NBA picks, odds and bets for Wednesday

There's something wrong with Jalen Brunson heading into the 2024-25 NBA season.

With the addition of Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges to the lineup, the Knicks' star point guard's rating has taken a significant hit.

Through three games, Brunson is averaging just 23 points per game — nearly six points fewer than last season (28.7) and one point fewer than his first season in New York.

With these two in the picture, the Knicks have become a little less heliocentric on offense – Brunson is averaging about 2.5 fewer shots per game.

Las Vegas sportsbooks are projecting that Brunson could bounce back in the scoring on Wednesday night in Miami, putting his over/under against the Heat at 26.5 points.

Brunson hasn't reached that mark in three games, and doing so for the first time isn't exactly the best of games.

Oddsmakers expect tonight's contest against the notoriously slow Heat to be a real challenge with a total score of 215.5, the lowest in the NBA of the night on ESPN BET.

The Knicks and Heat are the bottom two in the league in terms of pace, so even 215.5 might be a stretch.

The Heat's defense has also been dominant so far, allowing just 106.7 points per game in the opening week of the season, the third fewest in the league.

Betting on the NBA?

Brunson will still be growing in the Knicks lineup, but the point guard who scores nearly 30 points per game may be a thing of the past – and tonight is not the night for him to recreate the magic of last season .

The Game: Jalen Brunson under 26.5 points (-110, ESPN BET)

Why you should trust New York Post Betting

Dylan Svoboda is a versatile writer and analyst across many sports. He is particularly knowledgeable about the big three – MLB, NFL and NBA.