The New York Knicks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-95. The Knicks gentlemen swept the Cavs and now advance to the second round!
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The New York Knicks won a playoff series for the first time in 10 years, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 106 to 95. Closeout games are supposed to be tough, but New York controlled this game from start to finish. The Knicks set the tone with defense and applied pressure with scoring from a few familiar faces. They grabbed 18 more rebounds than Cleveland, forced more turnovers, blocked more shots, and earned 29 free throw attempts to the Cavs’ 15.
The Knicks played their most complete postseason game, with everyone contributing to the win. Julius Randle broke his playoff slump before reinjuring his ankle, Immanuel Quickley found his scoring touch, and the players that had dominated the series continued to do so. As a result, the game never felt close.
Let’s relive New York’s biggest win in a decade by looking at each player’s work.
New York’s starters close the series with a dominant performance
Jalen Brunson: 23 PTS (8/22 FG, 2/6 3PT, 5/5 FT), 4 AST, 4 REB, 2 STL, 2 TO in 42 mins
Jalen Brunson started the night with a killer instinct, subsequently doing most of his damage in the first half. His contributions came in familiar ways, with footwork in the paint and timely three-pointers. He visibly controlled the pace of the action, calming players down when they felt rushed and pushing the pace when opportunities arose. Mariano Rivera would be proud of this closing performance.
Brunson’s scoring slowed in the second half as Cleveland sent double teams and heavy shifts in his direction. But the diminutive point guard contributed by playing his best on-ball defense of the series. At one point, he wrestled a rebound away from Jarrett Allen to spark a transition. On another occasion, he stopped a push from the Cavs by blowing up a hand-off for a steal and dunk.
New York’s star point guard never took his foot off the gas. His poor field goal percentage isn’t a fair reflection of his dominance. Many of the misses came as the Knicks killed the clock and Cleveland cheated in his direction, which meant offensive boards for Brunson’s teammates. New York has a star, and he gets a 4 out of 5 for the close.
Josh Hart: 4 PTS (2/6 FG, 0/2 3PT), 2 AST, 12 REB, 1 BLK, 1 TO in 47 mins
Josh Hart sat for less than 2 minutes, making the Cavs’ lives hell the entire time he played. He barely looked to score (producing only 4 points on 6 attempts), but his defensive play was incredible to watch. Donovan Mitchell never found space to operate, down to the last shot of Cleveland’s season, which Hart emphatically blocked.
Hart’s most significant contribution came from the glass. New York lost its regular season rebounding leader when Julius Randle left the game. Nevertheless, they dominated the boards because Josh Hart and Mitchell Robinson controlled everything. The pair grabbed 30 rebounds which matched the entire Cavaliers team.
This performance is a perfect example of how Josh Hart earned love from the Knicks’ faithful. He didn’t need flashy scoring or highlight plays. Instead, Hart played a physical game with no signs of slowing down after 47 minutes. The biggest acquisition of the NBA trade deadline gets a 3.5 out of 5 for his performance.
RJ Barrett: 21 PTS (7/13 FG, 2/4 3PT, 5/6 FT), 4 AST, 4 REB, 1 STL, 4 TO in 36 mins
RJ Barrett flipping the switch changed this series from competitive to over. He continued his transformation with one of his best performances as a Knick. Barrett got to the rim at will and picked his spots when to shoot. As a result, RJ played an efficient game from the field and three alike.
Broadway Barrett’s assist totals have downplayed his fantastic passing all series. This game might have been the best playmaking performance of his career had teammates knocked down the jumpers he created. Throughout the night, it appeared that Barrett made the right reads and swung the right passes on every play.
Barrett’s only blemish comes from turnovers. He threw some passes too hard or too high for teammates to control. Nevertheless, the mistakes are easy to forgive when he gives New York an efficient 21-point night with good defense and some dimes scattered throughout. As a result, Barrett gets a 4.5 out of 5.
Julius Randle: 13 PTS (4/9 FG, 0/3 3PT, 5/6 FT), 6 AST, 4 REB, 1 TO in 16 mins
Julius Randle started the night with a series of beautiful reads and passes. He found teammates open or attacked off the dribble to force the defense to collapse, causing a teammate to be open. My favorite dime is when he attacked from the post and pump-faked to draw a crowd before firing a pass to the dunker’s spot. After getting everyone else going, Randle started to strike in earnest.
Randle picked on switches at every opportunity. He drove right through guards and into the chest of bigs like Mobley. He was aggressive, leading to efficient scoring and a slew of drawn fouls.
Randle made a great effort to challenge a shot from Caris Levert but landed on the wings foot. Unfortunately, his ankle injury flared back up; consequently, he left the game in the first half. Yet, this is still his best performance of the series, and I’m glad he’ll get some rest before the next one. Randle receives a 3 out of 5, despite only playing one half.
Mitchell Robinson: 13 PTS (6/9 FG, 1/4 FT), 1 AST, 18 REB, 2 STL, 3 BLK, 1 TO in 36 mins
Who would have thought that the Mitchell to dominate this series would be Robinson and not Donovan? Mitch sparked the defense with early blocks and continued terrorizing shooters in the middle all game long. Robinson added 5 Stocks in total, not to mention countless plays that his presence altered. In fact, he coaxed Caris Levert to throw a shot over the backboard during a possession.
Robinson’s rebounding dominance is incomparable. The Cavs had players in front of and behind Mitch and still couldn’t contain him. His three misses are from tip-in attempts on the offensive glass, but so are a number of his made field goals. In addition, he added to backbreaking putbacks in the fourth quarter. The second-chance points that the Blockness Monster produced off 11 offensive boards visibly demoralized his opponents.
They don’t make big men like this anymore. He completely overwhelmed a former all-star center and DPoY candidate power forward. He added more points, steals, blocks, and rebounds than Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley combined. Mitchell Robinson has a case for the most significant impact on this entire series, and for this game, he gets a perfect 5 out of 5.
The Knicks’ second unit steps up when called on
Immanuel Quickley: 19 PTS (5/15 FG, 3/10 3PT, 6/6 FT), 1 AST, 2 REB in 29 mins
Immanuel Quickley is starting to shake off some of the cobwebs. He looked out of sorts for long stints of this series but finally put together good possessions en route to 19 points. IQ got an early three to fall, boosting his confidence. While he didn’t shoot efficiently, his aggressive approach led to some momentum-shifting field goals.
Even as IQ has struggled with offense, his value stayed high due to quality defense. Some of my favorite plays from Quickley came as he chased Darius Garland into the paint and forced the scorer to alter his shot without fouling.
The beauty of Quickley’s series is how much better he can be. He only scratched the surface of his offense while providing defense the Knicks have relied on all year. IQ gets a 3 out of 5 for his quality play.
Obi Toppin: 12 PTS (5/10 FG, 2/4 3PT), 1 AST, 2 REB, 1 STL, 1 TO in 22 mins
The Julius Randle injury had a chance to sap the Knicks’ energy. It didn’t because Obi Toppin stepped in and produced in all the ways he’s developed this season. Obi knocked down a pair of threes, beat the Cavs in transition, plus threw in a pull-up jumper off the dribble for 12 points in the third quarter.
Toppin brought his energy with every play. His defense was solid, and he made minor contributions in areas like rebounding and playmaking. But it was his scoring boost that stood out most. Once again, he proved that he can fill the void while Randle rests and heals. Obi gets a 3 out of 5 for his third-quarter outburst.
Isaiah Hartenstein: 1 PTS (0/1 FG, 1/2 FT), 2 AST, 2 REB, 1 BLK in 12 mins
Isaiah Hartenstein barely played through no fault of his own. Mitchell Robinson played the game of his career, leaving I-Hart on clean-up duty. To his credit, Hartenstein played well with his limited time. He managed a couple of dimes, a pair of rebounds, and a block. Standing out in little minutes is tough, but I-Hart was solid enough for a 2.5 out of 5.
Tom Thibodeau is the best Knicks coach of this millennium
Tom Thibodeau catches a lot of flack from Knicks fans, myself included. But it never seems to bother him as he trudges along to the beat of his own drum. His teams always seem to grow as the season wears on. Their identities develop into defense and physicality that fit more in a ’90s league than the pace and space era. This team might be his masterpiece.
For the fourth time in five games, the Knicks held Cleveland under 100 points. It was also the fourth time in the series that New York outrebounded their foes. This team dominated a series without shooting particularly well because they outworked their opponents. They overcame injuries to two starters, ignored Cleveland’s homecourt advantage, and never let their foot off the gas.
Everything about this series reminds me of the coach and the era that he comes from. This is the consummate Tom Thibodeau team. He did it his way, and Thibodeau gets a 5 out of 5 for being the best coach New York has seen since Jeff Van Gundy.
Closing Thoughts
This victory and the excitement that comes with it are ten years in the making. We haven’t felt this since Carmelo Anthony was in his prime. To add intrigue to the hype, we’ll watch the Knicks play against the Miami Heat in round two. That rivalry defined my formative years watching NBA basketball and becoming the Knicks fanatic that I am today.
The best part about this run has been my ability to share it with younger basketball fans. The ’90s Knicks seem like an exaggeration to fans that grew up watching the Knicks struggle from one general manager to the next as coaches and hopeful roster additions came and went. But this team has captured some of the magic that made a generation of die-hard fans.
If you want to know why New York is the Mecca and why passionate Knicks fans never let go after decades of bad teams, watch the Garden games from this series again. Tune in Sunday and catch a glimpse of the energy. This team full of homegrown talent and long-time Knicks, led by the son of a Knick from the 90s, has captured some of the magic. If they keep winning, it will only get bigger, crazier, and more fun.
The Knicks play the Heat next, and I couldn’t be more excited. I’m proud of this team, and it feels like the whole world recognizes the Knicks again for the first time in a long time.
Stay tuned to KnicksFanTV.com for the latest Knicks news, rumors, and recaps throughout the NBA season. And in case you missed it, check out CP’s interview with Legendary Broadcaster, Gus Johnson!
