Celtics vs. Knicks prediction, picks: Best bets for NBA season opener, including a Josh Hart prop

The Celtics and Knicks tip off the season on Tuesday

After four long months without NBA basketball, the 2024-25 season is officially here. On Tuesday, the defending champion Boston Celtics will open their season against the team that figures to be their fiercest competition in the Eastern Conference: the New York Knicks. 

While both sides are missing big men (Kristaps Porzingis for Boston, Mitchell Robinson and Precious Achiuwa for New York), we will get a relatively healthy showing on Tuesday. Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges will make their Knicks debuts against a Celtics team that is bringing back basically everyone from last season's championship run. 

So what sports betting picks are the best on the board for Tuesday's opener? Let's dig into the matchup and find out.

Celtics vs. Knicks Game Info

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET | Date: Tuesday, Oct. 22
Location: TD Garden -- Boston
TV channel: TNT | Live stream: Max

Best bets:

All odds via Caesars Sportsbook. Check out the latest Caesars promo code to take action on NBA season openers.

The Celtics ran roughshod over the entire league last season, but the Knicks played them well throughout the Tom Thibodeau period before that. In the three prior seasons, the Knicks went 7-4 against Boston. The absence of Porzingis probably means more than Robinson, as the Knicks appear to be leaning into smaller, shooting heavy lineups anyway with Towns at center. The Knicks are one of the few teams with enough enough perimeter depth defensively to make the Celtics work for their points. Boston may win this game, but I'm expecting it to be reasonably close. A six-point line is simply too high. The pick: Knicks +6

I ranked the Celtics as the NBA's No. 2 offense going into the season and the Knicks as the No. 3 offense. So... yeah, I'm expecting offense. This one isn't rocket science. The line hasn't moved to reflect what these offenses are going to be yet. We have two high-volume 3-point shooting teams that can put five-out lineups on the floor playing so early in the season that scouting reports can't accurately predict their tendencies yet. The shots might not go in, but overall, this should be a game that leans more into offense than defense. The pick: Over 222.5

This is going to be a monster rebounding season for Josh Hart. Playing with so much shooting is going to create so many clean lanes for the basket for him to take while his teammates fire up 3's, and while Boston rebounds extremely well as a team, they lack a single, overwhelming rebounding center. The glass in this game is going to be owned by the wings, and nobody pours more effort into rebounding than Hart. The pick: Hart Over 8.5 Rebounds