the recency of that blowout win on Wednesday in Boston. The “inspiration” imbalance won’t be so heavily weighted in favor of the Celtics here, and in fact, should favor the home side by a decent margin.
Look for New York to bounce back, close out the series, and punch their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Play: We’re on the Knicks -2.5.
Good luck.