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2023 Playoff Thread: The Bad News Knicks @ Cavaliers – The Journey to Losing Three Straight Begins

If you’re of a certain age, you’ll remember that the New England Patriots were, for years, the epitome of a joke football franchise. The Chicago Bulls had never done anything of note until 1991. There was literally a best selling book about how Michael Jordan couldn’t come through in the playoffs.

The lesson? None of those teams have quite the stink of the New York Knicks. The Knicks transcend logic. They can have a 3-1 series lead and you still think they’re the underdog. When you play the Bad News Knicks, it is bad news… for the Knicks!

And remember, the Bad News Bears lose at the end of the movie (and then the franchise ended there and there were no other movies released to ruin the legacy of the first film. I certainly know William Devane never got involved).

So despite the Knicks being in great shape in this series heading into Cleveland, we all know the truth. RJ Barrett has tricked everyone before into thinking he’s turned the corner. We all know he will turn another corner soon enough… right off a cliff.

JB Bickerstaff will buy a clue, and this series will keep going to its inevitable Game 7 Cavs win.

So while they’re doomed, and there is no point in saying it, I’ll just say, as a pity thing, let’s go Knicks!

589 replies on “2023 Playoff Thread: The Bad News Knicks @ Cavaliers – The Journey to Losing Three Straight Begins”

@FredKatz
Quentin Grimes never came out for his pregame on-court warmup before the game. Knicks say he’s game-time decision, but safe to say he’s not playing if he hasn’t warmed up yet. Usually, he would’ve been out there at 5:15. Same thing happened last game before Knicks ruled him out.

Doomed doomed doomed.

UPDATE: Grimes officially ruled out. You know what that means.

jknkjjjhjkuhhughhhhyyyyyyy

Hard agree on this, though.

And remember, the Bad News Bears lose at the end of the movie (and then the franchise ended there and there were no other movies released to ruin the legacy of the first film. I certainly know William Devane never got involved).

True story: I watched Bad News Bears in Breaking Training dozens of times as a kid, because it was always on WPIX, and eventually I just recorded it on VHS. Whereas the original was never on, perhaps because it was too difficult to edit around all of Tanner’s swearing. So I didn’t see that one until years and years later, and didn’t understand that it was antithetical to the spirit of the thing for the Bears to win.

That said, Breaking Training does have this banger: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9I1NkqAqlA

Grimes out, Hart 48 minutes. He can rest when he’s dead, doomed or in purgatory. Go Knicks.

What would we do without the bold font

We’d be a boldless doomed team! 😀

I’m thinking of renaming my band –

Nick R. Blogger and the Prophets of Doom

Keels Keels!

More like our hopes will Keels over and die, because we’re Daniel Dumile-d

I started looking for a stream and discovered both Eastern conference games are on NBATV, only the Western conference games are on National TV (TNT). That is weird. I will try a Chinese stream, since I can’t get MSG.

That’ good D-Mar. I like it a lot-Church vibe. I call myself Lester Ritz when I play, but “Lester Doom” has a certain gravitas and is more honest. Also, no bad vibes for this game. The Cavs are against the wall and must win. If we don’t prevail, oh well, two more as of right appeals left. Anyway, tonight Knicks by six.

My Verizon Fios feed is showing

6:30-7:00 Knicks playoff post game

Did I miss the game?

we’re doomed, but Clyde has the cow suit on. That must count for something…

we’re doomed, but Clyde has the cow suit on. That must count for something…

We’re Doomed. Clyde is Moo-ed.

When we lose this game by 1 and then blow the series because we’re doomed, that Hart/RJ screw up will haunt me

Darius plays like Judy Garland so far

He’s laying a yellow brick road?

TNFH, as a lawyer, take your kicking (that is often subjectively blown way out of proportion by the advocate) and keep on ticking. Happens every trial! You might be being sarcastic, but I can’t tell. Hope all is good!!

#He’s laying a yellow brick road?#

Idk about yellow but brick for sure!

well…they’re never gonna call Julius …”mr bigshot” or something like that…woof…dude is not composed with the playoff lights shining….

Weird flip-flop — I’m no longer terrified when Barrett touches the ball, but I am when Julius does. Randle 0-4 so far, but he does have 4 assists already…

Mitch has exceeded my wildest expectations and my expectations for him have long been wild to begin with

If they are going to call three seconds they should call a carry on Donovan.

I kind of feel like the Cavs all have long Covid or something. They just don’t seem as good as they were in the regular season.

Knicks have a legitimate chance of blowing the Cavs out, step on their throats and end this series right now.

Randle is getting double teamed and has four assists, including a beautiful one to Mitch. I’m not complaining about him.

you know they’re rattled when they think their go to savior is the ghost of danny green…

i think he chipped the side of the backboard on that last brick from the sideline…

I can’t remember the last time a player’s “footwork” was highlighted and discussed so much…

it’s like no one can figure out how in the heck jalen’s so dang effective…

Allen and Mobley out on the court together, ain’t working during the playoffs…

Allen and Mobley is working just as fine as Minny’s twin towers! LOL

body language on the cavs bench is no bueno…nobody is looking at each other…some fear in there….

Randle still can’t hit the broadside of a barn but he’s making himself useful. Great pass to IQ.

Good beast bucket there by Randle. He should just lay off the 3s. Even when he’s playing well shooting 3s is not a strength. Just stop unless you have all day from a good spot. This is not rocket science.

Well done guys, keep playing, keep the crowd out of the game…

We’re clearly DOOMED

Playoff RJ is a very good player

I have to take this back, because since i said it he made 2 stupid fouls

Pundits – Randle and Quickley need to have more of an impact.

Randle and IQ – ok.

I honestly think we have the two best guards in the series and the best center

Still doomed obviously

I’m not posting because I’m too excited by how we’re playing. Sure to jinx us if I say anything.

Randle has been great since the first few minutes.

Who is this well rounded wing we got to replace RJ Barrett who looks just like RJ Barrett?

This isn’t good RJ. This is the best RJ we’ve ever seen. We are way beyond doomed. This is armageddon

We just need to avoid the random 10-0 run that we all know is coming right before the half

We just need to avoid the random 10-0 run that we all know is coming right before the half

Exactly don’t let it get under a double digit lead

I’m not used to that kind of knicks games. It feels strange

For sure. And it is a must win game for the opponent on their home court.

Randle’s probably not coming back in this game, but he was able to walk (well, limp) off the court by himself

I wasn’t going to drink during the game as I was afraid it would make me sick. But this game is making me sick, so what the hell.

Obi opens a champagne while Bickerstaff serves a hot meal baked on his seat!
Dinner is served!

This now kinda feels like a must win…hate the idea of extending the series down two starters

Randle is just going to pull a Willis Reed. Man, I hope he’s okay.
So far it’s a team effort. JB, RJ, JR, IQ, Mitch, Hart, iHart, Obi all balling.

Julius was huge, just bullying his way in the paint. But it’s next man up. Time for Obi to go beast mode.

And just when Randle was finding himself in the game and playing so well… the universe really reminding us that we’re irrevocably doomed.

Feel bad for Julius. Finally having a good game. We need to finish this in the second half.

Win this game, hope Bucks Heat go 7 so Randle will have 5 days off before next game.

I like Bill pidto and Wally Outstanding but i prefer watching the chair daredevil during halftime

Just make your threes, get out on the break and play a little defense Obi and we’ll be fine.

Obi says Windmill!

Yeah but they’re gonna take those away in the playoffs

I’m not going to comment on Donovan Mitchell’s performance because that would be poking the bear.

But uh…

I can’t remember Obi hitting a pull-up midrange jumper like that as a Knick.

Mitchell is clearly due

Brunson is gone cold and we’re not moving the ball well…

But Obi hit another three!

This Obi performance is fun and all but we all know these points won’t be there in the playoffs

Mike just can’t contain his excitement for Josh Hart, he’s definitely one of us!!!

Let’s go Obi!!!!

Oh, that was pretty.

You could see Brunson doing the math calculations for the pass to Obi on that break…

the synergy that jalen and josh have together is pretty special…

I remember watching that vid of jalen finding out we had added josh to the roster…

whatever jalen wants, jalen should get…

To be fair, Randle has already done more tonight than he did the rest of the series

Announcers on my stream impromptu said “DeBusschere to Frazier, to Reed for the dunk!”

I think they’re Canadian but I’ll take it

As the saying goes, if you kill them on their own floor, they die a double death:
(1) Their season is over for the year, in April
(2) And they’re in Cleveland

It’s nitpicky, but would like Brunson to be a lot better in the 4th than he was in the 3rd. Go kill them.

If you guys are nervous, imagine what Cavs fans are like right now.

This is fun!

Way too many off-balance shots. They need to take their time and set up shots.

“Dunno how my nerves are gonna hold up for the 4th quarter…”

I’m drinking as fast as I can…

obi and iq with brain farts on successive possessions..need to give brunson a breather…so have to hold them off for at least another two to three minutes…smells like a last possession game

IQ is really forcing things. Drop off from JB is obvious. He’ll learn, but we need him to learn immediately.

Come on boys. This is the moment to step on their throats, crush their spirits, and go home victorious.

Last 2 minutes a void… the ball movement is not purposeful of there is anyway… almost better off with RJ hogging to basket in these situations… IQ is becoming a spot up shooter unfortunately. Orrrr FORTUNATELY !!!

But he’s still a huge plus on D, and if he just takes quick shots without thinking he’ll be fine

Some named Mitchell might be the best player in this series just as everyone predicted

Some named Mitchell might be the best player in this series just as everyone predicted

Haha that’s funny!

We’re probably the only fans that are terrified as much as we are when our team has a lead. That’s what 21 years of awful does to you.

This might be the best couple of minutes defensively for the Knicks since JVG was head coach.

Took me awhile to notice, it’s RJ at the 4 in this lineup. Mitch and 4 guys 6’6″ and under

Yeah, but Hart rebounds like he’s a foot taller than Mobley & Allen

Terrible offense, but huge board from Josh, huge board from Mitch, another 20 seconds off the clock

Cmon thibs…draw up a freaking play…like the one play you save for these moments

Our entire offense is Mitch putbacks.

Could have put this away many, many times

Thibs during this TO: Mitch stand under the basket. Everyone else just throw up whatever shit you want

As I said, Cavs are defending well, but they aren’t doing any better than the Knicks on offense.

I just learned something about how timeouts work in the NBA.good for thibs. I thought that was a super long timeout.

Fire Thibs!
Trade Randle!
Barrett Overpaid!
Brunson worst free agent signing!

How are you Knicks fans?

Surprised and happy that we passed first round.
But to be honest this is how we should build a team. Win or lose even if we don’t made the playoffs we’re still in position to be competitive in the future. We have cap space, picks, and young players.
Year is not yet finish and we will be competitive in semis regardless if it’s heat or bucks.
Another good thing is this a team where sum of the parts are better than any individual of the team.

Let’s go Knicks ❤️

It’s been 10 minutes since there were 85 seconds left, and now there 66 seconds left.

Big rebound and both Josh and Mitch are there.

Also, glad Mitch got rid of it quick! The only guy on the floor we don’t want taking foul shots.

YEEEEEEES!

WIRE TO WIRE WIN IN A CLINCHING GAME ON THE ROAD!

IT’S THE FUCKING APOCALYPSE!

Hart’s block on that Mitchell three was emasculating. Just take his dog while you’re at it.

Dear lord we did it!! And with a total Randle no-show. Holy shit!

Hart with 47 minutes and 4 points and one of the most important players out there.

Mitch ate them alive. And we couldn’t have done this without three straight excellent games from RJ.

Great stuff. I’m hoarse from yelling at the tv

I don’t think we’re done yet. Definitely not an easy out in the next round!

Mitchell Robinson. Oh, my, god. What a game from that guy.

… and I (still) wouldn’t trade our roster for the Cavs 😉

Let’s GO!!!!

Yes, Mike Breen, we have had a lot of rough years, and yes, it does feel good

I can’t believe how relatively easily they won this series, I’m almost speechless right now.

If the next round is vs the Heat I predict a total of only 5 players will survive

I am now rooting hard for Miami to beat the Bucks. Having moved down to Florida, I’m hoping to see a playoff game live!

Maybe the pundits will stfu now about how we should have pulled the trigger on the Mitchell trade.

Man, I’m just constantly smiling, this one feels so damn good. The Cavs are a legitimately good team and we beat them in 5 games, this is just so fun to watch.

Mitchell Robinson better get his flowers after this one, DOMINATING performance, and the 3rd straight very good, perhaps even great, RJ Barrett performance. Josh Hart, Brunson, I love everyone on this team, I’m not even able to think straight now, we’ve waited so long for this.

I’d like to officially thank Danny Ainge for refusing our offers and trade Spida to the Cavs.

That was our second best trade of the century (behind the J-Hart one).

If the next round is vs the Heat I predict a total of only 5 players will survive

I’m taking the under 😀

Everything changes if RJ is actually the star he was in the last three games.

We’re probably the only fans that are terrified as much as we are when our team has a lead. That’s what 21 years of awful does to you.

Hahaha. Totally.

I can’t believe how relatively easily they won this series, I’m almost speechless right now.

It’s amazing, and the Cavs better be hanging their heads in shame. They got their ass kicked. But of course, the Heat will sweep the Knicks.

By Post Author

One of the keys to this team’s success is the culture. The friendships among these guys are making a difference. Brunson/Hart, Obi/IQ, Mitch/Hartenstein, etc. These guys clearly love each other and trust each other and it translates into complete confidence on the court. They never seemed shaken, nailed their FTs at the end, etc. This is our secret weapon.

would very much like the heat to win, but only in 7 games

While obviously true, I’ll also gladly take a win for the Heat tonight.

By Post Author

Road teams don’t usually win game 7, i think the best outcome is Heat in 6.

Yeah I really don’t see any way we can stop Giannis, that just seems like a terrible matchup for us.

Dear lord we did it!! And with a total Randle no-show.

Show some respect. Julius was awesome before he turned his ankle again. Playoff Julius and Good Julius can be the same Julius. Hope he has time to heal before we’re doomed against the Heat or Bucks.

This series reminded me a lot of the 1996 playoffs. Only imagine if the 1996 Bulls had been upset by the Heat!

By Post Author

Evan and Allen are going to see Mitch in their nightmares all offseason.

And Mitchell is going to see Josh Hart, he was up in his grill the whole game.

It’s 03:49 AM here and I can’t even think of going to sleep, too much adrenaline…

Maybe I’ll try some sips of Grappa…

Yeah I really don’t see any way we can stop Giannis, that just seems like a terrible matchup for us.

Terrrrrible matchup, so yes, go Heat!!! Not that it will matter, of course, as the Knicks will lose to whichever team faces them.

By Post Author

Julius was awesome before he turned his ankle again.

+1. Randle was playing very well. Let’s get him healthy.

especially happy for mitch. remember seeing this tarantula appear in summer league blocking step back threes from two yards away and fouling on jump balls. great series and massive game. controlled ferocity.

But what a mistake it was to trade a first for Josh Hart!

(said nobody with an IQ above 80 ever…)

The only way we deal with Giannis is to play 2 bigs. Problem is that along with Grimes and Randle, Sims is down.

It’s not only that we won, but how we won that makes this so sweet. This was the type of Knicks basketball we love, being tougher and stronger and outhustling the other team. I’m just buzzing, even though we’re obviously doomed in the 2nd round anyway.

While there are a lot of co-MVPs, hats off to Mitch. The Cavs had absolutely no answer for him. He was a fucking STUD!

Gotta also give major props to Thibs, he has his flaws but he’s a damn good coach.

we had a lot of good fortune but we’ve been due for this sort of thing for awhile….

the cavs just sort of laid down and the defense with bickerstaff was sort of where it needed to be but some really odd choices on both sides didn’t really help matters… i would seriously explore switching him out it was that bad….

this version of RJ really can help us but i imagine the fever dream ends next rd altho if it’s miami he does play really well against them for whatever reason….

i mean now you can say the hart trade sort of worked out… but it took a confluence of events in order for that to happen….

strange things happen tho… sometimes you go for a runner runner and make it and sometimes you trade for hart and he hits 50% of his 3s for an entire half season and winds up helping you in a series where the other team’s best players forget how to play basketball….

when that happens you don’t gloat over your own genius… you should just be glad that it happened….

Only a complete idiot with zero future credibility would try to save face for taking the dumbest position ever taken on this site….

Wally rightly flagging Obi’s pull up jumper in the paint off Allen’s drop coverage, “Haven’t seen that play from Obi in three years in the NBA.” Yes. Please. Keep doing these things.

djphan I think you need to stop writing for the night, in fact maybe you should take a hiatus for the rest of the playoffs…

I have no idea what to do with myself! Not only did we win this series, we won it pretty fucking easily! When’s the last time we won a series like this; ’99 vs Mutombo’s Atlanta Hawks?

Maybe the pundits will stfu now about how we should have pulled the trigger on the Mitchell trade.

I noticed watching the TNT pre-game today that there isn’t a single image of the Knicks in their roll. They’re gonna feel stupid about that when we make the Finals… That is, they would feel stupid if we weren’t Doooommed

I actually remember Obi taking the same quick drive to the middle and a short jump shot during his Julius-free hiatus at the end of the regular season. So he can clearly do it. I’m sure it’s a shot he practices all year long, so no big surprise to me he can make them.

Z-man, if you’re holding others accountable, perhaps you’d like to comment on your opinion that we could get 80% of Mitch for half the cost?

Swept Toronto in 2000 1st rd but all 3 games went down to the final minute. In terms of best of 7 series yeah easiest series since sweeping Hawks in 1999, before that I guess would be beating Charlotte in 5 in 1993 but 2 of those wins came down to the final seconds.

Josh Hart and Brunson at media podium. When was the last time I felt like the Knicks had the TWO smartest players on the floor in a game? Ever?

Stop stealing my material Wally!!!!

Haha. Wait. Are you a Wally burner account?

Just want Obi to keep watching those James Worthy highlights. He’ll get there 😉

strange things happen tho… sometimes you go for a runner runner and make it and sometimes you trade for hart and he hits 50% of his 3s for an entire half season and winds up helping you in a series where the other team’s best players forget how to play basketball….

Hart hitting 3s at an unsustainable rate was an unexpected bonus, but he was brought in for his energy, rebounding, playmaking, and defense. And that’s what won a lot of games for us. He wasn’t some kind of huge volume 3 point shooter.

The Cavs struggled in part because of our defense, in part because of their youth and inexperience, and in part because they are not a finished product yet and still have holes to fill. They need shooters and a better bench. Letting Love go was huge blunder.

The Knicks had the better team from the time of the Hart trade forward. I think this series and the regular season make that obvious.

RJ was tremendous. This was the best game he has played as a Knick I think. He hit his threes, he hit his fts, he got to the rim. The defense was solid. So happy for him.

I will stand by my comments about Mitch because in this series he was 200% of the player I was talking about. You definitely could have gotten 80% of the Mitch from that time for half of the cost.

And to be clear, I never wanted to lost Mitch for nothing…my preference was always to keep him. I just said we had no control over that and it wasn’t the end of the world if we lost him. If we did lose him, I’d have drafted Walker Kessler, who last I checked had a pretty good year. Would we be here with Kessler and iHart? Probably not. But it would not have been the end of the world.

If you don’t buy that, fine, I’m happy to take the L on Mitch….he was definitely the difference in this series. He absolutely abused Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. Happy as shit about that!!!

Josh Hart took 52 3s as a Knick. I don’t think the merits of the trade swung on his 3PT%.

Just one note.

Our formula of dominating the offensive boards and getting all those extra possessions is a winning one, but I think we are going to have to shoot a LOT better against the Bucks because it’s not going to work as well against them as it did against the Cavs and during the regular season.

Haha. Wait. Are you a Wally burner account?

This might be the most insulting thing ever written here.

funny thing is early in their careers I thought mitch was better than Allen, but Jarret took some big steps forward and I remember him badly outplaying Mitch last year or the year before.

This might be the most insulting thing ever written here.

Hahaha. Just playing. But I would like to see the Owen Wall at halftime 😉

By the way, IQ was a HUGE factor in this game. You know, the guy that one particular poster said should have gone undrafted and had almost no chance of being a serious player in this league, and that the same poster recently said was an analog for Bones Hyland.

We really Knicksed them again. 17 offensive rebounds, only 10 turnovers. I’m not sure that will work in the next round but it sure worked like a charm in this one.

Jalen and Josh Hart press conferences are hilarious, Mitch is also great at the podium. Such a fun group to root for.

Remember the guy who said you could find a Mitchell Robinson quality player on the scrap heap for chump change? Who was that asshole?

More beef on this board than the state of Texas!!!

We won a series!

BING BONG people, BiNG BONG

I don’t want to get too overconfident especially if Randle is out but I wouldn’t be surprised if Knicks do same thing to the Heat they just did to the Cavs. Bucks though is an entirely different scenario.

Guys, tonight is a night for celebrating the Knicks, not celebrating our own individual basketball genius or settling old scores.

THE KNICKS JUST FREAKING DESTROYED THE CAVALIERS!!!!

(But we’re still doomed in the next round.)

Donovan Mitchell in the last 3 games:

22 points on 19 shots
11 points on 18 shots
28 points on 26 shots

Let me think, who was guarding him for nearly all of that time? Was whoever that was worth a non-lottery first rounder?

Anybody who is on this thread trying to say “I was right about X” or “so and so was wrong about Y” needs to sit down and shut up. This is not the time for this kind of bullshit. We’re all right about some stuff and wrong about some stuff. Let’s grow up, people.

i feel like i’m on pyschadelics but i’m on not…i guess this is the euphoria that comes with winning in the playoffs…just so long …forgot about it..

@FredKatz
·
15m
Mitchell Robinson just said that RJ Barrett is “coming with great energy,” then he and RJ started giggling uncontrollably on the podium. Mitchell has now pulled his hoodie over his face while RJ talks.

Perfectly happy with the first half Julius performance, but his performance this series–from an All-star and possible All-nba pick–is definitely characterizable as a no-show. I’m excited for next round healthy playoff Julius, however!

Seriously, what’s with the ‘We won, you’re an asshole for your old take” thing? The only score that matters is 106-95. Roll around in it, don’t rub it in people’s faces. That’s an ugly, ugly look.

On the other hand, our running out to a lead and not giving it back thing is pretty fucking amazing.

We’re all right about some stuff and wrong about some stuff.

+1. Time to rejoice until the new neurosis settles in about round 2

I swear it looked like RJ and Mitch burned a blunt before getting on the podium.

“Guys, tonight is a night for celebrating the Knicks, not celebrating our own individual basketball genius or settling old scores.”

To each his own. People said a lot of incredibly dumb shit over the course of this year. Hopefully they will modify the condescending tone going forward and not pollute thread after thread with their unnecessary negativity.

0 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Okay, that’s something I’m unhappy about (Deuce’s box score).

But I can live with it…

I swear it looked like RJ and Mitch burned a blunt before getting on the podium.

I’m sure they did it!
And from july 1, with the new CBA, they can’t be tested anymore 😀

“Condescending tone” lol

This is like telling Kim Kardashian telling somebody they got a big ass

“Anybody who is on this thread trying to say “I was right about X” or “so and so was wrong about Y” needs to sit down and shut up. This is not the time for this kind of bullshit. We’re all right about some stuff and wrong about some stuff. Let’s grow up, people.”

Sorry JK, if you are referring to me, my view is, this is the time to say fuck you to the people who have stunk up thread after thread with dumb takes…that are now proven to be objectively dumb. Whatever annoyance you are feeling towards me is what I have endured from those folks all fucking year. If you don’t like it, whatever.

And if we got swept, do you really think the haterz would be any less insufferable? Do you think that E and others would be gracious and sensitive to the feelings of others on the blog? Please.

Yeah I’m talking about you, and I would pretty much guarantee that most people here feel the same way.

I think, that for 1 night, JK is right. Negativity and I-told-you-so’s are a buzz-kill.

To each his own. People said a lot of incredibly dumb shit over the course of this year. Hopefully they will modify the condescending tone going forward and not pollute thread after thread with their unnecessary negativity.

Holy shit, look in a fucking mirror.

hart shooting 3s was a big reason why we went on the run in the second half… other than that he was exactly the guy he’s been his entire career…. and he was also 5 for 9 in this series.. and most of those were HUGE 3s… so i’m not compelled by the argument that it’s some small sideshow… those 3s were responsible for AT LEAST one game….

and he’s just normally a very good player who’s only weakness was not doing the thing he’s been doing… so of course when he goes hot there then you’re going to feel it on the team…

it’s ok to be happy about fortunate events… this whole season has been found money and just like the kings you just gotta enjoy the ride…

Beef is delicious I guess. I don’t know.

I am enjoying the hell out of this with all of you, even if some enjoy this moment in different ways.

Hart changed this season. We added an All NBA player basically.

“Holy shit, look in a fucking mirror.”

I’m happy to own any of my takes on this year that have turned out to be laughably wrong. Care to bring any up?

Lmao I came on here expecting verbal confetti and instead got shrapnel

Take a nap

I’m happy to own any of my takes on this year that have turned out to be laughably wrong. Care to bring any up?

How are you so stupid that you don’t understand it’s not about your or anyone else’s takes? It’s that you’re an asshole who nobody likes.

New question: is Jalen Brunson better than 2012-13 Melo?

New question: is Jalen Brunson better than 2012-13 Melo?

Yeah, obviously. It’s not even a question.

“It’s that you’re an asshole who nobody likes.”

Speak for yourself. You’ve said a lot of dumb shit too.

Some people need a bigger blunt than the one Mitch & RJ just smoked

My son and I watched the msg broadcast together. He’s 8. His knick fandom is cemented. That’s how sweet this is to me. Much love to all of you. My fellow fanatics.

2012-13 Melo was pretty damn good, at least during the regular season! I think it might be JB just for the “plays the right way energy” that appears to be infectious, but looking at the stats alone it’s not exactly clear.

Melo: 28/7/2.5 per 36, 56 TS%, TS+ of 105, 36% USG (pretty nuts!) BPM of 4.3
JB: 25/3.5/6 per 36, 60 TS%, TS+ of 103, 27% USG, 3.9 BPM.

Unlike Melo, Brunson is *actually* clutch though, and that’s probably the difference maker for me. He seems difficult to stop in a way that Melo just wasn’t unless he was cooking from midrange (which is reflected in his playoff performance–which was mediocre).

Jalen >>>>>>> 12-13 Melo. Don’t have to think twice on that.

I still can’t believe how throughly we pantsed those guys, with Julius injured, unavailable and/or bad for all but the first halves of Game 1 and Game 5, with Grimes useless on offense and then hurt, with IQ not finding his shot for three games, etc. Thats how great Brunson was, how great Mitch was, how great Hart was, how great RJ was for these last three games, how good Obi was throughout, and how outstanding Thibs was.

The running gag aside, I am incredibly wary of playing either the Bucks or Heat, but holy shit does this feel good right now.

We held Cleveland to under 100 in all four wins. That’s pretty spectacular in 2023.

Speak for yourself. You’ve said a lot of dumb shit too.

It’s weird that you spend so much time on this site; as far as I can tell this is what you do all day every day. I can’t understand why someone with your personality doesn’t spend more time with friends or family.

I can’t feel too bad for Cavs fans. They were gifted LeBron twice and gifted a championship by Draymond.

Hey TC, my definition of asshole is someone who goes past the confines of a blog into one’s personal life. Congrats, you passed the bar!

We beat the Cavs 3 times in the regular season, 3-0 in the post-Cam era, 2-0 before we traded for Josh Hart.

I kinda expected this, but you know, were doomed.

Hey TC, my definition of asshole is someone who goes past the confines of a blog into one’s personal life. Congrats, you passed the bar!

You’ve got to be fucking joking. Do you think everyone just forgot about the game thread earlier this season? Shall I dig up those comments for you?

Begley:

NYK’s Julius Randle was walking cautiously in the post-game locker room but league sources told SNY that the early impression is the sprain is not as severe as Randle’s prior ankle ailment. He missed two weeks for that previous ankle injury and returned for Game 1 of Cavs series.

As long as you consider the comments I’ve apologized for, feel free. PS go fuck yourself.

Congrats Knickerbloggers on a well-earned victory! All the “doomed” comments have had me cracking up and someone will need to start each game thread with “jknkjjjhjkuhhughhhhyyyyyyy”. It’s so weird that anyone would want to argue about anything tonight. I’ve had a huge smile on my face since the end of the game.

All credit to the players who stepped it up, such as RJ (no connection to the regular season Sloth playing for the Knicks), and Mitch. All credit to Brunson, Hart, etc. who played as we expected them to. However: this series was won on DEFENSE and execution of the game plan! Switch Bickerstaff with Thibs. Is there anyone in here who thinks we win the series???

Now, moving forward: offense HAS to get better. With the exception of tonight’s first half, our offense was not solid, and 3pt shooting was abysmal. Whether we face the Heat or the Bucks in the next round, especially the Bucks, we will be in trouble without descend outside shooting. I hope Thibs will figure out something. In Thibs we trust!

My guess is that Randle will be out at least 10 days. Hope MIL wins this one!

A lot of interesting questions to consider. Are we just way better than the Cavs? Not a take many of us would have gone with before the series started, but certainly arguable now.

Are we more experienced? I sort of feel that’s a wash. I mean, Donovan got his ass kicked last year in the playoffs, but he’s supposed to have learned from that.

Are we tighter as a unit and play harder, and for each other? I’d argue yes, that’s a thing. On the flip side, I didn’t see much of that from the Cavs at all. It almost felt like they were going through the motions, which is inexplicable in the playoffs, but I’ll certainly take it.

I am giving all the credit to the Bold option

Some credit has to go to me and JK47 meeting up for lunch before game 1 (which we will obviously have to do again next round).

I never had beef with Z-man, just brought up his Mitch take because I think Mitch is the reason we won this series. Yes, JB is so steady, so smart; yes, Josh was a great pickup, maybe my favorite Knick since Starks; yes, we’re much deeper than they are and it showed; and yes, Good RJ made a big impact, and that compensated for Julius’s bad (until tonight) series. But Mitch dominated the paint, and the attention he drew – and his success despite that attention – was the key. Look at the numbers: we were outshot from everywhere tonight, from 3, from 2, but we out-rebounded them 48 to 30. You can’t win with -18 on the boards. I give Mitch the MVP.

I have said it before but what Brook Lopez has done late in his career is astounding

My son and I watched the msg broadcast together. He’s 8. His knick fandom is cemented. That’s how sweet this is to me. Much love to all of you. My fellow fanatics.

that is sooooo cool 😎

rama, I think Mitch is a very fair candidate for MVP of this series. It’s just that it was such a “team” victory that it’s a bit murky. But it’s certainly a fair call.

PS Fred Katz felt the same way, even before tonight!

someone will need to start each game thread with “jknkjjjhjkuhhughhhhyyyyyyy

Co-sign (or is that a secant? Oh, obviously a tangent)

Another thing is that Bickerstaff was thoroughly outcoached. The Cavs had stumbled, in the g4 3rd quarter, upon an offensive formula that worked: hunting Brunson with Garland in the PnR. They never went back to it.

Instead, they preferred to do this for 5 games: Darius or Mitchell pound the ball, wait for an Allen or Mobley cut for a layup, if nothing, go up, contested jumper, clank, clank, rinse, repeat.

Their offensive scheme was YMCA level. Meanwhile we were trying new things on both sides of the ball. They literally couldn’t handle switching to guard based roll men with Brunson and Hart! Bickerstaff might need to go.

RJ said in postgame that “we basically just did what Atlanta did to us” lol

such a “team” victory

Yeah, that’s what I was explaining to my wife watching the post game. She noticed that the players were sillier than she remembered from years ago, and I said it’s a young team that likes each other. It shows on the court; there were long sequences where they were so in synch on D it was just fantastic.

jimmy is jimmy – how cool though would it be to see him and Josh go at it for a series…

okay RJ, point taken – I was out on you…

okay thibs, point taken – I was out on you…

okay obi, point taken – didn’t really think we needed you anymore

okay ihart, point taken – was ready to swap you for nerlens noel mid season…

again, jalen brunson footwork is seriously Gregory Hines worthy…

shoot, I think he was a good dancer, was gonna write Fred Astaire, but didn’t wanna sound too damn old…

Their offensive scheme was YMCA level. Meanwhile we were trying new things on both sides of the ball.

This too! I have a lot of thoughts about Thibs at the moment, but mostly – wow. Just really surprising to see him evolve so much so fast. Did a great job this series and this year.

The Cavs were 2nd in regular season net rating, which is normally a pretty good indicator of playoff success, so this is a very legit series win. They were considerably better during the season and the one advantage the Knicks had, which was a better offensive rating, wasn’t really the reason they won. The Cavs had the worst offensive rating in the playoffs (yes, worse than the Nets) and the Knicks had the best defensive rating, that was the reason. Really stepped up when it mattered.

Sorry, Raven. If it makes it any lighter, I was thinking of a fight song from school

Cosine, secant, tangent, sine,
3.14159
Fight!

Another thing is that Bickerstaff was thoroughly outcoached

Thibs was dancing circles around Bickerstaff the entire series. The only time we had trouble was the second quarter of game 2 when Garland started making shots and Knicks allowed their bad offense affect their defensive effort. That was just one quarter.

It won’t be as easy against Spoelstra and Budenholzer.

Time to rejoice until the new neurosis settles in about round 2

I find it very unsettling that you guys are all assuming we’re going to be in round 2 just because we won round 1.

Just watched the halftime show on TNT, not a single mention of the Knicks eliminating the Cavs. Showed highlights and analysis obviously of the Warriors-Kings game but then next segment only had a brief live look in of the Heat Bucks game and showed highlights of Lakers Grizzlies.

I don’t want the Bucks-Heat series to go 7, it probably means the Bucks remembered they’re way better than the Heat. I’d rather play the Heat with Keels & Duane Washington starting than play the Bucks.

Think about where we are today vs 1 year ago. Last year we missed the playoffs, our best player was garbage and our best PG was Derrick Rose.

How times have changed…..

Vincent and Love trying to win me some money by getting the Heat to beat the +12 spread…

I don’t want the Bucks-Heat series to go 7, it probably means the Bucks remembered they’re way better than the Heat. I’d rather play the Heat with Keels & Duane Washington starting than play the Bucks.

The way this series is going, we will face a VERY confident team no matter the outcome. Miami would surely be better for us, but you can’t say they will win the series against Giannis, despite being up 3-1.

I find it very unsettling that you guys are all assuming we’re going to be in round 2 just because we won round 1.

You think we won round 1 just because we won 4 games 🤔

On another note, what about the Cavs? This is an utter disaster for them. Spida is only guaranteed for the next 2 years. What can they possibly do to become a legit contender in that time frame?

My guess is that Randle will be out at least 10 days.

If MIA-MIL goes 7 games then the next game would probably be a week from today.

Usually the second sprain isn’t as bad as the first, but given Randle’s level of discomfort, a week is pretty optimistic. I would guess that he would miss at least a game and probably 2. Hopefully I’m wrong!

Is Mitch better than 2013 Tyson? Idk, but he’s been better in one playoff series. Is Jalen better than 2013 Melo? Probably not overall, but he was better in one playoff series. That 2013 team was really fucking good, but it was a limping mess in the playoffs. It really helps to have 3 or maybe 3.5 (depending on how RJ is playing) guys who can get the offense going instead of being so Melo-centric.

On that note, kudos to Obi for stepping up like he did in the 3rd Q. I am so happy for him!

2013 we had Melo and then Felton, but Felton couldn’t fucking shoot. And that was it. It worked really well in the regular season but it was very fragile.

DRed, the problem with that team is that Melo was the nominal “brain” of that team. Brunson (and to a degree Hart) are much better suited for that role. As to Mitch vs. Tyson, it’s a really good question. For the record, I don’t think Mitch gets abused by Roy Hibbert like Tyson did, but there might be some anti-Tyson bitterness bias there.

This is a much more satisfying first round win than the win over Boston in 2013. That was a series we were supposed to win, and we kind of barely eked it out. Boston was mediocre. We went up 3-0 and then lost two and looked bad doing it. We ultimately won that series but it wasn’t all that satisfying a win.

This was way better.

2013 we had Melo and then Felton, but Felton couldn’t fucking shoot. And that was it. It worked really well in the regular season but it was very fragile.

The 2013 geriatrics team was built for one year.

The 2013 team lost to Indiana because Roy Hubert came out of nowhere playing like an all star before vanishing again.

The 2013 team had Lebron’s Heat waiting for us had we won the Pacers series.

In a way, this team is reminding me of the Jason Kidd Nets teams….with Brunson in the Kidd role of being the “brain” of the team. We’re not perfect, but we have an edge.

So hard not to root for Miami to close it out here. Playoff Jimmy is a thing. But need MIL to extend this series for Julius’ sake.

I’d root for the heat to win and rest Julius for game 1, than play the bucks with Julius for all the games

Another comparison is the Billups Pistons. We have a similarly old-school coach with a similarly star-bereft but high-IQ team. Mitch is very Ben Wallace in a lot of ways…

Man the Bucks have no poise it’s pretty startling for the supposed championship favorites

Jesus christ Butler, he just simply refuses to lose..
I’m fucking scared of this guy

I’d root for the heat to win and rest Julius for game 1, than play the bucks with Julius for all the games

Ideal situation is to have Miami win at home Friday night then.

This has to be one of the greatest finishes to a playoff game ever

I can’t believe just how bad the Bucks look right now. They know they’ve won a title before, right?

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Well, we asked for ’em. Looks like we got ’em. And Kings giving Dubs all they got.

Brunson being fake annoyed at Hart for eating wings during the post-game question period. LOL

How can you even keep Giannis on the court on offense when he can’t hit a free throw to save his life right now?

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I once again rescind my Heat/Bucks comment

me, too. but i’ve got 4 mins, 59 seconds to edit.

Funny part is I’m sure majority of the predictions from the national media will be Heat over Knicks.

The Bucks are not playing smart basketball at all. It’s amazing.

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Home court in the second round of the playoffs. Ay-fucking-mazing. I mean, they’re obviously doomed to get swept by the Heat, but wow.

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Wow, the Bucks are like the dumbest team of all time.

Have you ever seen a team that has won a title play as stupid as the Bucks did tonight? Never, right?

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I’m scared of the bad man Jimmy Butler, we have the better team, but obviously it’s going to be a Heat sweep because we have no chance at all ever.

But……. Do we *want* home court? We play pretty damn well on the road.

Doesn’t matter. We’re definitely doomed, regardless. (But JR needs to summon all of his quick-healing powers, anyway.)

But since we’re all airing our grievances today I guess I do feel vindicated on saying the Bucks were unbelievably stupid as a team when they won the title, and that they should have lost that series to the Nets if they didn’t have every single thing go right for them.

Bud is not a good coach in the playoffs and has never been. Like WHY THE FUCK didn’t he call a timeout on the last play of regulation? What is this offensive game plan? How can you make such a talented team look like an early out March Madness team???

Wow… just wow…

Also, Cody Zeller looks like the most YMCA player of all-time

Have you ever seen a team that has won a title play as stupid as the Bucks did tonight?

They’ve been playing undisciplined for a long time now. It’s all on the coach. I’m sure he will be gone. I predict Nick Nurse hired.

No one ever went broke betting on Jimmy Butler…until the 2nd round of the 2023 playoffs

The bucks stopped playing organized basketball at the end of the 3rd and opted for Giannis midrangers for the next 19 minutes

BA, Budz was on the hot seat and got bailed out by a too long Durant toe.

And we complain about Thibs? Sheesh!

On another note, what about the Cavs? This is an utter disaster for them. Spida is only guaranteed for the next 2 years. What can they possibly do to become a legit contender in that time frame?

It was a total disaster for them, to be sure, but they knew they were going to be weak in depth after the Spida deal. So I think they were aiming at Year Two more than Year One. It was how badly they lost this series that would be more concerning to me about the Cavs than their roster, per se. They got their asses kicked.

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I’d go with Knicks in 5, but under the circumstances (Julius), I’d be OK with “Knicks in Sicks.” When is Grimes coming back? He’d be great against that cadre of Heat shooters (Strus, Robinson, Vincent, et al.) I’m shocked that we are not talking more about Grimey’s absence, but he’d be reeeeeeeal useful right ’bout now. Glad to have IQ “back.”

Mitchie can body up Bam, who by comparison is pretty soft.

Knicks in 6 due to the Jimmy Effect™️ and Randle health

I laid bets on the Knicks winning the Eastern Conference at 10-1 and the chip at +8000 before the Milwaukee game…feeling pretty good about those, despite the fact that we’re definitely doomed.

BC, agreed. But I don’t think they imagined losing to the team they outbid for Spida…and with home court, and on their home court. It’s a fucking disaster. Although not as much of a disaster as MIL losing to MIA…although MIL has a chip…

My biggest worry is that it might be up to us to derail the Celts from their next chip…I don’t see Philly beating them…and none of the WC teams are that impressive….

Let’s see if Jalen Brunson forces IQ out of NY. That’ll be a good comparison point between him and Melo

Don’t care if it’s Knicks in 4, 5, 6 or 7 just please don’t lose to the Heat!

For the first time in decades, the basketball Gods are aligning with the Knicks. Our own picks are developing and delivering, players signed are performing and over-performing, and now even playoff opponents turn out to be the more convenient ones. We have a pretty good chance against the Heat in round 2. Let’s hope we will be able to take advantage! As an old timer, I never thought I’d live long enough to witness that.

The Cavs were 2nd in regular season net rating, which is normally a pretty good indicator of playoff success, so this is a very legit series win. They were considerably better during the season and the one advantage the Knicks had, which was a better offensive rating, wasn’t really the reason they won. The Cavs had the worst offensive rating in the playoffs (yes, worse than the Nets) and the Knicks had the best defensive rating, that was the reason. Really stepped up when it mattered.

You should see the Knicks net rating post-Cam. Then look post-Hart, the Cavs net rating looks down right adorable next to that one 😉

Seems fitting that we’d beat the team in the playoffs that was also the 1st victims of our revamped rotation

With Grimes being a game time decision today, I think we should expect him back on Sunday. Personally, I’d probably start Hart and bring Grimes in off the bench or at least limit his minutes. Grimes may need a couple of games to get sharp again. The much bigger issue is Randle. We could have used the Heat/Bucks series to go 7 to get some extra rest and recovery time for Randle. The Heat are a lot like us. They play ridiculously hard and keep fighting. They are going to be tough for us to beat without Randle unless someone steps up to a new level.

The impact of IQ and Obi on this game was immense. Are they core pieces to be invested in or just trade chips or castoffs? That’s the biggest queation yet to be answered…

I’m not optimistic about Grimes…he had the look of someone who tore something rather than contused something…but hopefully I’m wrong!

Shockingly on Inside the NBA 3 of the 4 are picking the Heat to beat the Knicks with only Barkley of all people picking the Knicks. I’m pretty sure none of them have actually watched an entire Knicks game this season until the playoffs.

Now the Bucks have got to just throw a gigantic bag of money at Nick Nurse right? How can you possibly keep Bud after this coaching malpractice?

I love that experts will all pick the Heat, feels better to come in as underdogs anyway against them.

The Heat are a very good defensive rebounding team and are elite at forcing turnovers, so this is an interesting matchup. On the flip side, they don’t have a lot of three point shooting, percentage-wise they were one of the worst 3pt shooting teams in the league, and they’re missing their main sniper. They’re really not very good offensively outside of Butler, and they have spacing issues and thin depth, much like Cleveland.

Could be some more low scores in these games.

As somebody who prefers this site when it’s in off-season mode, I can’t say I’m too happy about this rather shocking development.

***They’re really not very good offensively outside of Butler… Could be some more low scores in these games.***

On paper, yes. But they just averaged 130 ppg over a 5 game stunning of the #1 team in the league, so the paper may not be worth the paper the print is on.

Ouch! Giannis’ injury or not the Bucks laid a big egg.

Bud’s time’s over right?

Wow. Went to bed last night sure the Bucks would win. They were up 18 I think.

Just nuts

Just rewatched the Mitch O-boards. On almost all of them Allen was rotating or helping on the drive (Vecenie noted that Allen was trying to help too early and was out of position a lot in game 4
You can see his video breakdowns on YouTube).

At some point if you’re JB Bickerstaff, you need to change your scheme and tell Allen to stay home on Mitch at all costs. You need to live with Brunson going 1-on-1 when the Knicks are grabbing 40% of the offensive boards.

Part of it is definitelt personnel, Thibs looked terrible in the ATL series, but Bickerstaff got absolutely waxed this series.

Owensays:
April 27, 2023 at 06:35
Wow. Went to bed last night sure the Bucks would win. They were up 18 I think.

Just nuts

Oh it was even more nuts than you can imagine

Even if Julius and Grimes are both back to full health, I’m terrified of Playoff Jimmy. The only player we have who is roughly the right size to defend him is RJ, and even with his increased defensive effort in the Cavs series, I can’t imagine him slowing Butler down. Hart can play bigger than he is, but can he be big/strong enough to check this freaking monster?

And the Heat won’t let Mitch and iHart eat them alive on the offensive glass the way Cleveland did.

This is not me doing the bit. I’m so happy we won that series, but even with homecourt, I’m very worried.

MIL had the 4th best DRtg on the season. The Heat tied Sacramento’s all-time best ORtg for the series. That’s the side of the ball the Heat are supposed to be bad on.

I’m definitely worried. Jimmy is on another level right now.

If I knew the Bucks were such an epic collapse of collective crunchtime brain aneurysms, I’d have preferred to play the Bucks. Give me Brunson steadying the ship over Giannis brain farting away possessions.

Oh, and Spo >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Bickerstaff. And probably better than even Bizarro Bearded Thibs.

If I knew the Bucks were such an epic collapse of collective crunchtime brain aneurysms, I’d have preferred to play the Bucks. Give me Brunson steadying the ship over Giannis brain farting away possessions.

Holy shit, right? They looked like the fucking Detroit Pistons out there in crunch time.

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Part of it is definitelt personnel, Thibs looked terrible in the ATL series, but Bickerstaff got absolutely waxed this series.

Mitch didn’t play in the Atlanta series. We knew that was a big deal back then, but I guess we now know just how big of a deal it was.

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Oh, and Spo >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Bickerstaff. And probably better than even Bizarro Bearded Thibs.

Spo coached as hell of a series. It’s funny how the Knicks and the Heat might have gotten the opposing coaches of both of the team they beat fired this year.

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As somebody who prefers this site when it’s in off-season mode, I can’t say I’m too happy about this rather shocking development.

As I recall you don’t actually watch the games. So I’m interested, do you think the Heat should be favored?

I looked up our season record against the Heat

2/3 we won 106-104. Barrett 30 points
3/4 we won 122-120. Randle 43 points
3/23 we lost 127 to 120. Barrett 26 points
3/30 we won 101 to 92. Quickley scored 24

2/3 we won 106-104. Barrett 30 points
3/4 we won 122-120. Randle 43 points
3/23 we lost 127 to 120. Barrett 26 points
3/30 we won 101 to 92. Quickley scored 24

Man, that was a tight series. I think Herro not playing for them is a bigger deal than Randle missing part of the series for the Knicks.

I mean, the Knicks are going to lose either way, but still.

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