Eastern Conference powerhouses battle when the Indiana Pacers meet the New York Knicks in a key early-season NBA matchup on Friday night. Indiana opened its season with a 115-109 win at Detroit on Wednesday, while New York dropped a 132-109 decision at Boston on Tuesday. The Pacers, who finished 47-35 and were the sixth seed last season, were 32-20 against conference foes in 2023-24. The Knicks, who were the second seed at 50-32 a year ago, were 35-17 against the East. Indiana defeated New York 4-3 in the Eastern Conference semifinals last year.

Tip-off from Madison Square Garden in New York is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Knicks lead the all-time regular-season series 100-95, but Indiana has won three of the last four meetings, including two of three in New York. The Knicks are 5.5-point favorites in the latest Pacers vs. Knicks odds from SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 227. Before making any Pacers vs. Knicks picks, you’ll want to see the NBA predictions from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in betting profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past six seasons. The model ended the 2023-24 season on a sizzling 94-61 roll on all top-rated NBA picks, returning more than $2,800 in the process. Anyone following at sportsbooks and on betting apps has seen huge returns.  

The model has set its sights on Pacers vs. Knicks and just locked in its picks and NBA predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see its picks. Here are several NBA betting lines for Knicks vs. Pacers:

• Knicks vs. Pacers spread: New York -5.5
• Knicks vs. Pacers over/under: 227 points
• Knicks vs. Pacers money line: New York -226, Indiana +186
• IND: 54-43-3 ATS since start of last season 
• NY: 49-44-3 ATS since start of last season 
• Knicks vs. Pacers picks: See picks at SportsLine
• Knicks vs. Pacers streaming: FuboTV (Try for free)

Why the Knicks can cover

Point guard Jalen Brunson powers the New York offense. In 77 starts a year ago, he averaged 28.7 points, 6.7 assists and 3.6 rebounds. He connected on 47.9% of his field goals, including a blistering 40.1% from 3-point range, and 84.7% of his free throws. In the season opener at Boston, he scored 22 points in 25 minutes, hitting on 64.3% of his field goals, including one of two from 3-point range, and all three free throws.

Center Karl-Anthony Towns made his debut against the Celtics and scored 12 points, while adding seven rebounds and three assists. He was acquired earlier this month in a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The top pick in the 2015 NBA Draft has career averages of 22.9 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.3 blocks. In 574 career games, he is connecting on 52.4% of his shots from the floor, 39.8% of his 3-pointers and 83.9% of his free throws. See which team to pick here.

Why the Pacers can cover

Center Myles Turner is off to a solid start to the season. In the win over Detroit, he scored 20 points, while grabbing nine rebounds, dishing out four assists and blocking four shots. In 77 games last year, all starts, he averaged 17.1 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 1.3 assists. He hit on 52.4% of his field goals and 77.3% of his free throws. He ranked ninth in the NBA in blocked shots last season with 144.

Point guard Tyrese Haliburton is among Indiana’s top scorers. In 69 regular-season games last year, including 68 starts, he averaged 20.1 points, 10.9 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 32.2 minutes of action. He had four double-doubles and one triple-double in 15 postseason games in 2023-24. The fifth-year veteran, who was drafted in the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings, opened the season with 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals in the win over Detroit. See which team to pick here.

How to make Pacers vs. Knicks picks

The model has simulated Pacers vs. Knicks 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over on the total, projecting 228 combined points. It also says one side of the spread hits in well over 50% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Pacers vs. Knicks, and which side of the spread hits well over 50% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Pacers vs. Knicks spread you need to jump on, all from the model that was on a 94-61 roll on top-rated NBA picks last season, and find out.