Heat, Knicks & More

We are targeting Towns as he finds his rhythm in head coach Mike Brown’s 'space and pace' system, which emphasizes five-out spacing to pull Nikola Jokic away from the interior. After scoring 21 points against Toronto on March 3, Towns’ high-volume role is further solidified by Josh Hart being questionable with a back injury, necessitating more scoring production from the Knicks' primary frontcourt engine.

We are backing Jaxson Hayes to exceed 9.5 points as he enters tonight’s matchup on the heels of a season-high 19-point performance against Denver and likely sees expanded minutes with starting center Deandre Ayton (knee) listed as questionable. The Pacers' defense has cratered during a seven-game losing streak, currently ranking among the league's worst in rim protection and allowing 119.6 PPG overall. Given the elite pick-and-roll chemistry between Hayes and Luka Doncic, our selection capitalizes on a bottom-tier Indiana interior that offers little resistance to one of the league’s most efficient rim-finishers (71.4% FG).