Atlanta Hawks vs. New York Knicks Game 1 Prediction, NBA Odds
The Eastern Conference first-round playoff series between the sixth-seeded Atlanta Hawks and third-seeded Knicks tips off Saturday evening from Madison Square Garden. New York is -5 on the NBA odds with a total of 216.5 points for the opener.
Hawks vs. Knicks NBA Betting Odds
This will mark the first playoff series between the clubs since the 2021 first round when the Hawks were won in five in Trae Young’s superstar breakout party. He became Public Enemy No. 1 for Knicks fans. That Atlanta team got to the Eastern Conference Finals and looked like a rising power, but the franchise has never come close to that level since.
This marks the Hawks’ first time in the post-season since 2023, and Young had fallen out of favour so much with the team that he was traded for the very cheap price of veterans CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert to Washington in January. Atlanta completely took off after that in large part because Young was a massive liability on defence and a bit of a ball-hog.
New York is in the playoffs for the fourth straight season and was in the East Finals last year but lost and that led to the surprise firing of coach Tom Thibodeau. The club improved by two regular-season wins this year under Mike Brown.
The Knicks are -275 on the series lines with the Hawks +220, and the favoured exact result is New York in five at +340 (don’t agree with that). But Knicks in seven is close behind at +360, and that would be my early lean. They won two of three meetings (1-2 ATS) during the regular season.
Atlanta Hawks
Guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, a Toronto native having his best season by far, led Atlanta in the season series against the Knicks in averaging 28.0 points per game, while centre Onyeka Okongwu put up 22.0 points and 10.3 rebounds per, and Jalen Johnson 19.7 points and 10.0 rebounds. Johnson is now the team’s most-talented guy and was a first-time All-Star in 2026.
At this year’s All-Star break, the Hawks were four games under .500. They closed on a 20-6 run but did lose three of their final four. Atlanta became only the third team in NBA history to finish double-digit games over .500 after being at least four under at the All-Star break.
The team made another smart trade at the February deadline in landing Jonathan Kuminga for a song from Golden State. Kuminga can run hot and cold but averaged a solid 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in about 22 minutes per night off the bench with the Hawks. They led the NBA with 30.1 assists per game, the most in a season in franchise history. Atlanta is 6-3 ATS in its past nine vs. the Knicks.
New York Knicks
New York was in the running for the East’s No. 2 seed for a while, but then Boston got hot at the end and pulled away for that. All-Star guard Jalen Brunson averaged 29.3 points in the season series vs. Atlanta, and Karl-Anthony Towns 28.5 points and 13.5 rebounds. Brunson is the team’s best player, but KAT the most important for all he does and that the Knicks don’t have a ton of size.
New York is looking win a playoff series for a fourth straight season, which the franchise hasn’t done since a long run from 1992-2000. But it has lost to a worst-seeded team in each of the past three post-seasons.
If the Knicks are upset again in this series, changes are probably coming to the roster. Towns could be part of a trade package to get Milwaukee superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. He reportedly would prefer to play for the Knicks if he demands a trade this summer. New York is 7-1 SU in its past eight at home.
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