The Cleveland Cavaliers are going home while the New York Knicks take the trophy for the Eastern Conference Finals. They now eagerly wait to find out who the WCF winner will be.
The red-hot New York Knicks didn’t slow down but for a moment in their Eastern Conference Finals sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers. They’ve now won 11 in a row after falling down 2-1 in the first round, and they’re generally blowing their opponents out.
Save for a brief blip in the first three quarters of the first game against the Cavs, the Knicks have been playing like the best team in the sport. There’s a sense that whoever comes out of the West will win the Finals, but the Knicks are already there, and they look ready for whatever challenge awaits.
It’s been over 25 years since the New York Knicks won the Eastern Conference. Try as they might, as one of the biggest markets in the entire NBA, they’ve largely floundered in that time. They had a resurgence that began a few years ago, but they still couldn’t ever make the leap from playoff team to title contender.
Then, they suddenly turned into a historic team. They have rolled through everyone since the Atlanta Hawks won two of the first three games in the opening round. They were the number three seed in the East, but the top two seeds, the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons, were upset before they could face the Knicks.
Regardless of the perceived lesser competition, the Knicks have been dominant. They had eight days between games after sweeping the Philadelphia 76ers and facing the Cavaliers in Game 1. Now, they’ll be off once again until June 3. They will be much more rested than either the San Antonio Spurs or Oklahoma City Thunder, no matter how long the currently tied series goes.
The Knicks fell down by 22 in the fourth quarter in Game 1, but they turned it on after that. They outscored the Cavs 44-11 in the final eight minutes and overtime. Then, they won by an average of 22 points, with the final clincher being a 37-point blowout.
Jalen Brunson has been the best player in the Eastern Conference playoffs, but he didn’t have to do much heavy lifting on Monday night. In a 37-point win, he only scored 15 points with five assists. He wasn’t the leading scorer, but he was unanimously voted ECF MVP.
This came years after the Knicks were laughed at for overpaying for Brunson. “The belief the organization has in me has been amazing,” Brunson said. “Something I don’t take for granted. It’s something not a lot of people get the opportunity to do. It’s an honor to be here, in this city with my teammates. These guys have my back.”
As for the team, it’s a monumental moment, and it’s big for the city, too. “It’s a magical thing, it’s a historic thing. It’s something New York has been dying for, for a long time,” Karl-Anthony Towns said. “I know how this team works. It’s OK for New York, the fans, us, our families, to enjoy this moment and be jubilant about this.”
But the job isn’t finished. They have to beat a team that won 60+ games and will be incredibly battle-tested out of the West. The Spurs and Thunder are playing each other, the two best teams by record in the NBA, and making each other stronger for whoever faces New York in the NBA Finals.
