This Saturday, the NBA Playoffs are slated to get underway. For the Cleveland Cavaliers, they’re back in the playoffs for the first time since 2018, and this go-round, LeBron James is not spearheading their run.
For Cleveland, they’re set to face off against the New York Knicks, in the No. 4-No. 5 matchup in the Eastern Conference. For a Wine and Gold team that was far better at home in the regular season, them securing home court advantage last week was a big deal, particularly for a Cavaliers team whose largely inexperienced in some key areas, involving the playoffs.
This has the makings of a hard-fought, evenly matched series, as many between those No. 4-No. 5 seeds have historically, and in recent prior seasons. The Cavs are the favored team going into the series, but it’s not likely going to be easy.
New York defeated Cleveland three out of their four times meeting in the regular season, and that last included a 130-116 victory in Cleveland on March 31. The Cavaliers have to be sharper than they were in that game, for example.
So, with those caveats, here, we’ll put the spotlight on three Knicks that could be significant players in a potential series upset over the Cavaliers.
Let’s start with the Knicks’ prize offseason signing.
The most dangerous Knick: Jalen Brunson
Jalen Brunson has been phenomenal for the Knicks this season in his first year with them. After a quasi-breakout with the Dallas Mavericks last year, and being a key cog for them in a run to the Western Conference Finals, Brunson has had a career year with New York in a newfound opportunity to be their primary offensive engine.
Brunson has had 24.0 points and 6.2 assists per contest, and has hit a career-best three-point percentage of 41.6. He’s gotten to the free throw line 5.8 times per outing as well, after which he’s connected on 82.9 percent of those looks.
Brunson was one of the biggest All-Star snubs in the NBA this season, and he’s going to be a scary matchup offensively for the Cavaliers. He’s a three-level bucket-getter, similarly to Donovan Mitchell, albeit without the vertical element.
Brunson’s range, on-ball counters, pick-and-roll polish, both as a scorer and distributor, and his driving and finishing are all going to be tough to deal with. Plus, his post-up game for a guard is another wrinkle that New York can utilize in games.
For the Cavaliers, them having Isaac Okoro to help in on-ball work for extended stretches would be very meaningful for this series, given Okoro’s abilities against primary drivers, and his frame could theoretically contain Brunson, to some degree. Okoro has been progressing, but he was reportedly a limited participant in Cavs practice on Wednesday, so we’ll have to see.
Regardless, if the Knicks were to upset the Cavs, it’d likely start with Brunson playing at his absolute best as a self creator and playmaker for others. Cleveland has to mix up its coverages on the budding star.
On March 31, when he had a career-high 48 points, and on 18-of-32 shooting, and seven-of-12 from three, to go with nine assists. Sans Julius Randle (ankle sprain), Brunson was sensational. In that one, the Cavaliers didn’t have Okoro and Jarrett Allen (groin strain), which should be noted, though.
Second in command: Julius Randle
Secondly, Julius Randle is a player that’s been dynamite for the Knicks this season.
After a disappointing 2021-22, Randle has been playing at a very high level this year, and was a big reason why the Knicks had a resurgent campaign, and got back to the playoffs. That was similar to the story with him and New York overall, in 2020-21, and to Randle’s credit, he was named an All-Star again this year, as he was in the 2020-21 season.
Randle had a career-high 25.1 points per game, to go with 10.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists per contest. He connected on 34.3 percent of his threes, but on a career-high 8.3 attempts per game from deep.
If Randle is able to go in this series, at least a chunk of it, he’s an offensive force, if he can be mostly healthy. Randle first sustained his ankle sprain on March 29, and as of last Sunday, he was no longer required to wear a walking boot, and has been progressing, and has been getting shooting work in, per Tom Thibodeau, and via Peter Botte of The New York Post.
Randle’s status is uncertain for the series at this juncture, but if he can eventually go and weren’t limited, he’ll be a formidable offensive weapon for New York. With Randle’s ability to self create on drives, and with his strength and 250-pound frame, he could cause problems as well for the Cavaliers, even with Mobley and Allen as frontcourt defenders.
Randle is a more than capable playmaker as well, and if his jumper is on, he can be a really tough 4 man to guard without fouling. He had 6.9 free throw attempts per contest this season, which was a career-high amount, too.
Obviously, Randle’s status will be the key.
No. 3: Immanuel Quickley
It’s debatable on RJ Barrett here, but Immanuel Quickley may be a more potent offensive threat in this series to deal with in his minutes off the bench.
Quickley has been great for New York in his third year as a scorer off the bench predominantly. He’s had 14.9 points per contest this season, in an average of 28.9 minutes.
Quickley is a player that is a dangerous shooter if he gets going both in an on and off-ball sense. He converted on 37.0 of his 5.6 three-point attempts per game in the regular season, and he demonstrated marketed improvements as a scorer inside the arc this year, as he hit by far a career-best 52.1 percent of his two-point attempts.
Quickley was seventh in the NBA in total points in the regular season among bench players at 735 points in those instances. And his versatility and craftiness were crucial factors for him leading the league’s bench players in total plus-minus this season at plus-254, per NBA.com.
In his minutes, Quickley’s multi-faceted offensive game makes him a player that Cleveland has to stay attached to or right near as a catch-and-shoot threat, but also the Cavs have him accounted for in pick-and-roll situations. He’s well-versed in that aspect, and despite being score-first Quickley is a combo guard who has proven he can be a solid distributor as well, so Donovan Mitchell, Caris LeVert, Darius Garland and Cleveland have to be cognizant of that.
If Quickley gets especially hot in several games, it could spell doom for the Cavaliers in this series. They have to make things difficult for him, but not bail him out with fouls, particularly on jumpers.