NBA playoffs betting: Is now the time to back sliding Knicks?

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Recency bias influences opinions in the daily discourse of the NBA playoffs.

Fans' eagerness to overreact to one result - the most recent one - in a seven-game series impacts oddsmakers. After trailing 2-0 a week ago, the Nuggets and Pacers are now favored against the Timberwolves and the Knicks, respectively.

With both series tied at two, is there a bet to make in either one as they turn into a best-of-three?

Despite the pre-written Knicks obituary, which features sentiments about what could have been without the injury bug, New York is still in the driver's seat and is a slight underdog (+105) that's well worth the wager.

Toughness and resiliency are the driving forces behind the Knicks' playoff run after losing Julius Randle midseason and Mitchell Robinson, Bojan Bogdanovic, and OG Anunoby in the postseason.

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau rarely grants his stars opportunities to rest - in both the regular season and playoffs - but now rest isn't an option. Their thin rotation is hanging on by a thread.

In the series' first three games, Josh Hart played 139 of 144 available minutes. Through 10 playoff games, Jalen Brunson, who's dealing with an injury, attempted 262 field goals while averaging 40-plus minutes per night. Donovan Mitchell's the next closest with 225 attempts this postseason.

Brunson's one-man, heliocentric band seemingly has an expiration date. But can he extend the tour beyond the conference semifinals?

Although they were embarrassed and uncharacteristically deflated from the opening tip in Game 4, the Knicks' stars were granted the opportunity to earn something they seldom receive - rest.

Brunson, Hart, and Donte DiVincenzo played 31, 24, and 32 minutes, respectively. The Knicks jumpstarted their recharge for a pivotal Game 5 back in New York, and there are two days between Game 5 and 6 - the first two-day break of the series.

They must now navigate the remaining three games and plot when to sit their stars and for how long.

The Pacers' defensive approach of picking the Knicks up full court is paying dividends, but Indiana's not a trustworthy defensive unit and has benefitted from opponent injuries this postseason, including one to Anunoby. The Knicks outscored opponents by 21.7 points per 100 possessions when Anunoby was on the floor during the regular season, and they were outscored by one point with him on the bench. Although it appears unlikely, there's a chance Anunoby returns from his hamstring injury before the series ends.

The Knicks were the league's best rebounding team all season and won the rebounding battle in the first two games but lost it in the last two games.

Their rebounding woes reflect exhaustion, and they must return to emphatically crashing the glass. The adrenaline boost of playing in front of their home crowd at MSG should fuel some energy and limit lethargy.

The Knicks are 2.5-point favorites for Tuesday's Game 5 in New York and would be favored if it came down to a Game 7 at Madison Square Garden. So, if they're expected to be favorites in two of the potentially three remaining games, why are they underdogs to win the series?

The Knicks' engine will eventually die. It briefly shut off in Game 4, and their rotation and minutes distribution aren't sustainable to advance beyond the conference finals, especially with the Celtics lurking. But their persistence and grit have proved doubters wrong at every turn so far, and they should muster enough energy to win two out of three games this week.

Sam Oshtry is a sports betting writer at theScore. You can follow him on X @soshtry for more betting coverage.