2024/25 NBA East Finals - Pacers at Knicks (Game 1)
On Thursday, the East finals begin with a rematch of last season's conference semifinals, when the Pacers won Game 7. Hopefully we get another epic 7 game series. The Knicks are going to be confident after dropping the defending champions in 6 games. But the Pacers were equally impressive in their thrasing of the #1 seeded Cavs in the 4-1 series result. Here's a look at Game 1.
Indiana Pacers at New York Knicks
The Pacers head into Game 1 of the East Finals full of confidence after upsetting Cleveland on the road, proving they can hang with the top seeds. Indiana’s recent form is red-hot — they’ve covered the spread in 4 of their last 5 games and have gone 6-1 both straight up and ATS in their last 7 overall.
They've also been strong away from home, going 6-1 ATS on the road, though New York has been a tough place for them historically (just 1-4 in their last 5 at MSG). In their latest outing, Tyrese Haliburton dropped 31 points on 66.7% shooting with 8 assists and 6 boards, while Pascal Siakam added 21 points and 8 rebounds.
Siakam’s been solid against the Knicks lately, averaging 24 and 5, and don’t forget Bennedict Mathurin’s massive 38-point performance in a win over New York earlier this season. The total’s also gone over in 5 of Indiana’s last 7, so expect some serious offence in this one.
The Knicks head into Game 1 after cruising past a short-handed Celtics squad with a dominant 119–81 win at MSG. Jalen Brunson and OG Anunoby both dropped 23 points in that one, with Brunson shooting a sharp 57.1% from the field.
New York’s been in solid form, going 5-2 both straight up and against the spread in their last seven games. At home, they’ve been even stronger against Indiana — winning 4 of the last 5 matchups at the Garden. While last year’s playoff series went seven games with the Pacers coming out on top, the Knicks were banged up, missing key pieces like a limited Anunoby and an injured Brunson in Game 7.
This season, Brunson’s averaged 26 points, 5 boards, and 5 dimes against Indiana, and Karl-Anthony Towns lit them up for 40 and 12 back in February. The total has gone over in 4 of New York’s last 5 vs the Pacers, though interestingly, it’s trended under in 4 of their last 5 home games — something to watch depending on how this one unfolds at MSG.
Stadium Record
New York are 3-3 at MSG in the NBA playoffs this year. Indiana has lost 4 of their last 5.
Head to Head Record
In the regular season, the Knicks won 2 of 3 meetings. But in the last 10 meetings, the head to head is tied 5-5.
Best Bet
Both sides should be confident after dominant series victories so Game 1 should be a close one, making the line and head to head a tough prediction. So I prefer the points, especially the Over. Indiana love a fast paced game and the Knicks are scoring plenty of points too. The Over has a nice 4-1 record in this matchup and I think it salutes in Game 1 as well.
Same Game Multi
If the total is going Over, it makes sense to look at the player points props. In the last meeting between the two sides, Towns and Siakam were impressive. Towns dominated with 40 pts and has hit the 20+ pt mark in 4 of his last 5 games, that should be a safe line. Siakam has been going about his business with 18 or more pts in 3 straight games and he finished with 24 pts in the last matchup against the Knicks.
