New York Knicks vs. Milwaukee Bucks Predictions, Picks, Odds

Michael Crosson Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

Nationally televised NBA coverage will conclude on Friday night with a heavyweight Eastern Conference bout between the New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks. Coverage begins from Fiserv Forum at 10:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.

SCORE PREDICTION

Bucks 117, Knicks 104 

BEST BETS

Bucks -8.5 (-110) at DraftKings

NEW YORK KNICKS VS. MILWAUKEE BUCKS PREDICTIONS

After finishing fourth in the East with a record of 41-31 SU last year, New York briefly kept that same ball rolling with another strong start to this season, as the Knicks opened with a sturdy 11-9 SU and 9-11 ATS ATS run– which included tough victories over the Sixers (2), Bucks, Hawks, Bulls, and Lakers.

The Knicks have looked like a shell of that squad since their opening stretch though, considering New York enters Friday’s contest riding a lackluster 12-17 SU skid– despite getting tagged as favorites in 14 of those contests.

On the other hand, Milwaukee posted a slightly disappointing start to the year, as the defending champs kicked things off with a lackluster 6-8 SU and ATS skid – with four of those SU losses coming in matchups they were favored in.

The Bucks have quietly dominated since that point though, considering Milwaukee enters Friday’s matchup sitting at 24-12 SU across their last 36 games, with 18 of those victories coming by eight points or more – despite owning a record of 15-21 ATS during that timeframe.

I’ll back Milwaukee at home here, as the Bucks are 11-7 SU across the last 18 games, while generating 114.8 PPG offensively during that span – likely presenting a steep uphill battle for a Knicks squad that’s tallied just 97.8 PPG across their latest 1-5 skid.

NEW YORK KNICKS VS. MILWAUKEE BUCKS BETTING ODDS

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NEW YORK KNICKS VS. MILWAUKEE BUCKS BETTING RESOURCES

• Matchup: Atlantic vs. Central
• Date: Friday, January 28, 2022
• Venue: Fiserv Forum
• Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• TV-Time: ESPN - 10:00 p.m. ET
• Injury Report

NEW YORK KNICKS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 23-26
• ATS: 24-25
• O/U: 21-28

New York’s outstanding success came as quite the surprise last season, as the Knicks finished fourth in the East with an impressive tally of 41-31 SU – before inevitably getting outmatched by the Hawks from top to bottom in the first round of the playoffs.

The Knicks haven’t caught anybody off guard this year though, considering New York ranks 11th in the East straight-up with a record of 23-26 SU and 9th against the spread with a record of 24-25 ATS – despite getting tagged as favorites in 28 matchups so far this season.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 30-20
• ATS: 21-29
• O/U: 21-29

After finishing with the best record in the East in two of the last three regular seasons, Milwaukee’s rough start was incredibly surprising, considering the Bucks’ compiled a record of 162-65 SU across the previous three seasons – and then opened this season just 6-8 SU.

Since mid-November though, Milwaukee has played excellent basketball when healthy, considering the Bucks are 24-12 SU across their latest 36-game stretch – with nearly half of those losses coming in the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo (5). 

NEW YORK KNICKS VS. MILWAUKEE BUCKS HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Knicks won two-of-three regular-season meetings against Milwaukee last year, with the first two matchups soaring over the total at a lofty average of 237.5 PPG – while the ensuing event stayed under with a final score of 102-96. The Bucks are 2-1 SU against New York so far this season though, with all three of those contests also staying under the total at an average of 210.7 PPG. 

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH

• NYK: Julius Randle - PF (18.7 PPG, 9.9 REB, 5 AST)
• NYK: RJ Barrett - SG (17.4 PPG, 5.8 REB, 2.5 AST)
• MIL: Giannis Antetokounmpo - PF (28.6 PPG, 11.2 REB, 6 AST)
• MIL: Khris Middleton - SG (20.1 PPG, 5.6 REB, 5.3 AST)

NEW YORK KNICKS VS. MILWAUKEE BUCKS BETTING CONCLUSION

After posting back-to-back road losses to the Heat and Cavaliers, the Knicks will hit the road again on Friday night as hefty underdogs against the Bucks at Fiserv Forum – marking the sixth time New York has been an underdog across the last nine games.

I’ll back Milwaukee at home here, as New York has been miserable offensively as of late, considering the Knicks are 1-5 SU and 3-3 ATS in their last six games, while tallying just 97.8 PPG during that timeframe – setting the stage for an incredibly difficult road matchup against a Bucks squad that’s racked up 114.8 PPG across their latest 11-7 SU run.

NEW YORK KNICKS VS. MILWAUKEE BUCKS BETTING TRENDS

• The Knicks are 4-14 SU in their last 18 matchups against Milwaukee.
• The total has gone UNDER in seven of the last ten Bucks' games.
• The Knicks are 8-4 ATS in their last 12 games.
• The Bucks are 1-5 ATS in their last six games.

Michael Crosson

Michael Crosson began his time at VegasInsider as a freelance NBA writer back in 2019 while he continued to study Psychology and Biology at James Madison University. Following his graduation in 2021, Michael joined the team full-time, and he's been with VI ever since. Michael still writes NBA, NFL, and MLB for VI, as well as gambling industry news. He's also become a crucial part of our editorial production team. More from Michael Crosson