- What: NBA Eastern Conference Playoffs Semifinals Game 1
- When: May 5, 2025
- Who: New York Knicks vs. Boston Celtics
- Time: 4:00 p.m. PST
- Where: TD Garden (Boston, MA)
The third-seeded New York Knicks will face off against the second-seeded Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals series on Monday.
The game will begin at 4 p.m. PST at TD Garden. The Celtics dominated the regular-season matchup, sweeping the series 4-0.
The Knicks advanced to this stage by defeating the promising Detroit Pistons 4-2 in the first round. Jalen Brunson had an impressive performance, averaging 31.5 points, 8.2 assists, and 4.0 rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, despite facing foul trouble, Karl-Anthony Towns contributed 19.7 points and 10.0 rebounds per game while shooting 48% from beyond the arc. OG Anunoby also made a significant impact, averaging 17.3 points, 2.5 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game.
On the other hand, the Celtics overcame the Orlando Magic with a 4-1 series win in the first round despite injuries to Jayson Tatum (wrist) and Kristaps Porzingis (forehead).
Tatum averaged 31.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game. Jaylen Brown stepped up in Tatum’s absence during Game 2, scoring 36 points and averaging 23.0 points and 7.6 rebounds in the series.
This season, Tatum averaged 33.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 7.0 assists against the Knicks. As a reminder, the Celtics won both home matchups against the Knicks by 13 and 21 points.
In the four regular-season encounters, Boston was 3-1 against the spread (ATS), and it finished 3-2 ATS against Orlando in the opening round.
Best Bet: Celtics -9.5 Points at -105 odds
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Tony Reyes is a sports betting analyst and reporter for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X @TonyParlay.
