“Huh, I didn’t realize the Knicks had only played the Cavs once since they traded for Harden. The Knicks had a full roster, while the Cavs were missing Strus, and the Cavs won by 15. Huh. I doubt that means anything, but that DID surprise me.”

Brian, a little bit more context about the Knicks’ 15-point loss to the Cavs back on February 24:
1. It was in Cleveland.
2. We did *not* actually have a full squad. Deuce was out!
3. It was right after the All-Star Break, and Cleveland was our third game in four nights. (To be fair, it was the Cavs’ third game in five nights, but just sayin’.)
4. OG had 5 points in 34 minutes. If healthy, I doubt that we see a game like that from him coming up.
5. KAT only had 2 assists. He has a different role now.
6. Mitch dominated as expected with 11 points and 16 rebounds in 19 minutes. We should expect to see more of that.

In short, the Knicks of February 24 are vastly different than the Knicks of May 19, at least from what we’ve seen from them lately. Sure, we’ll be rusty for 6 minutes, but it shouldn’t change the outcome of the game, as they’ll be exhausted for 48 minutes. We contain two of out three of Donovan, Strus, and Merrill (just as we did with Maxey, Edgecombe, and Oubre), and we should be good. Our bigs should be able to easily handle their soft bigs.

Knicks in 5. Worst case Knicks in 6. Let’s take one game at a time (as easy as it is to look forward), and let’s get these two wins at home.