Category: NBA

Even with injuries to key players, the San Antonio Spurs have to feel good about themselves coming into tonight’s Game 3. They were able to steal Game 1 from the defending champs, a double OT classic that saw the Spurs eventually out-execute the Thunder down the stretch, and were tantalizingly close to coming back home to the Frost Bank Center with a 2-0 series lead. Even with the loss of Dylan Harper in the 3rd quarter and 21 more turnovers to go with the 21 giveaways from Game 1, it was still just a 2 point game in the early moments of the 4th. With both Harper and DeAaron Fox’s availability up in the air, the potentially undermanned Spurs will have to rely on the otherworldly brilliance of Victor Wembanyama, with the hope that the rocking San Antonio home crowd can give them that little extra bit of, “oomph,” that they might need to protect home court against the defending champs.

San Antonio Spurs (1-1) vs Oklahoma City Thunder (1-1)
May 22 2026 | 8:30 PM CT
Watch: NBC, Peacock | Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)
Line: San Antonio -1.5

Spurs Injuries: DeAaron Fox, ankle (day to day), Dylan Harper, leg (day to day)

Thunder Injuries: Jalen Williams, hamstring (day to day)

What to watch for

• With Fox yet to play in this series and Harper potentially sidelined, going forward the bulk of the ball handling duties may fall entirely on the shoulders of Stephon Castle. Castle was San Antonio’s leading scorer in Game 2, memorably throwing down arguably the best poster jam of the year for 2 of his 25 points, and has been his usual busy self on the defensive side of things, but his 20 combined turnovers in the two games is a real concern for the Spurs. It plays right into the hands of Oklahoma City, who’s hounding, handsy defense is arguably the best in the league at forcing turnovers and turning them into points on the other end. With the real possibility he will only have limited versions of Harper and Fox going forward, Mitch Johnson is going to need figure out how to help his do-it-all guard take better care of the basketball and cutdown on what have been dreadful turnover numbers for San Antonio in the early stages of this series (42 combined as a team between Games 1 and 2).
• Oklahoma City’s biggest adjustment from Game 1 to 2 defensively was sticking a big on Victor Wembanyama for as much of the game as possible. Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren handled the bulk of the Wemby assignment, with doses of Alex Caruso sprinkled in. Hartenstein, who played just 12 minutes in the Game 1 loss, played 27 minutes in Game 2 and spent all of them doing everything he could to contend with the extraterrestrial Frenchman. Wembanyama went from having 26 paint points in his dominant Game 1 performance to just 10 in the Game 2 loss, and while he still finished with a freak statline, Vic is still at his best and most demoralizing to opponents when he’s dominating around the rim. Getting him more paint touches tonight should be imperative.
• Only Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played more than 30 minutes for OKC in Game 2 (38 minutes), while 4 of San Antonio’s starters logged at least 35 minutes and a 5th (Harper) was probably well on his way. While it’s the norm for playoff rotations to be shortened the deeper a team advances, the oddity of the double OT game in Game 1 racked up some heavy mileage on San Antonio’s starters right from the outset of a physical series. Keldon Johnson has been the only Spur to play at least 20 minutes off the bench in both games so far in this series, compared to 3 for OKC in Game 1 and 4 in Game 2. With a game being played every other day in this series, player minutes and potentially heavy legs will be a big thing to monitor going forward.

If you’d like to, you may follow along with the game on our Twitter profile (@poundingtherock) or visit our Game Thread!

The New York Knicks scored 18 unanswered points on the way to a 109-93 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers as they took a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference final.

The score was tied at 53-53 when the Knicks pulled away at their Madison Square Garden home to take a 71-53 lead on the way to a ninth straight victory.

Josh Hart scored 26 points, including five three-pointers, for the home side as he racked up a career-high tally for a play-off game, while team-mate Jalen Brunson added 19 points and 14 assists.

The Knicks, who last reached the NBA Finals match in 1999 and have not been champions since 1973, also had Mikal Bridges scoring 19 points and Karl-Anthony Towns 18.

"We don't really care who gets the shine, the shots, the minutes, those kind of things - we're focused on winning," Hart said.

"I think everyone is willing to sacrifice their own personal agendas or performance for the betterment of the team. And when you have a group of guys that do that, sky's the limit."

Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points for the Cavaliers and James Harden contributed 18 for the visiting side, who went 2-0 down to the Detroit Pistons in the last round before emerging 4-3 series winners.

"This isn't our first time facing adversity," Mitchell said. "We've been to two game sevens, so being down 2-0, it's not the biggest challenge.

"It's right there. So let's go ahead and take advantage of it."

Games three and four will take place in Cleveland on Saturday and Monday.

The winners will play either the Oklahoma City Thunder or San Antonio Spurs, whose Western Conference final is tied at 1-1.

Although Tyrese Proctor finally got off the bench for Cleveland, it’s not looking good for the Cavaliers, who lost 109-93 to New York Thursday night.

Proctor played for just a minute but did not register in the box score. Still, he got to play in the Eastern Conference Finals, and not many people can say that.

On Friday, the epic series between Jared McCain’s Oklahoma City Thunder and Mason Plumlee’s San Antonio Spurs resumes.

• 4 takeaways: Knicks’ starting lineup delivers in big Game 2 win over Cavaliers
• Donovan Mitchell bluntly shuts down fatigue concerns after Cavs’ Game 2 loss
• Fans roast Cavs’ Dennis Schroder for wasting no time with 0-2 Instagram post
• Down 2-0, Donovan Mitchell has to rally his Cavaliers against the team he once worshipped
• Knicks cruise to Game 2 victory over Cavaliers for commanding Eastern Conference finals lead
• Despite 2-0 comeback vs. Pistons, the Cavs are cooked after MSG meltdown vs. Knicks
• Mitchell Robinson brutal Knicks free-throw shooting making him unplayable

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James Harden remains the face of postseason failure, shooting under 36 percent from the field (under 27 percent on 3-pointers) with more turnovers (six) than assists (five) through the first two games of the Eastern Conference finals.

Donovan Mitchell remains the face of a franchise that repeatedly fails to reach its potential, responding to Cleveland’s Game 1 collapse — in which he made one shot over the final 17 minutes — by scoring seven first-half points in Game 2.

He didn’t make his presence felt until the Cavs fell into a double-digit hole in the second half, also leaving Madison Square Garden with more turnovers (five) than assists (four) after two games.

The Cavaliers, who became one of the league’s top-rated offenses after trading for Harden in February, now head back to Cleveland with the sting of Thursday’s 109-93 loss, still seeking an offensive breakthrough against a Knicks defense that has now held opponents under 100 points on six occasions during their dominant postseason run.

Over the past 65 minutes of play — beginning with the fourth quarter of Game 1 — the Knicks have allowed only 116 points, having held Cleveland to 39 percent shooting in Game 2, including 26 percent (9-for-35) on 3-pointers.

During the Knicks’ nine-game winning streak, they have allowed an average of 98.8 points. And through 12 games, the Knicks have posted the second-best defensive NET rating in the postseason, barely behind the Victor Wembanyama-led Spurs.

“Our defense was pretty good, especially when you have the talent that they have and the All-Stars that they have and the shooting that they have,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “We just have to keep mixing up what we do. Our guys did a pretty good job of trying to pay attention and lock in on the details on the defensive end.”

Sharpshooter Sam Merrill is 3-for-15 from the perimeter. Max Strus, who averaged nearly 15 points while helping the Heat eliminate the Knicks in 2023, has 13 total points. Dennis Schröder, who shot 47.6 percent on 3-pointers against the Knicks in last year’s playoff series with the Pistons, has seven points on 3-for-14 shooting.

Even Cleveland’s talented bigs have been limited.

OG Anunoby has helped keep Jarrett Allen below his season average in both contests, while Evan Mobley — who initially caused issues for the Knicks by scoring 14 first-half points in Game 2 — was held scoreless and without a field goal attempt in the second half.

With 10:37 left in the third quarter, the score was tied. Then, the Knicks seized control with an 18-0 run, holding the Cavs without a point for more than five and a half minutes.

“We were able to get stops, run and get easy baskets,” Jalen Brunson said. “Our offense, the way we were able to play in transition, is definitely a credit to our defense.”

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani quietly attended the Knicks’ Game 2 win over the Cavaliers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night — paying face value for tickets near a section that boasted $700 seats.

Mamdani, who did not list his attendance on his public schedule, posted a smiling photo alongside Public Advocate Jumaane Williams inside the Garden with the caption “Knicks forever” — only after the team’s astonishing 109-93 Game 2 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals.

While the game was ongoing, a fan who paid roughly $700 for their ticket snapped a pic of Hizzoner sitting nearby, NY1 journalist Bernadette Hogan posted on X.

The socialist mayor paid for his ticket at “face value,” a City Hall spokesperson told Hogan. City Hall did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.

Outside the arena, many fans seemed far more interested in Knicks player Jalen Brunson than Mamdani — or his supposed “Curse of the Mambino,” which was blamed for the Mets’ brutal losing streak.

Before the Knicks’ wild Tuesday night comeback win, Voodoo King Michael Washington performed a spiritual cleanse to quell fans’ fears about the socialist’s sorcery.

But some young spectators didn’t have a clue who Mamdani is.

Kevin Taylor, 18, watched the game with his friends Kevin Burke, 19, and Kristian Charles, 17, in the outdoor viewing area at MSG.

“I feel great. Knicks are flowing, you know, they’re doing great,” Taylor told The Post. “If they make it to the finals, we’re gonna need a bigger TV though.”

“Mamdani? Who’s that?” Taylor said when asked about the mayor. “That’s the mayor!” Charles chimed in.

“Jalen Brunson is the mayor of New York right now,” Taylor responded.

Jailine Polanco, a 29-year-old esthetician and Mets fan, had a stronger reaction after learning Mamdani was in the arena.

“I didn’t know about the curse. But now it all makes sense. .. He needs to stay away from the Knicks, because they’ve been doing very good… Oh, he is here? 
Pack him up. 
I pack him up. Now,” Polanco said.

“He needs to worry about his city, not about Knicks basketball,” added her friend, Kristian Diaz.

New York Knicks (53-29, third in the Eastern Conference) vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (52-30, fourth in the Eastern Conference)

Cleveland; Saturday, 8 p.m. EDT

LINE: Cavaliers -2.5; over/under is 213.5

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: Knicks lead series 2-0

BOTTOM LINE: The New York Knicks visit the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals with a 2-0 lead in the series. The Knicks won the last matchup 109-93 on Friday, led by 26 points from Josh Hart. Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 26.

The Cavaliers are 33-19 in conference games. Cleveland is eighth in the league with 28.3 assists per game led by James Harden averaging 8.0.

The Knicks are 35-17 in conference games. New York is fifth in the Eastern Conference scoring 116.5 points per game and is shooting 47.8%.

The 119.5 points per game the Cavaliers average are 9.4 more points than the Knicks allow (110.1). The Knicks average 116.5 points per game, 1.1 more than the 115.4 the Cavaliers allow to opponents.

TOP PERFORMERS: Evan Mobley is scoring 18.2 points per game and averaging 9.0 rebounds for the Cavaliers. Mitchell is averaging 27.4 points and 5.1 rebounds over the last 10 games.

Jalen Brunson is averaging 26 points and 6.8 assists for the Knicks. OG Anunoby is averaging 16.6 points and 5.3 rebounds over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cavaliers: 5-5, averaging 107.3 points, 41.7 rebounds, 22.0 assists, 7.6 steals and 5.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.8 points per game.

Knicks: 9-1, averaging 120.9 points, 44.2 rebounds, 27.0 assists, 8.8 steals and 4.3 blocks per game while shooting 52.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 99.8 points.

INJURIES: Cavaliers: None listed.

Knicks: None listed.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

NEW YORK — The New York Knicks are now two victories away from reaching their first NBA Finals in 27 years.

The Knicks handled the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday, May 21 in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals, 109-93, and they unlocked a different way to win: it was role players who carried the day.

All five New York starters hit double-figures in scoring, with Josh Hart, who had struggled earlier this postseason, scoring a team-high 26 points. Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges each scored 19, with Brunson notching a playoff career-high 14 assists. Karl-Anthony Towns added 18.

Here are takeaways from Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals:

At the moment, one must search for areas of concern for the Knicks.

But there is one glaring issue.

Mitchell Robinson, who went 0-for-4 from the free-throw line, was again neutered by Hack-a-Mitch during the Knicks’ 109-93 Game 2 win over the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

Across the first two games of the series, Robinson is a combined 2-for-12 from the free-throw line.

For the whole postseason, he is 13-for-41.

That’s just not tenable.

It is making Robinson, who can be extremely impactful, almost unplayable.

He logged just 13 minutes Thursday — and only three minutes in the second half.

He played 14 minutes in Game 1.

Even playing him at the starts of quarters, when the Cavs can’t do Hack-a-Mitch unless they want to play a significant portion of the quarter in the penalty, isn’t a solution.

Anytime Robinson attempts a putback or a dunk — particularly on lobs — the Cavs just foul him and send him to the line.

Before Friday’s game, Robinson said he plans to reveal a whole new version of himself.

“Last post before I delete this app,” Robinson wrote on Facebook on Thursday afternoon. “I finally have changed my [phone] number for many reason [sic]…as I fight through and keep fighting in this playoffs run my focus have to go to another level. This is the start of a new chapter in my life. Love and will miss y’all…. Mitch out.” The new chapter so far contains the same old problem.

Coach Mike Brown again raved about Jose Alvarado’s leadership on the bench.

“We actually pointed it out to our group in practice,” Brown said. “You watch the film, he’s uplifting the entire team when he’s on the bench. He’s always talking in a positive way. He’s showing our young guys that you can impact the game if you’re present, because Jose’s always present.“You’re using your voice and your energy, guys feel that on the floor. Jose’s been phenomenal.”

Tuesday was ESPN’s most-watched Eastern Conference finals Game 1 since 2018, the network announced.

It had an average audience of 7.1 million viewers and peaked at 8.9 million viewers.

Jalen Brunson refused to let the Knicks lose Tuesday, almost single-handedly delivering a franchise playoff-record 22-point fourth-quarter comeback. 

Two days later, the Cavaliers forced the ball out of his hands, so he adjusted. Instead of pouring in another 30-point performance, he distributed a playoff career-high 14 assists, as the Knicks took a commanding 2-0 series lead in the Eastern Conference finals. 

“It just shows that he plays the right way,” Mikal Bridges said after the Knicks’ thorough 109-93 victory at a rocking Garden. “If you’re not going to send a double-team, I think it’s an advantage for him. If you send a double-team, he’s going to read and react and find the open guy. Ever since I’ve known him, he plays the right way. 

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST NBA STANDINGS AND KNICKS STATS

“Kudos to him, how he works, and his understanding of the game. If you’re going to come [double-team him], he’s going to make you pay and that’s what makes him great.” 

Brunson only scored two points in the first quarter and finished with 19. It equaled his second-lowest point total of the postseason. He was still impactful in creating for his teammates, getting the ball to the right man in the right spots. 

“They were sending two to the ball, and I was able to find my teammates and we were knocking shots down,” Brunson said. “Just trying to create an advantage and trusting them and having them make a play.” 

Added coach Mike Brown: “They’re sending double-teams at him, and he had 14 assists. He did what he’s supposed to do.” 

Perhaps the best example was Josh Hart, his former Villanova teammate and close friend. Hart was benched at the end of Game 1 and struggled early in Game 2. Brunson kept finding him, and on one fast break set him up for a dunk when he could’ve gone in for a layup. It was a way to boost Hart’s confidence on his way to a team-high 26 points. 

“I’m really not trying to look for him. He just happens to be open. So I give him the ball,” Brunson joked before turning serious. “I have the utmost confidence in him, watching the things he does after practice, his routine and everything. He works hard. I know we joke around a lot, but he does work hard.”

Looking at the box score of the Knicks’ Game 1 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday, it would appear Josh Hart had a bad game. 

Not only did he shoot below 50 percent from the field and 20 percent from downtown, Hart had two turnovers, played just 31 minutes of a game that went to OT, and had a plus/minus rating of -23, meaning when he was on the court, New York was outscored by 23 points.

In Thursday’s Game 2, Hart, on the surface, played much better. He scored 26 points, including going 5-for-11 from three-point range, with seven assists and four rebounds and added two steals to one turnover. His plus/minus rating was +18.

It’s true that Hart definitely had a better game on Thursday than he did on Tuesday, but he doesn’t necessarily believe he had a bad game in Game 1.

“I’m never a huge analytics guy,” he said on Thursday night. “At a certain point, they’re a lamp post to a drunk person – you can lean on them but it won’t get you home. At a certain point, you gotta have a good feel for the game.”

While Hart’s analogy, which drew incredulous laughter by not only reporters but Karl-Anthony Towns, who was sitting right next to him, is certainly interesting, head coach Mike Brown agrees with the sentiment that Hart is more than just his stat sheet.

“He does so many little things that don’t show up on the box score,” Brown said. “I mean obviously, he shot well tonight, he scored 26 points, he had seven assists, one turnover, but he does so much more.”

To truly appreciate Hart’s impact on the game, one must look past just his stats and actually watch what Hart does on the court.

Sometimes that means simply defending the other team’s biggest player. Maybe it’s a recovered loose ball at a pivotal moment in the game that completely shifts the momentum, or perhaps it’s just something he says to his teammates in the huddle.

Whatever Hart does, Brown notices and doesn’t take it for granted. Brown even compared Hart to another player he coached while he was with the Golden State Warriors: Andre Iguodala.

“They’re different players, but they’re similar players because Andre is edgy too,” Brown said. “And Andre is a hell of a player and he does so many little things that if you’re not careful, you won’t appreciate them. It’s the same with Josh.”

Iguodala spent 19 seasons in the NBA, but other than a few really good seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers in the mid-2000s, his numbers never exactly jumped off the page.

During the Warriors’ dynasty in the mid-2010s, Iguodala hardly ever started, yet he impacted the game so much that he actually won NBA Finals MVP in 2014-15 while averaging just 10.4 points per game during the playoffs.

Thursday’s offensive output notwithstanding, Hart is very similar for the Knicks, which is exactly why he has earned Brown’s benefit of the doubt.

“Because he’s so impactful as a connector, I gotta give him probably more leash than anybody else,” Brown said. “I gotta let him go be him and get out of his way. 

“And that’s hard sometimes as a coach because you’re looking at X’s and O’s and you want everything to be perfect and you’re looking at the box score and you’re looking at this and with Josh and with Andre, all that s— should be thrown out the window because those dudes are winners.”

Hart appreciated the high praise and comparison to a potential Hall of Famer, but his focus continues to be solely on winning.

“Iggy was a hell of a player, I don’t know if I’m at that level, but I just try and go out there and play my game,” Hart said.

The NBA Draft is getting closer, and the mixed signals are flying right and left, and it’s hard to know for sure what the Utah Jazz might do at #2. Everything obviously depends on what the Washington Wizards do at #1. The odds makers at FanDuel have the Wizards at -320 to take AJ Dybantsa with the first pick, +280 to pick Darryn Peterson with the second pick, and Cameron Boozer at +1200. If you believe those odds, then it’s clear that the Wizards are looking to take Dybantsa, but do the latest mocks have him going there? And who will the Jazz take if AJ Dybantsa isn’t on the board?

We’ve seen a lot of intel that the Jazz are high on Darryn Peterson, but we’ve also seen reports that they’re considering Cam Boozer as well. With so many different reports out there, it’s hard to know what’s real and what’s posturing from the different GMs. Let’s take a look at the most prominent mock drafts and who they have the Jazz taking.

It appears that there is a little bit of a consensus on the top-4 picks. Normally, it seems like there’s at least some sort of deviation, but not here, not this season. This is probably what happens on draft night, but you never know when one GM makes some sort of surprise move. Maybe an individual workout goes badly, or maybe an unforeseen problem arises during a team interview. Barring anything crazy like that, it looks like Darryn Peterson is going to be on the Utah Jazz come June.

It’s an incredible win for the Utah Jazz to come out of this draft with a tier-1 prospect like Darryn Peterson. He’s considered by many to be the most talented prospect in the draft, and somehow he’s going to the Jazz at #2. In most drafts, getting the second pick can be a devastating thing. It can be the first loser of the draft type of feeling. For Utah, not this time. Darryn Peterson has the talent to be the type of offensive talent that can lead a team all the way to the Championship. On top of that, he’s joining a team that was already good enough to make the playoffs next season. It has taken time for Jazz prospects to join the starting lineup, but Peterson is so talented that it’ll be hard to justify not starting him.

It’s time to get excited, Jazz fans. This has literally never happened before, and the upcoming season looks like the beginning of a chapter with real championship potential.

After the monster game Jalen Brunson had in the Knicks' improbable comeback win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cavaliers knew they had to change their game plan. 

Instead of letting Brunson do his thing and shutting down the other scorers, Cleveland focused their energy and defense on stopping the Knicks captain. That, however, also didn't work as Brunson dished a playoff career-high 14 assists in the Knicks' 109-93 Game 2 victory on Thursday night. 

"That’s what great players do. They read the game and the game dictated that," Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson told reporters after the game. "Obviously, we were loaded up more toward him and he found other guys. We gotta find that balance. But 14 assists, credit to him. [We] took away some of the scoring options, blitzed him, gave him different looks. He made the right reads, right plays."

"As an MVP candidate, Jalen Brunson's job is to make the game easier for his teammates," Mike Brown said. "That's what he did."

Brunson scored two points on just 1 of 3 shooting in the first quarter, deferring to Karl-Anthony Towns (seven points) in the opening frame. The second quarter was more of the same, dishing three assists as Josh Hart and OG Anunoby scored a combined 15 points while Brunson went scoreless in the quarter on 0-for-3 shooting.

While Brunson's scoring increased in the second half (17 points on 6 of 10 shooting), he made nine assists in the third and fourth quarters.

"They were presenting two to the ball and I was able to find my teammates and they were knocking shots down," Brunson said after the game. "Just trying to create an advantage by putting two on the ball and trusting them and having them make the play."

And Brunson's teammates rewarded that trust. Hart went for a team-high, and playoff career-high, 26 points, while Towns (18), Anunoby (14) and Mikal Bridges (19) all scored in double-figures to help give the Knicks a 2-0 series lead. 

"He had a huge offensive game the last game, so we knew they would come in with a different game plan," Hart said of Brunson's game. "That shows the confidence he has in us and the depth of team we have… We can win a game with him scoring 10, 12 points but having 14 assists, getting guys involved. Shows the character of the team, character of him. Shows we can win games in different ways."

"Just shows that he plays the right way. If you’re not going to send the double team, it’s an advantage for him. If you send the double team, he will read and react and find the open guy," Bridges said. "He plays the right way. Ever since I known him, he plays the right way… If you’re going to keep helping off, he’s going to make you pay and that’s what makes him great."

Game 2 gave another example of how this Knicks team has been able to adapt to any team and any scenario. It feels like forever ago that the Knicks were down 2-1 in their first-round series with the Hawks before the team started running the offense through Towns. That continued during the four-game sweep of the 76ers, and after that strategy didn't work on Cleveland in Game 1, Brunson took over to steal the victory.

And now, Brunson was the facilitator.

"It’s an advantage for us. Learning how to play differently," Brunson said of the Knicks' ability to be versatile. "There will be times where one game plan will be different from the next. Being able to adjust and adjust on the fly is something we need to continue to get better at. We just have to continue to be open to figure out how we can win the next game."

What will the Knicks do in Game 3? Whatever it is, the Cavaliers will have their hands full trying to prepare for multiple looks from Brunson and the Knicks.

NEW YORK — The Cleveland Cavaliers have a Jalen Brunson problem. As well as a James Harden problem. Plus a shooting problem. And a bench problem.

Problems like those, no matter how much coaches can sugarcoat it, can’t exactly be solved overnight, and Cleveland heads home to the shores of Lake Erie down 2-0 in the Eastern Conference finals, and they are two more dreadful performances from enjoying the early vacation spot south of the border reserved for teams that don’t meet their season’s goals.

Thursday night’s performance at Madison Square Garden, a 109-93 loss, was much more than a Game 1 hangover. With the rabid crowd screaming “Knicks in 4” as the fourth-quarter seconds wound down, New York is just two victories away from its first NBA Finals appearance since 1999, when they lost in five games to the San Antonio Spurs. The Knicks' most recent championship banner is from 1973, and breaking that five-decade drought is more realistic than ever, barring a total collapse in the next week.

New York has now won nine straight playoff games. When the Boston Celtics won the 2024 title, they won 10 consecutive postseason games.

Send in your questions now for this week’s episode of The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast to discuss everything Pistons. Submit your question to the comments section here or on X/Twitter to @TheRealWesD3 and/or @blakesilverman.

Join us live on Sunday morning for the show where we’ll recap the Pistons’ series with the Cavaliers and look back at the season as a whole. What needed to change for the Pistons to win Game 7? How different are you expecting the team to look next season? Who is locked down as a part of the core for the long haul?

Plus, The Pindown has a phone line where you can leave a message and hear your voice on the show. Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message around 45 seconds or less so we can fit everyone into the show.

The podcast will be uploaded to all audio platforms the following morning.

The Pindown: A Detroit Pistons Podcast Vitals:

When: Sunday May 24 at 10:30 a.m. ET

Where: Detroit Bad Boys YouTube Channel

How to submit questions:

• Detroit Bad Boys Website: Comment section of the weekly Pindown episode articles.
• Call (313) 355-2717 and leave us a voicemail with your question. Please try to keep the message to 45 seconds or less.
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As always, leave any questions or topics you want to be discussed in the comment section below.