Knicks vs Cavaliers Odds, Picks, and Predictions Tonight: Cleveland Can't Pull Away Sunday

The New York Knicks have regressed over the last few weeks with several injuries holding them back and enter tonight's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers with seven losses in their last 10 games.

Can the Knicks find a way to solve the Cavaliers’ defense and get back to their winning ways as NBA odds underdogs?

Let's get right into it with my in-depth preview and free NBA picks for the Knicks vs. Cavaliers on Sunday, March 3.

Knicks vs Cavaliers odds

Knicks vs Cavaliers predictions

It’s been a dreadful month and change for the New York Knicks, who have fallen to the middle of the league in offensive efficiency after doing so much good on that end all season long. Their 3-point shooting cratered in February, and in back-to-back games they’ve failed to even hit 31% of their outside looks.

While that sounds daunting, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 3-point defense has been decidedly worse since the calendar turned to February, and their defensive production has dropped off by a few points per 100 possessions at home this season. On top of that, the Knicks’ shooting numbers had been stabilizing prior to encountering two solid defenses in their last two games.

It’s not going to be easy, but I think there’s plenty of value here in New York to crack the best defense in the Eastern Conference. If it can get back to hitting outside shots — something the Knicks have done at an equal rate on road and at home this season — this game will be mighty close. They’re a bit undervalued considering there were several injuries holding them back last month aside from the highly-publicized absences of OG Anunoby and Julius Randle.

The likes of Jalen Brunson, Isaiah Hartenstein, Donte DiVincenzo and Bojan Bogdanovic all missed time. All of those guys are healthy here, and on the opposite end of the floor, the Cavs are listing Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert as questionable after the pair missed Cleveland’s win over the Pistons on Friday. In Mitchell’s case, he’s now missed three of this team’s last six games.

I think there are too many variables here to lay this many points with Cleveland, and I’ll happily back a team that’s 15-13-1 against the spread on the road this season being spotted close to a touchdown.

My best bet: Knicks +6.5 (-110 at DraftKings)

Knicks vs Cavaliers same-game parlay

Knicks +6.5

Josh Hart 2+ threes

Donte DiVincenzo 4+ threes

+569 at FanDuel

The Cavaliers’ excellent 3-point defense has fallen since the start of February, allowing 37.6% of looks to fall from outside, and that’s what I’ll be looking to exploit here in my same-game parlay.

I’ll start first with Josh Hart, whose shooting has begun to stabilize from outside. He’s taking more than five shots per game from deep over the last five contests, and he’s hit multiple threes in all but one of those contests. Opposing defenses are frequently leaving him open amidst a pretty poor shooting season, but he’s begun to crawl closer to his career numbers in the last month with a 36.4% hit rate from outside since Feb 3.

Then, I’ll tack on DiVincenzo to knock down four triples, which he had done in five straight games prior to his 2-for-12 showing against the Warriors. 

The DiVincenzo outside shot has been the focal point of the Knicks’ offense for the last few weeks, and dating back to January 29 he’s taken 12.7 per game from outside. With that kind of volume, we should be able to get four 3-pointers given what we’ve said about the Cavaliers’ drop-off in 3-point defense.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

Knicks vs Cavaliers spread and Over/Under analysis

This line has moved pretty quickly towards the Cavaliers. They opened up as 4.5-point favorites and have steadily dropped to where they sit on Sunday at 6.5 points. They’ve garnered 68% of the spread tickets over at DraftKings and a strong 79% of the cash, making them a pretty popular side.

The total has also steadily increased ever since it opened at 211.5 points. It’s moved two points to the Over and it’s no surprise with 73% of the bets on the total coming in on the Over at DraftKings. There’s slightly more money than bets on the Under here, with a difference of five percentage points, so unlike the Cavaliers with the points, there may be a bit of disagreement between the public and the big bettors.

Knicks vs Cavaliers betting trend to know

The Knicks have hit the first half game total Under in 46 of their last 71 games (+20.00 Units / 26% ROI). Find more NBA betting trends for Knicks vs. Cavaliers.

Knicks vs Cavaliers game info

Knicks vs Cavaliers latest injuries

Stay updated with the latest picks, odds, and news! Tap the to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.

Pages related to this topic