Cavaliers vs Knicks prediction NBA · Thursday, December 25
At a glance
The New York Knicks (21-9) host the Cleveland Cavaliers (17-14) on Thursday, December 25 at 12:00 PM ET at Madison Square Garden in NBA action. Final score: Cavaliers 124 – Knicks 126. Before tip-off, the Basketlog model gave the Knicks a 62% chance to win: prediction correct. This season, the Knicks are 15-2 at home and the Cavaliers are 6-6 on the road. Over the last 10 games: 8-2 for the Knicks and 5-5 for the Cavaliers (current streaks: Knicks L1, Cavaliers W2).
The analysis Model
The Knicks are favored, but the gap isn't huge. The model projects Knicks 119 – 115 Cavaliers, a margin of about 3.9 points in favor of the Knicks and a total around 234 points. Expect a fast-paced, high-scoring game.
- The Cavaliers need to win the pace battle to stay in the game.
- The Knicks' defense allows clearly fewer points (112.6 pts/game).
What tips the balance
Scenarios
Stat comparison Current season
CLENY
Top performers
Cavaliers
Donovan MitchellG · #4534pts / game
Darius GarlandG · #1010assists
Evan MobleyC · #49reboundsKnicks
Jalen BrunsonG · #1134pts / game
Tyler KolekG · #139assists
Karl-Anthony TownsC · #3214reboundsRecent form
CLENY
CLE
Team comparison
| CLE | NY | |
|---|---|---|
| 17-14 | Record | 21-9 |
| 120.6 | Points scored / game | 118.9 |
| 116.1 | Points allowed / game | 112.6 |
| +3.8 | Adjusted margin / game | +5.4 |
| W2 | Current streak | L1 |
| 5-5 | Last 10 games | 8-2 |
| 6-6 road | Home / road record | 15-2 home |
| 64-18 (+9.5) | Last season | 51-31 (+4.1) |
| No | Played yesterday | No |
Injury report Cavaliers
Injury report Knicks
Probabilities estimated by the Basketlog model from available public data. They are neither a certainty nor betting advice.