NBA Prop Bets: New York Knicks vs Boston Celtics (April 9, 2026)

The Boston Celtics (54-25) face the New York Knicks (52-28) at Madison Square Garden. Let's take a look at the NBA Prop Bets for Thursday's matchup. The Knicks opened as 3.5-point favorites but the spread has since moved to 5.5, leaving the Knicks at -218 and Celtics at +180. The total points line is set at 212.5, with OVER at -112 and UNDER at -108, meaning the implied expected score for the game is 109-104 New York.

The Knicks (-112) have a 41-38-1 ATS record this season, while the Celtics (-108) hold a record of 47-32-0.
The Knicks have a 37-42-1 O/U record this season (meaning 37 games have gone over the total points line, 42 have gone under and one has resulted in a push). The Celtics have a 28-51-0 O/U record.

Scoring Insights

The Knicks are averaging 116.8 points per game this season (10th in the league). Comparatively, the Celtics are averaging only 114.6 (21st).
Defensively, the Knicks are giving up only 110.4 points per game this season (5th in the league), while the Celtics are giving up an average of 106.9 points (1st).

Game Style

What do the stats tell us about the style of basketball these teams are playing this season?

Pace

The Knicks currently rank 25th for pace this season, recording 97.0 possessions per game. Alternatively, the Celtics sit 30th on that scale with 94.7 possessions per contest.

Field Goal Split

Looking at field goal splits, 42.7% of the Knicks' field goal attempts come from three point range (12th in the league), leaving 57.3% from two. Meanwhile, the Celtics' opponents are taking 45.2% of their attempts from three (27th) and 54.8% from two.
Comparatively, Boston takes 46.3% of shots from three (4th), leaving 53.7% from two, while New York's opponents are attempting a similarly high 44.7% from three (22nd) and 55.3% from two.

Beyond the Arc

In terms of made three-pointers, the Knicks are shooting 37.4% from deep in 2025/26 (4th in the NBA), compared to the Celtics who are making 36.4% of their attempts (10th).
On the opposite end, New York is holding opponents to 36.1% of their three-point attempts (20th), while Boston's opponents are hitting 35.9% of their shots (18th).

Ball Protection

The Knicks are committing just 13.8 turnovers per game this season, ranking 8th in the league. As such, the Celtics aren't likely to pressurise their opponents in this area given they're forcing only 12.4 turnovers per contest (29th).
Flipping that script, New York is forcing 14.3 turnovers (19th), while Boston is committing 12.3 (1st).

Crashing the Boards

New York is pulling down 46.0 rebounds per game this season (6th in the league), including 12.9 offensive boards (5th). Conversely, Boston's opponents are averaging 41.2 rebounds (6th), 10.8 of which have come on the offensive end (7th).
Meanwhile, the Celtics are averaging 46.5 rebounds (4th) and 12.6 offensive rebounds (7th), while the Knicks are allowing 40.6 and 10.0, ranking 3rd and 1st.

First Quarter Winner

New York is -142 to win the first quarter, while Boston is +120. Here are their first quarter records in 2025/26.

	Total	Home	Road	Favorite	Underdog
New York	34-43-3	20-17-1	14-26-2	28-33-3	6-10-0	6-4-0
Boston	48-26-5	21-16-2	27-10-3	33-19-4	15-7-1	6-3-1

First Half Winner

New York is -175 to win the first half and Boston is +145. Here are their first half records in 2025/26.

	Total	Home	Road	Favorite	Underdog
New York	42-38-0	24-14-0	18-24-0	36-28-0	6-10-0	5-5-0
Boston	52-22-5	24-13-2	28-9-3	40-14-2	12-8-3	5-4-1

HT/FT

New York is -130 to complete the HT/FT double. Conversely, Boston is +215.

The Knicks have completed the HT/FT double in 45.0% of games this season, while the Celtics have completed the HT/FT double in 53.2% of games.

To Go To Overtime

Thursday's matchup is +1600 to go to overtime.

The Knicks have played in two games that went to overtime this season, while the Celtics have appeared in one.

Both Teams 110+

Both teams have scored 110+ points in 32 of New York's 79 games this season. Meanwhile, 25 of Boston's 79 games have seen both squads reach that number.

Last Time They Met

New York recorded a 111-89 blowout victory against Boston at TD Garden when these teams last met on February 8. Jalen Brunson was influential on that day, recording 31 points and eight assists.