Knicks vs. Sixers NBA expert prediction and odds for Thursday, Feb. 22 (Can Knicks end streak?)

The All-Star break could not have come at a better time for the New York Knicks, who dropped four straight games to fall to fourth in the Eastern Conference ahead of the break. 

New York is just half a game ahead of the No. 5-seeded Philadelphia 76ers, and the two teams match up in Philly on Thursday night. 

New York won the last meeting between these teams by a whopping 36 points, and now Philly doesn’t have Joel Embiid (torn meniscus) in the lineup. However, the Knicks are still expected to be without Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, and Mitchell Robinson on Thursday. 

On the bright side, Isaiah Hartenstein, Donte DiVincenzo, and Bojan Bogdanovic all practiced for the team on Tuesday, a good sign for them returning to action in this game. 

The Knicks are set as road underdogs, a spot they have struggled in this season, but this game is essentially a pick’em with just a one-point spread. 

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Let’s dive into the odds and my best bet for Thursday’s NBA action: 

Knicks vs. Sixers odds, spread and total

Knicks vs. Sixers how to watch

• Date: Thursday, Feb. 22
• Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
• Venue: Wells Fargo Center
• How to watch (TV): MSG, NBC Sports Philadelphia
• Knicks record: 33-22
• Sixers record: 32-22

Knicks vs. Sixers injury reports

Knicks injury report 

• Mitchell Robinson – out
• OG Anunoby – out
• Julius Randle – out
• Donte DiVincenzo – day-to-day
• Isaiah Hartenstein – day-to-day

Sixers injury report

• Joel Embiid – out
• De’Anthony Melton – out
• Tobias Harris – day-to-day
• Kyle Lowry – day-to-day
• Robert Covington – out
• Nic Batum – day-to-day

Knicks vs. Sixers key players to watch

New York Knicks

Jalen Brunson: Fresh off of his first All-Star appearance, Brunson will return to his massive role for New York with Randle and Anunoby sidelined. Since the two forwards went down, Brunson is averaging 32.9 points per game across eight contests. He’ll have to play well for the Knicks to beat a tough Philly team. 

Philadelphia 76ers

Tyrese Maxey: Maxey dropped 30 points in his final game before the All-Star break, and the one-time All-Star now returns to his role as the No. 1 option with reigning MVP Joel Embiid sidelined due to a torn meniscus. Maxey had 27 points in a blowout loss to the Knicks earlier this season. 

Knicks vs. Sixers prediction and pick

Both of these teams look very different from their first meeting back on Jan. 5, and the Knicks are hoping to at least have a semblance of a rotation after missing most of their key players against the Orlando Magic in the final game before the break. 

New York simply hasn’t had enough offensive firepower in some of its four straight losses, but it’s possible that the break allowed Bogdanovic and Alec Burks (the team’s trade deadline acquisitions) to get acclimated to the team. 

Philly has now played 20 games without Embiid this season, losing 14 of them. The team is just 3-7 since the reigning MVP was injured against the Golden State Warriors back in January. 

While Tom Thibodeau’s group is just 5-10-1 against the spread as a road underdog this season, the Knicks are still a .500 team on the road (14-14) straight up. 

New York outranks Philly in net rating and defensive rating this season, and the Sixers’ offense has fallen off without Embiid, going from No. 6 overall on the season to just No. 18 over its last 10 games. 

The Sixers are also just 29th (!!) in the NBA in defensive rating over that stretch. 

I’ll trust a refreshed Knicks team to pick up a win as an underdog on Thursday night. 

Pick: Knicks +1 (-110)

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.