It’s a retro reboot, as the Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks square off in the Eastern Conference Finals.
One of the better rivalries from the 90s, all the main characters from those battles are cherished homegrown heroes, usually dotting the court for playoff games, and far removed from this new iteration — though it could be just as fierce.
After watching Indiana roll through Cleveland and Milwaukee as New York dispatched Boston and Detroit, there’s enough film to help us work through the NBA picks we like for this one.
Read below as we add an SGP to our Pacers vs Knicks predictions for Game 1 on Wednesday, May 21.
Pacers vs Knicks SGP - May 21
Myles Turner Over 1.5 threes
Josh Hart Over 9.5 rebounds
Pascal Siakam Under 18.5 points
If there’s one person who shouldn’t be rattled by the atmosphere or the playoff vibes, it’s veteran Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner, and his poise will be necessary in a rocking Madison Square Garden.
Turner will have plenty of defensive responsibility handling Karl-Anthony Towns on defense, but he’s also got to make some shots to keep the New York Knicks defense honest as well.
He shot a crisp 56.3% from 3-point range in five games against the Cavaliers, topping his 1.5 make line twice, and missing it by a triple on three other occasions. For the playoffs, he’s hitting 45% from deep.
Turner has had his shooting moments from distance against New York, drilling at least two moneyballs in six of the last 10 regular season meetings.
I'm happy to see the books giving Josh Hart a 9.5 rebounding line for Wednesday, with plus odds.
The Knicks’ do-everything wing bookended the Celtics series with double-digit rebounds, going Under 10 in the four games in between.
But hitting 10 boards is something Hart has done consistently against the Pacers.
Since joining the Knicks, Hart has grabbed at least 10 boards in every game he’s played against them, and that turns to 11 of 12 if you go beyond his New York days.
We’ll wrap with Pascal Siakam, who seemed to have found his scoring groove at the end of the Cavaliers’ series, with back-to-back 21-point games.
That busted a streak of going sub-20 points in five straight.
While his line looks like a reachable 18.5 points, Siakam will be tasked with trying to get buckets against former teammate OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges — arguably the best wing defender duo left standing in the playoffs.
Siakam topped that line just once in three regular-season meetings against the Knicks.
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