Just under a year ago, the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers competed on a completely different stage. The Utah Jazz had made All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell available for a trade, and the Knicks were widely expected to bring in the New York native. The two sides negotiated for over a month with no deal reached. Finally, the Cavs dove in and landed the shooting guard of their dreams.
It ended up working for both parties. Mitchell led the Cavaliers to their first LeBron James free playoff appearance in 25 years. Another off-season acquisition, Jalen Brunson, led the Knicks back to the playoffs after just a one-year absence. Now they are ready to take on it again, but this time their battle will take place on the field.
The overwhelming consensus going into the Eastern Conference postseason is that the Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers are championship contenders. Everyone else is just cannon fodder. Well, the winner of this series gets a shot at the Bucks in the second round, and with it, a chance to prove he belongs in the conversation with every team the Eastern Conference has to offer. But who gets that chance? Here’s everything you need to know about Cleveland’s first round vs. New York.
(4) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) New York Knicks
Knicks lead series 3-1
All times Eastern
- Game 1 (at CLE): Knicks 101, Cavaliers 97
- Game 2 (at CLE): Cavaliers 107, Knicks 90
- Game 3 (at NYK): Knicks 99, Cavaliers 79
- Game 4 (at NYK): Knicks 102, Cavaliers 93
- Game 5* (at CLE): Wednesday April 26 | TBD | TV: To be determined
- Game 6* (at NYK): Friday April 28 | TBD | TV: To be determined
- Game 7* (at CLE): Sunday April 30 | TBD | TV: To be determined
*If necessary
Top storylines
1. Is Randle ready?
At the time of writing, Julius Randle is a game time decision for Game 1 with a sprained left ankle. That is worrying on a number of levels. Obviously, the Knicks would love to have their best player at full strength, but this is an important streak for Randle, especially when you consider what happened the last time he reached the postseason. In a five-game loss to the Atlanta Hawks, Randle shot 29.8% from the field and was held under 20 points three times.
He was guarded by De’Andre Hunter and Atlanta’s number 18 defense in that series. Now he takes on Defensive Player of the Year nominee Evan Mobley and the No. 1 Cleveland defense. A healthy Randle actually makes for a very interesting game against the Cavaliers. If Mobley has a defensive weakness – and that’s a huge “if” – it’s against the greats who can bully him. Randle fits right in. The Knicks like to let Randle handle the ball and attack almost anyone, and he’s got about 35 pounds on 21-year-old Mobley.
This is not the Knicks of 2021. They have additional ball handling and are now actually shooting 3-pointers. New York doesn’t need Randle to average 30 to win this series. But they’re going to lose it when he shoots 30% off the floor again. The Knicks need something close to Randle’s typical performance if they intend to score consistently against the NBA’s best defense. At this point, it’s just not clear if he can give them that.
2. Mitchell v Brunson, Round 2
It would hardly be an exaggeration to suggest that Jalen Brunson ended Utah’s Donovan Mitchell era last season. With Luka Doncic injured for their first round, the Jazz were expected to waltz past the Mavericks into the second round. And then Brunson thoroughly defeated Mitchell in a six-game series that ended with a Dallas advance. Brunson averaged just under 28 points per game against Utah, and appropriately scored many against Mitchell, who played one of the worst defenses of his life against the Jazz.
He’s a much better defenseman in Cleveland, and he also has two elite defensive men behind him instead of just one. His All-Star backcourt is considerably younger this time around and he will have home court advantage in this game. In other words, if Mitchell treats this series as a grudge against Brunson, almost everything that worked against him last season is now in his favor.
Knicks fans have little reason to regret missing Mitchell. He may be better than Brunson, but the gap isn’t as big as it looked this summer, and the Knicks have retained maximum flexibility to improve elsewhere on the roster. The one major drawback for the Knicks is that by not trading for Mitchell, they opened themselves up to the possibility of having to play him. That worst-case outcome occurred immediately. If Mitchell has any bitterness towards Brunson or the team he thought he was going to play for, he will show it in this series.
3. Cleveland’s wing problem
Cleveland has two star guards in Mitchell and Darius Garland. It has two big stars in Mobley and Jarrett Allen. It’s just that pesky snack that’s been a problem for them all season. Isaac Okoro has largely been the starter of choice at that position. Caris LeVert closes regularly. Cedi Osman and Lamar Stevens also had their turn. There is no perfect balance. The Cavaliers would love someone who can at least make corner 3’s and defend wings credibly. Neither of their role players does both consistently.
Thankfully, the Knicks aren’t particularly dangerous on this front. They have a lineup of wing scorers ready to punish LeVert or Osman, and Cleveland should be able to score comfortably enough even in congested lanes. That makes this series a test drive for the Cavaliers. They are going to experiment with that lock. Okoro will likely be the first to succeed in defending Brunson, but don’t be surprised if several Cavaliers try their hand at that role.
Series choice
If Randle was 100%, this series would be a little more interesting. As it stands, the Cavaliers have the best offensive player in this series (Mitchell), the best defensive player in this series (Mobley), and statistical advantages in most categories. Expect the Cavaliers to advance to the second round in five or six games. Choose: Cavaliers in six