In order to keep the dream of a championship repeat alive, the Boston Celtics need a win on Wednesday night — and another two after that — against the New York Knicks.
The pregame narrative: The tenor of the series shifted in the final minutes of Game 4, when Jayson Tatum ruptured his Achilles tendon. Despite his indefinite absence moving forward, the Celtics are favoured at home tonight in a series they trail, 3-1.
Check out my Celtics vs. Knicks SGP predictions for Game 5 on May 14, featuring Derrick White and Josh Hart.
Celtics vs. Knicks predictions
Parlay: Knicks +6.5 | White 15+ points | Hart under 5.5 assists (+320)
Knicks +6.5 (-155): I think it might be Cancun time for the Celtics.
Tatum was spectacular in Game 4, dropping 42 points to go with eight rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks. It wasn’t enough, though, and now Boston must press forward without its star.
The Knicks are 5-0 on the road in the postseason, winning four of those games as underdogs. They’re also now 29-17 on the road overall this year.
As a straight wager, I’m looking hard at Knicks moneyline (+160). But this is a decent price to bank some points with the visitors.
New York has covered a +6.5 spread in 11 of 12 games dating back to the regular season.
NBA SGP legs
White 15+ points (-265): Here’s another pick where I’m playing it relatively safe because it’s part of a parlay. I think White should breeze past this line.
Why? Tatum’s absence should provide an obvious boost to his shot opportunities, but White was doing just fine against this number already.
- 18.3 PPG in the postseason
- 15+ points in 8 of 9 games
White has attempted 44 threes through four games, which is one shy of Tatum for the team lead. Another high-volume game from 3-point range should be expected.
Also, White is 7-1 against this scoring milestone when facing the Knicks this year (including 4-0 in the playoffs).
Hart under 5.5 assists (-159): There’s some negative correlation between this pick and the Knicks’ alt spread, though it’s clear that neither leg relies on the other.
Hart has gone under 5.5 assists in all four games of this series, compiling just 14 total assists (3.5/game).
The Celtics have allowed the fewest assists per game this postseason (19.1) … after allowing the third-fewest per game in the regular season.
So it’s not as if this is an easy matchup, and Hart hasn’t been active enough as a passer against Boston for me to expect things to change now.
- In this series, Hart is averaging 7.5 potential assists per game, which denotes the number of passes that lead directly to a shot.
- Hart has gone under 5.5 assists in 6 of 8 games vs. Boston this season.
Knicks vs. Celtics predictions made at 9:30 a.m. ET 05/14/2025.
Jordan enjoys writing data-driven game previews and analysis articles — especially for MLB markets or NFL/NBA props. And as a proud Ohio University grad, he’ll always have a soft spot for college sports (especially if the Bobcats are involved). Previous stops include mlb.com, Sportsnet and The Athletic.