NBA Weekend Betting Preview: Don't look Jay Z, this could be ugly for the Knicks

Basketball / Nick Shiambouros / 06 February 2009 / Leave a comment

Nick Shiambouros is not keen on New York's chances of holding the Celtics back this weekend.

It has been a very long week for the New York Knicks as both Los Angeles and Cleveland handed them back-to-back defeats.

On Monday night at Madison Square Garden Kobe Bryant scored an amazing 61 points as the Lakers won 126-117 in a romp. On Wednesday LeBron James and Cleveland beat the Knicks a 107-102 with James scoring 52 points. Even rapper Jay-Z walked on to the court to congratulate James after this huge solo effort.

It was definitely unlucky 13 on Thursday for the Boston Celtics as they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers 110-109 in a very physical game in Boston. The Celtics came in to the game chasing their 13th win in a row but were denied in overtime. These teams meet only twice a year and the Lakers must be very pleased to have won both games.

Tempers flared in the third quarter and Boston lost Kevin Garnett who fouled out with over four minutes to go. The game was played just like a play-off with every possession fiercely contested. Boston will be disappointed at the result, but losing Garnett with so much time left was the reason for this tough loss.

Bryant was clearly delighted with his team's effort as he left the court with a huge grin having scored 26 points. Team-mate Pau Gasol had a big night with 24 points and 14 rebounds. In my opinion the Lakers need their Spanish star to play at this level if they are going to win the NBA title. His performance in the finals last year was very disappointing and it really hurt the Lakers.

On Friday night, the Celtics make the short journey to New York and I can only see one possible outcome. I have previewed the Knicks in an earlier article and I think Boston will be able to give 5.5 points in the handicap betting.

This Celtic rotation is in tremendous form at the moment and Rajon Rondo appears to have regained his confidence. This talented point guard has been playing under extreme pressure recently as rumours about Stephon Marbury replacing him have been circulating. As I have said before, the Celtics can win with Rondo and I hope management have assured him that his position is secure.

Looking forward to the play-offs the only weakness I can see with the Celtics is the bench scoring. I really think they need a couple of players to come in and protect a lead when the starting line up is resting.

The Milwaukee Bucks host the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night in a very important game for the home team. The Bucks have had a lot of injuries to deal with, but they are very much in the play-off race. The team announced that they acquired guard Keith Bogans from Orlando on Wednesday and he will be a welcome addition to this injury hit franchise.

The battle for the last play-off slot involves no less than eight teams in the Eastern Conference. I think a healthy Milwaukee team could make the post-season but it appears that center Andrew Bogut could be out for two months with a back injury. Having said that this team is more than capable of beating most teams when they play at their best.

Recommended wagers:

Saturday, back Milwaukee with advertised handicap