It's one of the great days of the year Tuesday, because the NBA tips off with an unusual tripleheader â Celtics at Pistons is a standalone 3 ET start and then we get the usual two-game Opening Night marquee slate. The defending NBA champion is always a part of that slate, and the New York Knicks will raise their championship banner ahead of hosting LeBron James and the new-look Philadelphia 76ers. Bet on the NBA and more at BetMGM, where new users can get up to $1,500 in bonus bets:
It's a 7 ET start on NBC from Madison Square Garden, and tickets to get in are some of the most expensive in NBA regular-season history. At -4.5 via DraftKings, the Knicks are taking 67% of handle and 69% of wagers ATS, while the total of 232.5 is taking similar leans to the Under.
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76ers vs. Knicks NBA same-game parlay
- Philadelphia alt +10.5
- LeBron James to score 15+ points
FanDuel SGP price: +117 (subject to change)
In New York City, obviously seeing that first Knicks championship banner since the 1972-73 campaign will be the biggest news. Nationally, the focus is clearly on LeBron's first game back in the Eastern Conference since reaching a fourth straight NBA Finals in 2018. Cleveland lost that series in a sweep, to Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors.
Needless to say, where LeBron goes so usually goes the betting action. His original plan was to go play for the Knicks, but that went out the window when they won it all. So once the Sixers traded for Jaylen Brown, young friend Tyrese Maxey was able to help lure LeBron to Philly and form the league's latest super-team alongside Joel Embiid and rising young VJ Edgecombe.
The Thunder and Spurs are +260 co-favorites to win the NBA title at BetMGM, with Philadelphia next at +850. The Sixers are blowing the other contenders out of the water, though, in terms of action with 37.6% of handle at the book and 30.9% of bets. No other team in the league is even at 6%.
New York was +700 to repeat shortly after last year's Finals but is now at +1000 with 5.2% of handle and 5.7% of bets. It entered last postseason at +2200 to win a championship, the longest title odds by an eventual winner in the previous 30 seasons. No team has won back-to-back titles since the 2017-18 Warriors; the NBA has had eight different champions in eight seasons for the first time in league history.
"The Thunder and Spurs are clear favorites to win the NBA Championship, but bettors love the 76ers," BetMGM senior trader Anthony Parenti said on social media recently. "Nearly 40% of all money wagered has been on Philly to win the title after trading for Jaylen Brown and signing LeBron James in the offseason. The Sixers are the biggest liability to win the championship."
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Philadelphia has 15 straight playoff appearances without reaching the conference finals, tied for the third-longest such streak in league history. For what it's worth, James is the second multi-time MVP Award winner to join the Sixers. Big man Moses Malone did in the summer of 1982 and led Philly to the title his first season. That is the franchise's last championship. There is no doubt the Sixers will treat the 41-year-old LeBron cautiously as he's coming off the fewest PPG (20.9) and MPG (33.2) averages in his career.
He is set at a small number of 15.5 points tonight â know that LeBron loves playing in the Garden. The SportsLine Projection Model forecasts him at 20.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.3 assists. Brown is set at O/U 20.5 points in his regular-season Sixers debut (model has him at 24.3). Embiid is at 22.5 (22.9) and Maxey 21.5 (24.4). Fascinating whether there is enough ball to go around. No NBA team has had a season with four players averaging at least 20.0 PPG.
Other than key reserve center Mitchell Robinson, the Knicks are back intact with their top nine scorers returning from last season, when Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart became the first trio of teammates to win an NBA and NCAA title together (Villanova). New York essentially replaced Robinson with Andre Drummond.
Last time we saw these clubs play, the Knicks were sweeping out the Sixers in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Two of the highest-scoring playoff games in Knicks history came in that series (137 and 144 points). They split four regular-season meetings, each oddly winning both away. But New York enters on a six-game winning streak in it overall then.
The SportsLine Projection Model has Knicks by a score of 116-109 tonight. LeBron should get his 15 points at his favorite arena, barring injury, and he should also keep his new team from getting blown out. These banner/ring ceremony nights can distract the home team. Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter.
