The Knicks versus the Cavaliers was the lone NBA first-round playoff series featuring a top-five defense (Cavaliers) against a top-five offense (Knicks).
Thus far, defense has gone a good distance toward determining the leader after three games. But the main focus, in hindsight, was on the incorrect team’s defense. The Knicks’ ability to shut down the Cavaliers has given them a 2-1 lead within the best-of-seven series heading into Game 4 on Sunday on the Garden.
“Their defense is certainly excellent, but so is ours,” RJ Barrett said.
No one would argue with that now.
The Knicks have held Cleveland under 100 points twice. They limited them to 79 points Friday night in a Game 3 rout — the primary time this whole season a team has did not rating not less than 80 points.
In reality, the Cavaliers’ two lowest scoring outputs this yr have come against the Knicks; they were held to 81 points on the Garden on Dec. 4.
“It was nasty, like a variety of games have been with them this season,” Cavaliers guard Caris LeVert, a former Net, said.
Within the Game 3 blowout, the Cavaliers struggled within the paint and shot just 58.5 percent. Knicks defensive anchor Mitchell Robinson, in his first postseason motion, was a significant a part of that.
He blocked two shots, added two steals and deterred Cleveland on several occasions.
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Asked afterward if the Cavaliers appeared rattled, Robinson said “probably” and made a shivering gesture.
For thus much of this surprising season, the Knicks were defined by their offense, shattering the narrative that Tom Thibodeau was strictly a defensive coach.
Led by the high-scoring duo of Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle, they were tied for third within the league in offensive rating at 117.0.
Their defensive rating was nineteenth at 114.2, in comparison with Cleveland’s league-leading 109.9 figure.
The Cavaliers allowed an NBA-low 106.9 points per game, nearly three points higher than the second-ranked Heat.
The Knicks have struggled against that defense, averaging 96.7 points and shooting just 42 percent from the sector.
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But they’ve a 2-1 series lead due to how they’ve performed on defense, resembling how a Thibodeau-coached team is imagined to look this time of yr.
“Two out of the three games we went on the market and just played hard,” Barrett said. “I believe the harder-playing team is the one which’s going to win. … So we’ve got to give you the option to bring that fight.”
Donovan Mitchell scored 38 points in Game 1, but was held to 39 combined points in the following two contests, with eight turnovers.
Fellow All-Star guard Darius Garland exploded for 32 points in Game 2, but had just 27 combined points on 11-for-34 shooting in the opposite two games.
Emerging young forward Evan Mobley has mostly been a non-factor on the offensive end, averaging 10.3 points.
The Cavaliers have committed 17.7 turnovers per game, probably the most of any team within the playoffs, and the Knicks have scored a whopping 28.6 points off those turnovers.
Friday night, Cleveland turned the ball over 21 times — a combined nine by the star-studded backcourt duo of Mitchell and Garland — resulting in 28 Knicks points.
The 2 teams have now played seven times this yr, and the Knicks have won five times.
The games on the Garden have gone decidedly in favor of the orange and blue.
They’ve won all three meetings there against the Cavaliers, and have held Cleveland to a median of 87.6 points in those victories.
It has been the driving force of their current position of being accountable for the series — that and the force they’ve played with in two of the three games.
“Just from what I’ve seen on this series, [the key is to have] a variety of heart,” Barrett said. “Go on the market and lay it on the road.”
