NBA bettors faded Knicks before miraculous Game 1 win

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Here’s some bulletin board material: The Knicks weren’t just 10-point underdogs Monday night, but betting action obtained by The Post shows that truly no one believes in them to advance past the Celtics.

Tom Thibodeau’s group came into the series as +500 underdogs to win their series against the Celtics, with the Knicks’ moneyline also coming in north of +300 in Game 1 alone on most sportsbooks.

A mess of a start that included center Karl-Anthony Towns finding himself in foul trouble and a 20-point deficit in the third quarter made it seems as if all hope had been lost for the Knicks, with the live moneyline ballooning to 25/1 at ESPN BET.

Timely shotmaking, mixed with a sprinkle of Jalen Brunson magic, and the Knicks are now stunningly sitting with a 1-0 series lead in the best-of-seven set.

The Knicks are up 1-0 in the series after a wild win. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post

Not many people bet made on this momentous event, though.

Knicks moneyline received just 24.2 percent of the bets and 18.4 percent of the handle before the game, per ESPN Bet.

Jalen Brunson was throwing up three fingers throughout the fourth quarter against the Celtics. Getty Images

An insane 96.9 percent of the money at ESPN Bet was on the Celtics to advance past the Knicks at -900 odds, the sportsbook tells The Post.

With less than one dollar being bet for every $5 on the Celtics, the Knicks’ lack of gambling interest is just a bit surprising considering the popularity that New York teams typically bring.

During last season’s playoffs, the Rangers were a “huge hazard” for DraftKings Sportsbook on a game-to-game basis, with bettors coming out in droves to wager on them.

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The Blueshirts missed the playoffs this year, but this is a constant theme throughout the sports market —betting on New York teams is among the most popular bets.

The Mets and Yankees have accumulated the second- and third-most money at BetMGM, respectively, to win the World Series .

On the NFL side, the Giants are mostly a black hole for success but many forget that the Jets were the public betting darling entering the 2024 season, with their odds even approaching the then-favored Chiefs to win the Super Bowl before it all came crashing down with Aaron Rodgers at the head.

So not only are the wildly popular Knicks massive underdogs in this series, but they aren’t even getting betting interest right now.

Betting on the NBA?

The Knicks’ Game 1 win has moved them only slightly closer to winning the series, as the oddsmakers still don’t believe in Thibodeau’s group.

ESPN BET now has the Knicks at +280 to advance past the Celtics and land their first conference finals berth since 2000.

Whether Game 1’s win changes the public perceptions of the Knicks in this series remains to be seen, but the sports world — and bettors — are watching with cash in hand.

The Celtics opened as 8.5-point favorites in Game 2, but have since moved to 10.5 as of Tuesday morning.

An ESPN BET spokesperson tells The Post that 97.3 percent of the money is on the Celtics in Game 2.

Why Trust New York Post Betting

Erich Richter is a brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt but he has a black belt in MMA betting. During the football season he’s showcased massive profits at The Post in the player prop market the last two seasons. While constantly betting long shots, his return on investment is 30.15 percent since 2022.

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