The defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors are playing the Knicks at Madison Square Garden tonight. Tip-off is at 7:30 pm ET on TNT, and I've prepared a Same Game Parlay to spice things up a bit.
Visit our NBA predictions for picks on the side and total for tonight's 5-game slate. Let's dive in now!
Jalen Brunson 3+ made threes (+240)
One of the Knicks’ trio of Brunson, Randle and Barrett should have a big scoring game tonight. Brunson appears to be the logical pick as he won't have to deal with Stephen Curry, who is out for tonight's game, saving him a ton of energy he can use on offense instead. He's been very efficient during the 7-game win streak that the Knicks are on. If we stretch that to the last 10 games he's shooting the 3-ball at an incredible 48.7%. He didn't have the best of games against Golden State in the first meeting at Chase Center, but a lot has changed since with the Knicks being in a much better place entering this game. Brunson has nailed 3 threes in 3 consecutive games and is coming off a perfect 3-for-3 in the win at Indiana. In December he's making 2.1 per game on 51.5% shooting, which is ideal against a team such as the Warriors who have struggled to defend the perimeter lately. Opponents are knocking down 40% of their attempts from three in the last 3 Wa rriors games, the 4th-worst mark in the NBA. Let’s hope Brunson stays hot.
Jordan Poole to score 30+ points (+155)
A lot will depend on Jordan Poole in tonight's game as he tries to carry the Warriors offense in the absence of their main scorers, Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins. He made the most out of the same opportunity in the game against Toronto, leading the Warriors with 43 points in a 126-110 upset win on the road. Poole has shown he's more than capable of filling Curry's boots on offense. He is averaging just under 25 points per game in his last 10 outings while playing only 31.6 minutes a game, which makes him one of the most productive players in the NBA. His efficiency is also very solid at 46% from the field, 36% from 3-point land and over 90% from the free-throw line. The Knicks have the 12th-worst opponent points per game numbers this season, and I think Poole will be aware of that and continue to be aggressive in tonight's game. Against the Raptors he had 11 free-throw attempts, so he can do his damage in multiple ways. With a hobbled Klay Thompson being his 2nd -best scoring option on the team, he might just take it upon himself to keep Golden State in this game.