Knicks vs. Cavaliers Prediction
The Cleveland Cavaliers need a win and some help if they want to move up from the fourth to the third seed in the Eastern Conference on the final day of the regular season. Will Cleveland win and cover the spread at home versus the New York Knicks tonight?
Game Snapshot & Current Odds
703 New York Knicks +14.5 at 704 Cleveland Cavaliers -14.5; 225.5
Wednesday, April 11, 2018
Quicken Loans Arena, 8:10PM ET
TV: MSG (NY, FS Ohio (CLE)
Public Betting Trends
As of Wednesday afternoon, 54 percent of public bets are siding with the host Cavaliers. Check our NBA Public Betting Page for up-to-date information.
LeBron to play in all 82 games
In the long and illustrious career of Cleveland star LeBron James, he has never played in all 82 games of a regular season. The closest he came was in the 2008-09 campaign when he played in 81 contests. Now at the ripe old age of 33, James is still playing at an elite level. He enters today’s final game averaging 27.7 points per game to go with 9.2 assists and 8.7 rebounds. Cleveland enters the final regular season game less of a favorite to reach the NBA Finals than the last three seasons, but if James has any say the Cavs are still the team to beat in the Eastern Conference.
Where the Cavs stand
Cleveland enters tonight’s game with a 50-31 record and have been playing more respectable basketball as it is 8-2 over the last 10 games. The problem is that the 76ers have won 15 in a row including a key 132-130 victory over the Cavaliers in Philadelphia and have leapfrogged Cleveland in the standings. The Cavs need a win tonight and a Sixers home loss to the Bucks in order to regain the third seed. The difference between fifth seed Indiana and sixth seed Milwaukee isn’t much, so seeding might not matter since both teams already have home-court advantage.
Betting Trends
New York
The Knicks are 2-6 ATS in the last eight meetings with Cleveland. The Knicks are 0-4 ATS in their last four games after allowing 100 or more points in the previous game. New York is 0-5 ATS in its last five games after scoring 100 or more points in its last game.
Cleveland
The under is 5-0-1 in the last six meetings in Cleveland. The Cavaliers are 4-0 ATS in their last four Wednesday games. Cleveland is 4-0 ATS in its last four games against an opponent with a winning percentage less than .400.
Prediction:
I’d expect the Cavaliers to take this game seriously considering Philly is due for a loss and a game versus the Bucks is not exactly a freebie. Cleveland defeated the host Knicks 123-109 two days ago with a spread of -12.5, so if this spread was a couple points higher I wouldn’t have blinked an eye. With Philly playing at the same time, there won’t be any spoilers and the Cavs won’t be coasting. New York, on the other hand, will be busy making its summer plans and figuring out its draft lottery chances.
NBA DAILY PREDICTION: CLEVELAND CAVALIERS -14.5
