The New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs met in the NBA Finals back in 1999. San Antonio won that series in five games. Twenty-seven years later, they meet again, and both franchises have arrived through dramatically different paths.

The Knicks are riding a historic eleven-game winning streak and posted the highest effective field goal percentage in NBA playoff history at 59.2%. They swept Philadelphia, swept Cleveland by an average of more than 20 points per game, and finished their conference slate with a point differential of +271, the most dominant performance on record. The Knicks arrive in San Antonio with eight days of rest and a roster that is mostly healthy.

San Antonio earned their spot the hard way. The Spurs trailed Oklahoma City 3-2 in the Western Conference Finals before winning Game 6 by 27 points and then going on the road for a Game 7 win that will be remembered for a long time. Shout-out Shaq for calling it months ago. Julian Champagnie hit six three-pointers. Luke Kornet delivered a wild game-changing block in the fourth quarter. Wemby was Wemby. The Spurs earned every bit of their three days off to recover for Game 1.

The statistical matchup between these two is pretty even. Both teams share nearly identical offensive ratings. San Antonio's defense is a bit better, ranking 3rd to New York's 10th. The Spurs generate enormous value in transition, ranking 8th in transition efficiency. The Knicks counter with elite halfcourt execution and lots of second-chance point generation.

There is also a coaching subplot worth noting. Knicks head coach Mike Brown served as an assistant under Gregg Popovich during San Antonio's 2003 championship. Brown lost his only other Finals appearance as a head coach to the Spurs in 2007. A four game sweep.

Get your popcorn ready, Game 1 of the NBA Finals is tonight!

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🏀 Player Props for Game 1 of the NBA Finals

The Finals are here and the prop market has two spots worth getting into. One has been on a hot streak through this historic Knicks run and the other gets enough volume to make the odds tonight in our favor.

👉️ Mikal Bridges 9-Game Player Prop Streak

Bridges has cashed this prop in nine straight games, starting with the closeout Game 6 in round 1. His season average of 21.66 PRA sits right at the line tonight, but his current form shows a sharp increase above his baseline. He is shooting 57.2% on an effective field goal basis, ranks in the 96th percentile among wings in field goals made per game, and has become the Knicks' most complete two-way contributor on a team that’s already firing on all cylinders.

The Knicks start off on the road, and in 49 away games this season, Bridges has averaged nearly 23 PRA and cashed at this mark 59% of the time. Against the Spurs last season he averaged 36.0 PRA across two meetings and hit this line in both. He averaged 26.5 against them this season, cashing in one of two.

San Antonio's defense is one of the best, ranking third in points allowed per possession, but Bridges' ability to contribute across multiple categories simultaneously gives him a high floor that a single defensive adjustment cannot eliminate.

👉️ Karl-Anthony Towns Plus-Odds Prop

Towns is shooting 48.9% from three this postseason, a significant jump from his 37% regular season mark, and he attempts 4.1 triples per game, placing him in the 84th percentile among bigs in volume. Getting plus money on a player shooting nearly 50% from deep is an unusual opportunity.

San Antonio ranks 24th in the league defending big men on three-point attempts, among the weakest marks at that position in the entire league. Wembanyama's defensive instincts pull him toward rim protection, and when Brunson attacks the paint and forces a Wembanyama rotation, Towns will be stationed on the perimeter with a smaller defender or an open look entirely.

Take a look at tonight’s consistency sheet on Pine for more props!

 🌲 The Pine Line

🏈 Bad news for the NFC West. A Super Bowl contender just got a lot stronger.

🏒 Free agency is right around the corner. Time is running out for Dallas to keep their star forward.

🤕 What a remarkable run at Roland Garros. From collapsing on the court to reaching the semifinals.

⚽️ MLS wants you to know they’re making progress. Just ignore the 50% increase in tournament size this year. 

🏒 Conn Smythe Update After Game 1

by Ed Egros 👉️ Follow on X @EdWithSports

Not only did we witness an upset in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, we saw some movement to Conn Smythe odds, given to the MVP of the entire playoffs, not just the Final.

Mitch Marner is a Heavier Favorite

Often the award goes to a star, and now that Vegas has stolen one on the road, Vegas forward and alternate captain Mitch Marner is fitting the description even more after Game 1.  Not only does he lead the Golden Knights with 22 points in these playoffs, that mark leads the entire league.  

He’s -115 to win at last check on FanDuel.

Trouble for Andersen 

Carolina goalie Frederik Andersen allowed five goals on 23 shots for a .783 save percentage in a losing effort.  If you look at the last few goalies to win the award, Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy never had a save percentage of worse than .840 in any playoff game during his run to the honor.  Los Angeles’ Jonathan Quick never allowed more than three goals during the 2012 playoffs.  And Boston’s Tim Thomas never had worse than an .808 save percentage in any 2011 playoff game.

Andersen still has the second-shortest odds, but he’s falling behind Marner.

One Golden Knight Catching Up

At last check, Jack Eichel now has the third-shortest odds on DraftKings at 7/1.  He netted an assist in the early second-period goal for Vegas.  Though he hasn’t done much scoring in the playoffs, he’s more than capable of scoring in bunches and taking over this market.

If a Forward Wins

Eichel’s case is a glimpse into what forwards likely have to do to earn the trophy.  

Anticipating which skater will finish with the most points or the most expected goals gets you a lot closer to accurately predicting who will win the honor.  Right now, among those still playing, Carolina’s Logan Stankoven has the most expected goals according to MoneyPuck, and Marner has a three-point lead over the rest of the league with 3-6 games remaining.

In the history of the NHL, one skater did tally 19 points in a single series.  Guys like Jackson Blake and Brett Howden who are deeper in the lineup are still live if this series takes a while.

Jaxon and I Like Marner’s Position

In all likelihood, this year will be another when the playoff MVP will hail from the winning team.  If Vegas wins, the honor should go to Marner.

John Tortorella believes in Marner, who logged nearly five minutes on the power play and one minute on the penalty kill.  If you believe Vegas is destined to win the Cup again, you might as well bet on Marner for the Conn Smythe.

Bet smarter, not harder.

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