Filip Tomic
Game 5 saw a wire-to-wire victory for the Knicks who staved off elimination forcing a Game 6 this Saturday in Indiana. Can New York do the unthinkable again and force Game 7? Or will the Pacers clinch their first NBA Finals berth since the 1999-200 season? Tip-off is set for 8 pm ET on TNT, I’ve prepared a Same Game Parlay priced at +439 odds.
Get predictions on the side and total for all upcoming NBA postseason games on our NBA Picks page but now let’s get into my Knicks vs Pacers Game 6 bet!
NY Knicks ML (+148)
Karl-Anthony Towns to Score 20+ Points (-188)
Pascal Siakam to Score 20+ Points (-140)
Same Game Parlay odds: +439
NY Knicks ML (+148)
Saturday brings us one of the biggest games in the history of the Indiana Pacers franchise, but it also has the potential to become one of the biggest in New York Knicks history, depending on the outcome. Once again we saw the Knicks adapt their strategy in Game 5 as they slowed things down, completely annihilating the Pacers offense in a wire-to-wire 111-94 win. The Pacers came into the game with zero urgency, they look as if they didn’t care about the outcome of the game, with their minds already on Game 6. That strategy could backfire here, if the Knicks are able to force Indy to play in the halfcourt.
Jalen Brunson did a stellar job on defense after he was criticized for being a black hole on that end in the first 4 games. Game 6s are his specialty – he averages 31.1 points and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 49.7% in those games. And here’s the most important stat of them all – he has played in 7 Game 6s in his career and has gone on to win 5 of them. After going down 3-1 in this series, nobody expects the Knicks to complete the comeback. Personally, I’d love nothing more than a Game 7 decider between these two teams, so I’m backing New York to once again pull of a miracle on the road and win on Saturday.
Karl-Anthony Towns to Score 20+ Points (-188)
KAT has seemingly figured out what works best against this Indiana Pacers defense. For the past several games he has decided to lower his broad shoulders and just attack the rim relentlessly. As a result the Knicks won the points in the paint battle 60-34 in Game 5, they also won that battle in Game 3 which went their way 106-100. Saturday’s clash has the potential to be the biggest game of KAT’s career and I believe he will not disappoint. The advantage he has down low is obvious, Indiana just isn’t built to handle a player of his size that can also step outside and shoot the three-ball. He’s scored 20+ points in all 5 games in this series so far, he’s averaging 22.1 per game in his last 15 outings. Indiana didn’t have a solution for him in the regular season either as he torched them for 30.3 points per game in 3 meetings on over 56% from the field and 46.7% from three. It’s games like this where a player can cement his legacy with a team, let’s hope Towns lives up to the expectations.
Pascal Siakam to Score 20+ Points (-140)
Experience plays a huge role in games like these and nobody has more of it than Pascal Siakam on this Pacers roster. Having won the title with the Toronto Raptors back in 2019, Siakam knows exactly what it takes for a team to reach the mountain top. Even though this is the 2nd year in a row that the Pacers have reached the Eastern Conference Finals, they lack experience playing in big games. This is where Siakam steps in and carries the offense early in the game to calm everyone down. He’s had the steady hand in this series averaging 23.6 points per game, so scoring 20 point shouldn’t be an issue for him. With the Knicks defense being solely focused on denying Tyrese Haliburton the ball, Siakam will have to create for himself. He is one of just a few players on this Pacers roster capable of creating his own shot. With his points per game average and efficiency going up in this postseason, I’m counting on him to give the Pacers a massive boost on offense here.
