The New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers both played a physical series, and that led to a lot of limitations not only in the aggregate, but in the player support market as well.
With that in mind, I have props in mind for Game 5 of this series, as well as an OVER prop for the Cavs’ lead guard.
Cleveland is preferred for this game, but a prop market might be the best way to go given how much the series has had its ups and downs:
Knicks vs. Cavaliers NBA Best Support Bets
- Julius Randle is under 21.5 points
- RJ Barrett made under 1.5 3-pointers
- Darius Garland over 28.5 points and an assist
Julius Randle is under 21.5 points
Julius Randle has only erased that streak once in four games in this series, and that was thanks to some garbage time buckets in Game 2.
In Games 3 and 4, Randle scored only 18 points on 6-of-25 shooting, and was not feeling well after suffering an ankle injury at the end of the regular season.
Tom Thibodeau has shown some confidence in Obi Toppin (who has played well in this series) to fill in for Randle, so until we see the Knicks All-Star forward hit the ball at a higher rate, the bottom is the play.
RJ Barrett made under 1.5 3-pointers
RJ Barrett was great for the Knicks in Games 3 and 4, but he still didn’t hit the three-ball very well.
Barrett went 0-for-6 from beyond the arc in Game 4 after making 3 shots from deep in Game 3, and is now only 4-for-20 from 3 in the series.
Game 3 looks like an anomaly for Barrett, who has only four games with multiple 3-point shots dating back to March 7.
I’m going to roll with down here for RJ down the road.
Darius Garland over 28.5 points and an assist
Darius Garland has turned in two good games and two clunkers in the series, with his best game coming in Game 2 in Cleveland.
However, the Cavs point guard showed he could rebound from a poor showing (4-for-21 in Game 3) by dropping 23 points and 10 dimes in Game 4.
On the season, Garland averages 21.6 points and 7.8 assists per game, so I think we’ll get some value in this prop if he appears on offense in Game 5.
Now with Cleveland facing elimination and at home, I expect more from Game 2 or Game 4 Garland, who has 39 and 33 points and game assists.
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The game odds are updated periodically and are subject to change.