Game Time: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, January 4th, 2022 

Venue:  Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York

Where to Watch:  NBA TV

DraftKings:  Spread: NL

BetMGM:  Spread:  NL

VegasInsider:  Spread:  NL

Caesars: Spread: NL

Pacers: 14-23, 13th place Eastern Conference

Knicks: 17-20, 11th place Eastern Conference

An Eastern Conference matchup of opponents who look very similar.  #11 vs #13 in the Eastern Conference playing each other usually is completely ignored.  It also is usually a PK on the betting lines… not this one.  This one is the Pacers vs the Knicks.  A rivalry so full of history and hatred it comes with a unique hand gesture (Reggie Miller’s choke sign to Knick superfan Spike Lee).  No matter how their records seem… terrible.  These teams are loaded with talent.  With the Knicks it feels like they have 50% of the season left to right the ship.  With the Pacers it feels like they need a couple of those guys to return from the injury list long enough to actually start playing like the Pacers.  This isn’t a game that should be overlooked… it is a game to make easy $$$ off of.

The Pacers are on a four-game losing streak.  They have lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Charlotte Hornets, and the Chicago Bulls (twice).  They started the season thin from too many players on the injury list and on December 9th lost PG TJ McConnell… to make matters much worse SG Malcolm Brogdon has sat out the last 3 games with a sore right Achilles tendon.. Then got Covid… now there is no timetable for his return.  The real tragedy of this season has been SF TJ Warren recuperating from a stress fracture in his left foot, and not projected to be back until mid-January.  TJ was drafted by Phoenix in 2014 and just kind of never got a solid opportunity there or failed to impress coaches… whatever it was… when he finally joined the Indiana Pacers in 2020 he blew up.  He seemed like a totally overlooked scorer, potential star… then he went down with injury and we are still waiting to see if Indiana will see that guy again.  The rest of the roster is led by star PF/C Domantas Sabonis.  This Sabonis is the son of legendary Portland big man Arvydas Sabonis.  When Domantas entered the league scouts noticed that he was a bit smaller, thinner, and less intimidating than his old man… He wasn’t heralded as a coming star.  He played his early days with the Oklahoma City Thunder where he was overlooked next to all the stars that were on that roster (Durant, Westbrook)... he came to Indiana in the Paul George trade… It was then we all noticed… Domantas produces stats like an all-star.  This may be a wasted season for Indiana, but they have enough firepower on this roster to eventually be great without a whole lot of rebuilding.

The New York Knicks started the season on a high-five, holler on the subway, take a taxi to the Garden roll.  They ascended as high as second place in the standings.  The good feelings were flowing.  Julius Randle was keeping up the good play of last season’s surprise run into the playoffs… the young guys were contributing, RJ Barrett looked good.  Then it all wilted.  Turns out the league has radically changed this year and everybody is supposed to beat the Toronto Raptors, the Boston Celtics, and the Indiana Pacers… but it wasn’t the Knicks who would fill those spots in the standings… turns out it’s the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Charlotte Hornets you have to watch out for this season.  The Knicks then plummeted down the standings, getting kicked on the way by Covid protocols and a disappearance act starring  Kemba Walker.  The Knicks are 5-5 over their last ten games losing ground game by game in December.  They had a bright spot by winning on Christmas Day against the Atlanta Hawks in their nationally televised game… they then promptly won the next two against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Detroit Pistons…. And just as they looked to be turning things around they lost their last two straight against the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Toronto Raptors.  The Kncks are 5-5 ATS over their last ten games.  They have the talent to blow out the injured Pacers except they are injured and Covid restricted themselves right now.  

Al McMordie's 4-game NBA Win streak was snapped yesterday, as he was 0-2 in the NBA. Big Al was also 0-1 in hockey, and 3-3 in the NFL for a 3-6 Sunday. Today, Big Al's back on the NBA hardwood, and is firing on an NBA Roadkill winner out of 67% ATS angle. Get on it! Get Big Al’s picks right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. NCAAF, NFL, MLB… get positive value from all your bets! Expert picks!  Fun fact… winning a wager is much better than making a wager!

The Pacers are 14-23 on the season, but 17-18-2 ATS.  They have logged 17 Overs and 20 Unders.  They are an atrocious 3-14 in road games.

The Knicks are 17-20 on the season, but 16-21 ATS.  They have notched 16 Overs and 21 Unders.  They are 7-11 in home games.

The Pacers are 18th in scoring with 107.7 points per game, 15th in rebounds with 45.3 per, 15th in AST/TO ratio with 1.7.  They are shooting 16th in FG% and 26th in 3PT%

The Knicks are 27th in points with 104.7, 16th in rebounds with 45.1, 23rd in AST/TO ratio with 1.6.  They are shooting 26th in FG%, 11th in 3PT%, and 15th in FT%.

Our prediction for Tuesday, January 4th is…. Pacers 108 - Knicks 95

The Pacers should win this one easily.  If we look at only the missing players you’ll see that Indiana’s frontline is untouched… while the Knicks are putting up a frontline crew that can not hang with the Pacers' combination of Sabonis and Turner at all.  The Knicks will get ground down until they are totally out of it by the 4th quarter.

Don't miss our champion handicappers' Free NBA Picks and Premium Selections every day here at Bigal.com. Just click on Shop Picks for our Best Bets, or click on Shop Subscriptions to

join for a week or a month. And if you enjoyed this Pacers/Knicks Preview, be sure to bookmark Bigal.com for our daily Game Previews and Predictions.  Get help with all your college football picks, National Football league, NCAA brackets, or any prop bets on your season schedule. 

New York is 3-1 ATS versus Indiana at New York over the last 3 seasons.

New York is 5-4 ATS versus Indiana over the last 3 seasons.

3 of 4 games in this series at New York has gone Under the last 3 seasons.

Pacers: SG Malcolm Brogdon (achilles and Covid) Out ** SG Jeremy Lamb (covid) Out ** PG TJ McConnell (wrist) Out ** TJ Warren (foot) Out ** PF Isaiah Jackson (covid) Out

Knicks: C Mitchell Robinson (conditioning) Quest, PF Julius Randle (covid) Out, PG Kemba Walker (knee) Out, PG Derrick Rose (ankle) Out 

Pacers: SF Justin Holiday, PF Myles Turner, C Domantas Sabonis, PG Duane Washington Jr, SG Keifer Sykes

Knicks: PF Obi Toppin, SF RJ Barrett, C Taj Gibson, PG Mile McBride, SG Evan Fournier

Pacers

Points: Malcolm Brogdon 19

Assists: Malcolm Brogdon 6.1

Rebounds: Domantas Sabonis 12

Steals: Domantas Sabonis 1.1

Blocks: Myles Turner 2.8

Knicks

Points: Julius Randle 19.3

Assists: Julius Randle 5.0

Rebounds: Julius Randle 10

Steals: Alec Burks 1.2

Blocks: Mitchell Robinson 1.7

Pacers: Rick Carlisle.  Coach Carlisle is a pro. Pistons, Pacers, Mavericks, Pacers again… 20 years of NBA head coaching and lots of wins… one ring.

Knicks: Tom Thibodeau.  Coach Thibideau is another total pro… no rings though.