Best Bets for Knicks vs. Spurs Game 4 at Madison Square Garden

The New York Knicks were living larger than Times Square when they opened the NBA Finals with two straight victories in San Antonio. But suddenly, the pressure is back on the Knicks after the Spurs delivered a big Game 3 triumph at Madison Square Garden.

New York badly needs to take Game 4 on Wednesday as a 3-1 lead sure beats being tied 2-2 with two of the final three games slated for San Antonio. And just imagine the worry the Knicks’ fans will feel if they start to sense the title drought since 1973 might continue.

The Spurs, of course, have pressures to deal with too. They don’t want to return to the Alamo City on the brink of elimination.

Spurs looked like a different team in Game 3

Digging the 0-2 hole in San Antonio put the Spurs in deep trouble but coach Mitch Johnson made adjustments and the Spurs played aggressively throughout the contest. Big man Victor Wembanyama looked fully in the moment while veterans Harrison Barnes (DNP) and Luke Kornet (nine minutes) were all but removed from the game plan.

Having three and sometimes four smaller athletic players who are solid with the ball to go with Wembanyama created positive advantages for San Antonio. Stephon Castle was sharp with 23 points while the Spurs worked around substandard shooting performances from De’Aaron Fox (4-of-14) and Dylan Harper (5-of-18).

The Knicks again saw Jalen Brunson (32 points) excel but Karl-Anthony Towns chipped in with just 11 points and is scoreless in the fourth quarter in this series. New York’s offense will have to be better Wednesday if it wants to keep the lead in the series.

Spurs plus 2.5-point spread, -115 (DraftKings)

Wemby gets physical, finds comfort zone.

Wembanyama looked more like the third-place finisher in the MVP race when he scored 32 points on 11-of-18 shooting and committed just one turnover in Game 3. The rest of the stat line included eight rebounds, six assists and three blocked shots.

He also seemed more settled in than his shaky Game 1 outing (6-of-21 shooting, six turnovers) and late Game 2 mishaps (pass off Castle’s back, missed 3-pointer prior to the buzzer) and could be ready to take control of the series. He made 18 of 29 two-point shots the past two games after making just 4 of 12 in Game 1.

Wemby also wasn’t taking any guff on Monday, though his toss of Brunson to the floor was a big-time cheap shot. He’s going to be a marked man in the Garden for the rest of his career but expect him to produce big in Game 4.

Wembanyama to score 27-plus points, -121 (DraftKings)

Brunson has a trusted friend named OG.

Brunson (30-plus points, +120) has attempted a whopping 81 shots in the series but is making them at just a 37% clip. His 11-of-25 showing in Game 3 was his most efficient effort and he simply will always be counted on to carry the offense in every game.

While Towns (18-plus points, -114) could rebound, OG Anunoby might be the best bet to be Brunson’s scoring sidekick in Game 4. Anunoby scored 28 points on just 13 shots (making nine) for his best output since twice scoring 29 points in the first-round series against the Atlanta Hawks.

Anunoby is 8-of-18 from 3-point range and shooting 54.3% overall in the Finals. With Towns being 0-for-6 shooting in the fourth quarter in the series, the final 12 minutes should be Anunoby’s time to share scoring duties with Brunson and his over/under is low based on his Game 3 showing.

OG Anunoby to score 17-plus points, -109 (DraftKings)