Category: Basketball

The three-pointer was falling for the Celtics and the Knicks could not respond in their 115-93 Game 3 loss on Saturday afternoon at MSG.

Boston shot 48 percent from the field and 50 percent (20-for-40) from three, while New York shot 40 percent and 20 percent (5-for-25) from three.

Here are the takeaways...

-Celtics entered Game 3 hitting 25-of-100 of their threes, so of course they would hit their first three three-point attempts. But Boston also made it a point to go to the rim -- six of their first nine shots were from two -- especially Jayson Tatum who only shot one three in the first six minutes of the game. On the other side, the Knicks looked tight and were a bit unlucky. Their shots didn't have conviction behind them, and when they did get some open shots, they would rim out. They started just 2-for-11 (1-for-5 from three) before head coach Tom Thibodeau called a timeout.

The Celtics would continue to hit their shots and take advantage of Knicks misses -- and a little bit of hack-a-Mitch to build their lead to 15 points. Payton Pritchard would hit a fadeaway jumper as the clock expired to put the Celtics up 36-20 after one quarter. Boston shot 58 percent (11-for-19) from the field, including 6-of-7 from three in the first. That, plus the Knicks shooting just 35 percent (8-for-23), including 1-for-7 from three, was the difference. What helped the Knicks sort of stay in the game was the offensive glass, which Mitchell Robinson had two of the team's five in that opening frame.

However, Robinson and Karl-Anthony Towns picked up two first-quarter fouls, which limited the forward's play. KAT and Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with six points each. With KAT on the bench and Robinson out to limit the intentional fouls, Precious Achiuwa played three minutes and picked up four points.

-The second quarter was more of the same. The Celtics kept making their threes, and played incredible defense, denying Knicks cutters to the basket just about every chance they had. Boston had their lead reach 25 points at one point, but a burst from the Knicks cut the deficit to 17 and got the MSG crowd back into it. But Tatum and the rest of the sharpshooters on the Celtics silenced them with threes to keep their lead hovering around the 20-point mark.

Heading into the half, the Celtics were shooting 55 percent (24-for-44), including 12-for-19 from three. They also had three steals and four blocks. Jaylen Brown and Tatum led the scoring for Boston with 17 and 14 points, respectively.

For the Knicks, they shot just 40 percent (17-for-43), including 2-for-12 from three. KAT (13) and Brunson (12) led the scoring for New York who were outrebounded, 24-19, at halftime.

-The Celtics would come out of the break and build a game-high 31-point lead before an 8-0 run by the Knicks gave The Garden crowd something to cheer for. But whenever it felt like New York would shift the momentum, a Derrick White three or an and-one from Tatum would stop the push. Sloppy turnovers and poor transition defense allowed Boston to keep a stranglehold on this game.

-The Knicks would get the three-point shot to fall early in the fourth. Two from Brunson and one from Miles McBride cut the Celtics' lead to 20 points before Boston called a timeout. The Knicks' offense would struggle from then on as the Celtics continued to grind New York's defense with easy shots and back-breaking threes.

Thibodeau would pull his starters with three minutes remaining with the Celtics up 23 points. The Celtics were up by 20-plus since two minutes left in the second quarter until the starters were all benched.

-OG Anunoby had a disappointing game, scoring just two points on 1-for-6 shooting. He only had two rebounds and one assist. Brunson led the team with 27 points on 9-for-19 shooting, but turned the ball over four times -- clearly trying too hard to get the offense going.

Josh Hart finished with 10 points while KAT had 21 and Mikal Bridges added 12 to round out the starters' scoring.

On the other side, Pritchard led the Celtics with 23 points while Tatum (22), Brown (19), Al Horford (15), Jrue Holiday (8) and White (17) accounted for the starters' scoring.

Kristaps Porzingis, who has been dealing with aftereffects from a viral infection, played 19 minutes and scored five points.

Game MVP: Payton Pritchard

The Sixth Man of the Year really took it to the Knicks on Saturday. Whenever the Knicks had a run, Pritchard would hit a three or make a great defensive play.

Highlights

Jalen Brunson with the TOUGH fadeaway 😤

(via @NBA) pic.twitter.com/Eewg2oNtPF

— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) May 10, 2025

What's next

Game 4 between the Knicks and Celtics will take place Monday night at 7:30 p.m. at The Garden.

What we learned as Warriors waste Jimmy Butler's 33 points in brutal Game 3 loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

• BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO – Jimmy Butler and Jonathan Kuminga’s valiant efforts weren’t enough for a Warriors’ Game 3 victory Saturday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves, losing 102-97 at Chase Center. 

The Warriors now have lost two consecutive games without an injured Steph Curry, falling in a two-games-to-one hole in the Western Conference semifinals.

Butler played the role of a superstar, and Kuminga was nothing short of sensational. The two combined to score 63 of the Warriors’ 97 points. Butler scored 33 on 12-of-26 shooting, his most since Game 1 of the 2023 Eastern Conference semifinals, and also had seven rebounds and seven assists. Kuminga exploded off the bench for 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting. 

He was the only Warrior with a positive plus/minus, finishing as a plus-5, and this was his first 30-point game since the calendar turned to 2025. 

The team that revolutionized the three forgot about that part of the court without the greatest 3-point shooter ever. As the Warriors held a two-point lead at halftime, they had yet to make a single three for the second time ever in the first half of a game under Kerr. They became the first team to have a halftime lead in a playoff game without making any threes since the Cleveland Cavaliers did so against the Toronto Raptors in 2017. 

As a team, the Warriors were 0 of 5 beyond the arc, marking the fourth time this season that a team went into halftime without any threes. Their five 3-point attempts were the fewest by any team this season, and this was the first game in which the Warriors didn’t have a three through the first two quarters since Jan. 6, 2020 – 476 games ago. 

After going 0 of 5 in the first half, the Warriors went 10 of 18 in the second half.

Brandin Podziemski continued to struggle shooting, scoring only five points on 1-of-10 shooting. In three games this series, he has scored 19 points, and is 3 of 13 from long distance.

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ Game 3 loss.

Playing Through Jimmy

The game plan was obvious going into Game 3, it became even more clear right from the jump: Give the ball to Butler. 

Without Steph Curry, the offense completely changes and runs through his co-star. Butler repeatedly has said he isn’t a volume shooter and isn’t going to force his way to big scoring nights. He also understood the assignment Saturday night in front of the home fans. 

Butler totaled 13 shots in Thursday’s Game 2 loss for 17 points. He then took seven in the first quarter of Game 3, going 5 of 7 for 11 of the Warriors’ 21 points. By halftime, Butler had taken as many shots as he did all last game (13) and his 18 points were one more than he finished two nights ago. 

The second half was no different. Butler, through three quarters, was up to 28 points, his most this postseason. He added five more points in the fourth, but that wasn’t enough.

It didn’t matter who was in front of Butler. Rudy Gobert, Naz Reid, Julius Randle and more. He bodied every defender in his way. Anthony Edwards, welcome to the spin zone. 

More Good Kuminga Minutes 

Perhaps the main positive to Steve Kerr’s experimental minutes in Game 2 was Kuminga finding a rhythm offensively. He played 26 minutes, made his first eight shots and had a team-high 18 points off the bench. Kuminga, after the gam,e said he found his confidence again in the loss. 

That’s how he played from the moment he stepped on the floor in Game 3. Kuminga put on a two-way athletic display, looking like the type of player the Warriors envisioned handing the keys to when they drafted him No. 7 overall. This blocked shot that led to an And-1 on the other side is just one example. 

Kuminga followed Butler’s lead, attacking the Timberwolves frontcourt, but hitting a speed his veteran doesn’t have. Kuminga in the first half had 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, four rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots. He and Butler combined to score 30 of the Warriors’ 42 points going into halftime.

After tying his playoff career high of 18 points last game, Kuminga went into the fourth quarter Saturday with 20 points and was a game-high plus-14 at the time. Kuminga scored another 10 points in the fourth quarter, giving him his most points since Dec. 28, 2024.

Draymond’s Dud

What looked like an obvious charge halfway through the third quarter spelled disaster for the Warriors. They challenged the call, but lost and Draymond Green was given his fourth foul. Immediately, the Timberwolves took advantage of his absence. 

Their next six made shots were all at the rim. Without Green, the Timberwolves drove with ease. Green didn’t give the Warriors much in the box score. His value also couldn’t have been more clear. 

Then in the fourth quarter, Green and the Warriors again were on the wrong side of a challenge. Timberwolves coach Chris Finch challenged a foul call on Julius Randle, and upon review, Green was called for an offensive foul for grabbing Randle’s jersey. Not even 20 seconds later, Green was called for a foul contesting a dunk attempt, his sixth of the night. The Warriors were down 84-82 when he fouled out at the 4:38 mark of the fourth quarter.

Jaden McDaniels’ two free throws made it 86-82. The Warriors were outscored 16-15 the rest of the game. In 29 minutes, Green’s final line was two points, two rebounds, four assists, two steals, five turnovers and six fouls. It was a night to forget for the four-time champion.

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Mazzulla sums up C's mentality with epic quote after Game 3 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla may have given his team its mantra for the remainder of its 2025 postseason run.

The C’s bounced back from their two devastating losses to the New York Knicks with a lopsided victory in Game 3, 115-93. After the win, Mazzulla couldn’t help but grin as he addressed the adversity his team is facing after falling into a 2-0 series hole.

“I’ve said it a thousand times, there’s no one way that it’s supposed to go,” Mazzulla said. “There’s no expectations. We’re on a path of trying to go after greatness. You don’t get to dictate the test that’s in front of you. …

“This is the fun part. You don’t get into the journey for it to be easy. It’s been dark, but in a good way. You just gotta tap into your darkness. That’s it. You just gotta do it.”

Tap into your darkness. Add that to the long list of memorable Mazzulla quotes from the last three seasons.

It’s the right mentality for a championship team that hasn’t faced much adversity since the start of the 2023-24 campaign. After a historic regular season, the Celtics steamrolled their opponents en route to an NBA title. This Knicks series is the first time they’ve had their backs against the wall since the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals, when they forced Game 7 after going down 3-0 against the Miami Heat but couldn’t complete the comeback.

While no NBA team has ever come back from 3-0, there have been 34 teams to dig out of a 2-0 hole in a best-of-seven series. If the Celtics continue to shoot the way they did in Game 3 (20-for-40 from 3-point range), they will be well on their way to joining that group.

Boston will look to even the series Monday night at Madison Square Garden. Tip-off for Game 4 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.

Pritchard, C's role players outclass Knicks' supporting cast in Game 3 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

In Saturday’s Game 3 at Madison Square Garden, Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard showed a national audience why he won the 2025 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award in a landslide.

Pritchard propelled the C’s to a 115-93 victory with a team-high — and a playoff career-high — 23 points off the bench. According to Celtics stats guru Dick Lipe, that marks the most points scored by a Boston non-starter in a road playoff game since Kevin McHale against Detroit in 1991.

He helped the Celtics overcome their recent 3-point shooting woes by making five of his 10 attempts from beyond the arc. Boston finished 20-for-40 from deep after shooting 25-for-100 across Games 1 and 2.

“We just had to come out and every possession, we had to win every one of them. If it’s a loose ball, we gotta win it. If it’s a rebound, we gotta win it,” Pritchard told NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin after the win.

“I knew the shots would eventually fall. We took care of it today, but focus on Monday now.”

Pritchard’s performance headlined a huge day for the Celtics’ supporting cast. C’s players not named Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 74 points while Knicks role players (not Jalen Brunson or Karl-Anthony Towns) totaled only 45 points.

Derrick White and Al Horford added 17 and 15 points, respectively. They shot a combined 6-for-10 from 3-point range.

Although the 3-pointers jump off the page, Pritchard identified the Celtics’ ball security as the reason for their bounce-back win. They had only eight turnovers after recording 16 in Game 2 and 13 in Game 1.

But most importantly, they kept their foot on the gas after blowing consecutive 20-point leads.

“Just our intensity. It didn’t feel like we had as many bad turnovers,” Pritchard told Chin. “Took care of the rock. And then we controlled the end of quarters, didn’t give them any momentum plays, so that’s a big factor.”

The Celtics, trailing the series 2-1, still have their work cut out for them with Game 4 set to be played in front of the raucous Madison Square Garden crowd on Monday. Pritchard is embracing the challenge.

“You wouldn’t want to be in any other position as a competitor,” he told reporters. “This is the best moment you can be in, down 2-0, backs against the wall. You just bring it.”

Tip-off for Monday’s Game 4 is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.

Tatum passes Kobe with impressive milestone in Game 3 rout of Knicks originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Jayson Tatum bounced back in a big way Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden.

Tatum brought his A-game to New York, racking up 22 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and two steals to power the Boston Celtics’ 115-93 rout of the Knicks in Game 3 of their second-round series. And to top it all off, the 27-year-old surpassed his childhood idol in the NBA record books.

Tatum now has 2,892 career points in the playoffs, moving him past Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant for the second-most playoff points all-time by a player age 27 or younger. Only LeBron James (3,275) scored more before his 28th birthday.

It’s a fitting milestone for Tatum, who idolized Bryant growing up and has called the late Hall of Famer his “hero.” But Tatum has broken plenty of his role model’s records in recent years; the Celtics star surpassed Kobe for the most playoff points for a player age 26 or younger during the 2024 NBA Finals.

Tatum received his fair share of criticism after Boston’s Game 1 and 2 losses to the Knicks, during which he shot 28.6 percent from the floor and 25 percent (5 for 20) from 3-point range. But Tatum set the tone from the jump in Game 3, hitting four 3-pointers in the first half alone and finishing 5 for 9 from deep while making his impact felt on both ends in the blowout win.

Tatum just played in his 120th postseason game, tied with Magic Johnson for the fourth-most in NBA history for a player age 27 or younger. He’s reached the playoffs in all eight of his NBA seasons and already won 15 of 22 possible series, including an NBA championship in 2024.

His body of work in both the regular season and the playoffs is undeniable, as evidenced by the milestones he reached prior to his 27th birthday in March:

Moving past Bryant is another feather in Tatum’s cap, but his focus will be on the present, as the Celtics still trail the Knicks 2-1 in this series ahead of Game 4 at MSG on Monday night. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. ET, and NBC Sports Boston’s coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. ET with Celtics Pregame Live.

Heat president Riley won't apologize for Butler contract situation originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Pat Riley doesn’t seem to have many regrets about how Jimmy Butler’s Miami Heat tenure ended.

The Heat president addressed the media for the first time since Miami’s 2024-25 NBA season ended after it was swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs, and admitted the team’s tumultuous contract dispute with Butler, which involved multiple suspensions before the star forward eventfully was traded to the Warriors on Feb. 5, negatively impacted the team.

“There’s no doubt that what happened with Jimmy had a tremendous impact on our team,” Riley told reporters. “There’s no doubt about it. The buck stops with me. I’ll take that hit if you want it.”

Butler’s relationship with the Heat soured after Riley refused to give the 35-year-old the contract extension he desired, a decision Riley stands by to this day.

“No, I’m not going to apologize for saying no on the contract extension when we didn’t have to,” Riley said. “And I don’t think I should. I will always say that to the players, if I was coaching, ‘Keep your mouth shut, and I’ll see you next training camp.’ And you get back on the court.”

Before Butler was dealt to Golden State, his remaining contract with the Heat included a $52.4-million player option for the 2025-26 campaign, with no guarantees past next season. Butler immediately signed a two-year, $121 million contract extension with the Warriors, keeping him under contract through the 2026-27 season.

Even though the Heat and the Warriors’ seasons went in completely different directions after the blockbuster trade, with Golden State having immediate success with Butler, Riley wishes the six-time All-Star well, even if the feeling might not be mutual.

“It’s over. It’s done. I wish him well,” Riley added. “Good luck to him and I hope deep down in his heart somewhere, he wishes us well too.”

After defeating the young Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, the Warriors, who currently are without Steph Curry (hamstring strain) in their Western Conference semifinal series against the Minnesota Timberwolves, are relying on Butler now more than ever.

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The Denver Nuggets pulled away in overtime to take a 2-1 lead in thebest-of-sevenNBA play-offsemi-finalagainst the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Thunder are the top seed in the Western Conference and were narrowly in front for most of the contest before hosts Denver claimed a 113-104 win

There were no more than three points between the teams throughout the fourth quarter until the Thunder edged into a 102-99 lead inside the final two minutes.

Aaron Gordon's three-pointer with 27 seconds remaining took the game into overtime, when the Nuggets' experience told as the 2023 champions went on an 11-2 run in the additional five minutes.

Jamal Murray led fourth seed Denver with 27 points while Gordon added 22 and Michael Porter Jr 21.

"They tested us all night but it was a good team win," said Murray.

"We've been together for years so we knew what we had. We believe in each other and we're going to need more of it."

Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic missed 17 of his 25 shots for Denver - who also host game four on Sunday - but claimed 20 points and 16 rebounds.

Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the favourite for this season's MVP award, missed 15 of 22 to finish with 18 points, while Jalen Williams led Oklahoma City with 32.

Top seed Cleveland pull a game back

In the Eastern Conference semi-finals, the Cleveland Cavaliers' best-of-seven series with the Indiana Pacers is also 2-1 after the Cavs pulled a game back.

After losing the first two games at home, top seed Cleveland bounced back with Donovan Mitchell scoring 43 points in a 126-104 win in Indianapolis.

The Cavs outscored Indiana 34-13 in the second quarter to open up a 66-45 lead at half-time, and they stayed clear to give themselves a chance to tie the series in Indianapolis on Sunday.

Max Strus added 20 points for Cleveland while Jarrett Allen claimed 19 points and 12 rebounds.

Reigning Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley added 18 points and 13 rebounds after missing game two with an ankle problem.

"Down 2-0, it's kind of now or never," said Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson. "They showed a lot of fortitude."

Indiana's Bennedict Mathurin scored 23 points off the bench while Pascal Siakam added 18.

Pacers key man Tyrese Haliburton was limited to just four points as he was two-of-eight shooting.

"Haliburton had a rough game," said Rick Carlisle, coach of the fourth-seeded Pacers.

"I have to do more to get him in better positions to have better shots."

• NBA play-off scores & fixtures

• Second Knicks comeback leaves Celtics hanging on

Why Steve Kerr believes Draymond Green will be ready for Game 3 after incident originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Draymond Green dealt with a lot during the Warriors’ Game 2 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night at Target Center.

After picking up a technical foul in the first half and facing racist taunts from a fan during the fourth quarter, Green issued a short, impassioned statement to a few media members in the locker room before leaving.

But with an important Game 3 set for Saturday night at Chase Center, Warriors coach Steve Kerr is confident the 35-year-old forward will be fine when the players take the court.

“I don’t think it will impact the game,” Kerr told reporters on a conference call Friday afternoon. “I wasn’t aware of what happened, in terms of the fan, like the insults, until I read about it this morning. I talked to him about that and we did talk about the technical counts and just the whole set of circumstances, but I know Draymond well. He’s going to be ready to go tomorrow. He’s going to play a great game.

“He understands where we are in the series and we have this great opportunity. It’s 1-1 and we’ve got home-court advantage. We got our home crowd tomorrow. So he’s excited. I’m excited and we moved past all that stuff.”

Green’s technical foul for hitting Timberwolves center Naz Reid in the head is his fifth infraction in nine games this postseason. Two more and Green faces a one-game suspension.

Long after the outcome of the game had been decided, Green, who played 29 minutes in the 117-93 loss, was riding a stationary bike near the tunnel when he appeared to be taunted by a fan sitting nearby.

The Timberwolves issued a statement Friday morning, which Kerr commended.

“The only thing I can say is that the Timberwolves handled it perfectly,” Kerr said Friday. “For their security to be on it and remove the fan. Obviously, that stuff is ugly and unacceptable. And so we want to thank the Timberwolves organization for handling it as well as they possibly could. I just think that things like this happen occasionally.

“Happened to me a couple of times as a player. Fans crossing the line, yelling stuff at you. It’s painful. I can’t sit here and claim to know what it would be like to be in Draymond’s shoes as a Black man, to hear racially insensitive comments like that.

“But I’ve heard my share of stuff that’s really painful and hurtful and it’s not ideal, but you always want the support of the security and the crowd, the home crowd, and like I said, the Wolves handled that beautifully and Draymond is handling it really well.”

But Kerr wanted to make it clear that one fan doesn’t represent an entire fanbase or city.

“It’s unacceptable for any fan to do that to a player,” Kerr said. “When you say it’s unacceptable, there has to be action that goes with that term, and that’s exactly what the Timberwolves did. Security immediately ejected the fan, so we are really grateful for the way that the T-Wolves handled the situation.

“I know that ‘Minnesota Nice’ is a phrase to describe Minnesotans and I found that to be 100 percent true. The last few days, every single person I ran into was so kind and everybody was saying the same thing like ‘I’m pulling for the T-Wolves, but you guys are always welcome in our city.’ It’s a real thing, the hospitality in Minneapolis, in Minnesota.

“So I never take words from one person and label a city with that. There’s just going to be people, individuals, sometimes they’re drunk, whatever, who cross the line and it’s unfortunate but it doesn’t at all impact my view of the city of Minneapolis.”

Kerr has been open about how, when he played college basketball at Arizona, fans taunted him regarding the murder of his dad, Malcolm, in a terrorist attack in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1984.

So, while Kerr might be the right person to ask if fans hurling racial or other insensitive taunts should be banned from attending future NBA games, he doesn’t want that weight on his shoulders.

“It’s a good question,” Kerr told reporters. “I kind of leave that up to the league to decide. They have their protocols, their rules, But these ugly incidents are … I don’t think they’re common but they do happen occasionally and I mentioned earlier, they happened to me when I was in college. Not racial taunts, but taunts about my father, who had been killed in a terrorist act a year earlier or so. That was the most shocking moment of my entire playing career to hear somebody saying something like that, that was so personally hurtful and painful and intentionally trying to hurt me.

“And so, I empathize with every athlete, whether it’s Draymond last night getting taunted about racial taunts, whether it’s really anything. It seems like a few times a year, you read about situations like this. I think Russell Westbrook, in Utah a few years ago, had to go through something like that, and it’s unfortunate but like I said, I believe most of these incidents are pretty isolated and it’s really important that people handle them the right way and the Timberwolves absolutely handled it the right way.”

Kerr understands what Green is going through, but he fully expects his star forward to bring his best self in a game the Warriors need to win Saturday night.

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If fortune really does favor the bold, the Knicks' pair of stunning comeback road wins against the Celtics this week bode well for the remainder of their Eastern Conference semifinal bout. NBA history is on their side, too, as teams with a 2-0 advantage in a best-of-seven series have advanced nearly 93 percent of the time.

The Knicks, entering Game 3 on Saturday at Madison Square Garden with full momentum and better health, are primed to take a commanding 3-0 lead over the reigning champions and silence even more doubters. But it's still way too early for any chatter about a potential sweep -- comfort is a luxury they're unwilling to accept.

"Control the controllables, and do everything we can to put ourselves in a position to win," Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said after Friday's practice. "If we can do that, we'll live with the results. Don't take it for granted, don't get comfortable. You've got to be as desperate as we've been these last two games, in Game 3 and on. Never get comfortable with any success. Never too high, never too low."

While there's no such thing as style points in the playoffs, the Knicks undoubtedly have to clean up their game on both ends of the court. In spite of their improbable victories -- they had never won consecutive playoff games at TD Garden before -- both games featured 20-point deficits midway through the third quarter. They were also outrebounded twice.

The Knicks also can't count on more pitiful three-point shooting from the Celtics, who've gone a pitiful 25 percent (25-of-100) from beyond the arc. They can't expect Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum to keep shriveling up in fourth-quarter crunchtime, or dig another massive hole with inconsistent first-half performances.

Whether or not the first two games have crushed the Celtics' spirit, the Knicks must realize the numbers aren't sustainable and the series is far from over. After all, they've yet to play their best brand of basketball. The reality that their game can still be elevated could serve as an extra source of motivation. Their foot can't come off the gas pedal.

"The mentality is 0-0. Don't even focus on [the series lead]. Focus on the next play, the next quarter," Knicks captain Jalen Brunson said. "Don't look ahead, don't look into anything. Just focus on the task at hand and be present... The game is unpredictable. No matter what you prepare for, there's going to be things that happen that you're not really ready for... We've got to be locked-in together."

The Knicks now own home-court advantage, and perhaps an exceptionally raucous Garden crowd will help them buck a trend. While they've proven to be road warriors, they finished 27-14 at home during the regular season and lost two of three home games in their first-round series against the Pistons.