Who Ya Got? FanNation Predicts Knicks-Cavs & More

FanNation's experts shoot their shots on the New York Knicks' intriguing first-round series in the NBA Playoffs against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

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A hardwood party's about to tip off in Cleveland ... so All Knicks decided to invite some friends over

The writers and contributors to the basketball sites of FanNation band together to offer their thoughts on the coming series between the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers, commonly agreed to be the most attractive and story-laden of the eight NBA first-round playoff series that tip off over the weekend. Cleveland hosts the first two legs beginning on Saturday (6 p.m. ET, ESPN). 

Where do the experts of FanNation lean when it comes to New York-Cleveland and beyond?

Geoff Magliocchetti, Editor/Contributor, All Knicks

On paper, this season should be considered a success for the Knicks no matter what: they posted their best win total in a decade and year one of the Jalen Brunson era was everything a $104 million contract could've asked for and then some. 

There is, however, an undeniable, if not unspoken, Knicks tax where the simplest hardwood mistake or shortcoming in Manhattan is treated like guaranteed roundball comedy. Look no further than the success of the 2021 season, which lies mostly forgotten in the eyes of the broader basketball public that smirked at Trae Young's takeover of Madison Square Garden. If the Knicks fall to Donovan Mitchell's new team after spending a futile offseason recruiting him, the amateur comedians of NBA Twitter have a whole summer of fodder to work with. The potential of working with an injured All-Star in Julius Randle will only add to the star-crossed aura.

What's interesting about this Knicks group, however, is that they're set to partake in a relatively consequence-free playoff trip. The Brunson era and the potential further star power it can bring forth has them playing with house money. New York has also handled itself exceptionally well without Randle and has come to play against the elite competition of the East: removing an 0-3 mark against the top-ranked Milwaukee Bucks, the Knicks are 8-4 against the teams above them. 

It's too much to ask the Knicks to make a realistic run at the Larry O'Brien Trophy at this point in time. Exorcising the Mitchell demons with nothing to lose, however, is an admirable, attainable goal. 

Prediction: Knicks in 7

Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

Dalton Trigg, Editor-In-Chief, DallasBasketball.com

As far as I’m concerned, there are no hard feelings when it comes to the Jalen Brunson free agency situation that none of us can seem to escape. Mark Cuban might disagree with me there, but hey… the Dallas Mavericks had many opportunities to keep Brunson before he ever got to free agency, and it just didn’t happen. 

Brunson made the best decision for himself, as he now has the bigger role as lead point guard and $100+ million in his bank account while being on a much better team than Dallas put on the floor this season.

Anyway… back to the actual playoff series prediction. As someone who witnessed Brunson outplay Donovan Mitchell in the first three games of Dallas’ first-round series against the Utah Jazz last season with Luka Doncic sidelined, it’s hard for me to bet against the Knicks, whether Julius Randle is playing or not. My gut feeling is that Brunson will shine even brighter than he did this regular season while leading the Knicks to the second round … giving Mavs fans another reason to shake their fists at the sky.

Prediction: Knicks in 6

Matthew Legros, FanNation Contributor

The Knicks have grown since their 2021 first round loss to the Atlanta Hawks. But a lingering question remains: can New York's big three of Randle, Brunson, and Barrett penetrate amongst the trees and, more importantly, get to their spots even when they're forced right? 

That will be the biggest factor in their success. Brunson proved he could do it in Dallas, but he'll need Randle and Barrett to improve upon respective field goal percentages of 29.8 and 38.8 against Atlanta in what was a stifled attack two years ago.

For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell is a prolific scorer, but Cleveland's lack of deep playoff experience may catch up to them. Nonetheless, the defensive size, prowess, and talent of Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, combined with the reliability of Mitchell and Darius Garland's scoring, give the Cavs a narrow edge over the Knicks in a seven-game thriller of a series.

Prediction: Cavs in 7

David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Jeremy Brener, FanNation Contributor

The Knicks and Cavaliers present arguably the most even matchup out of any of the eight first round series. When I look at who may win, I pay attention to the biggest matchups.

Evan Mobley will almost certainly draw the assignment to guard Julius Randle throughout the series. As a potential Defensive Player of the Year, Mobley will give Randle all he can take in his playoff debut.

Jalen Brunson hopes to match his 2022 postseason magic with the Mavericks, and, with Randle being guarded by Mobley, he'll likely have to be the MVP for the series if the Knicks want to win. If he can match the output of Donovan Mitchell, the Knicks have a shot to win.

Ultimately, experience is pretty even on both sides. But Cleveland's firepower I think will prove too much for New York.

Prediction: Cavs in 7

Matt Guzman, FanNation Contributor

If the Knicks want to pull this one off, they are going to have to rely on their key pieces. Needless to say, that means Julius Randle, who — even without an extensive amount of playoff minutes — has already earned a less-than-favorable reputation when it comes to the postseason.

New York has relied heavily this season on its core of Randle, first-year Knick Jalen Brunson, and a mixture of both Immanuel Quickley and R.J. Barrett — two young stars with plenty of potential — and will no doubt be looking to them to generate offense against Cleveland’s top-five defense spearheaded by the second-year center Evan Mobley.

Donovan Mitchell presents an entirely different challenge as well, being a top-10 guard who has proven capable of dropping upwards of 70 points with the kind of explosiveness needed to will a team to victory in the postseason. Mitchell has only gotten better with time, averaging his career-best 28.3 points, and having never won a championship — he will be entering the series hungry.

I think that Cleveland’s home-court advantage will play a factor, though when it comes time for the Cavs to travel to Madison Square Garden, the NBA world may just meet a new villain. The Randle-Mitchell matchup will be a fun one to watch, nonetheless. We’ll just have to see if Randle can reset the narrative that surrounds his “playoff mode”.

Prediction: Cavs in 5

Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports

Best of the Rest

Series/Writer	Magliocchetti	Brener	Guzman	Trigg
Bucks vs. Heat	Bucks in 4	Bucks in 5	Bucks in 5	Bucks in 4
Celtics vs. Hawks	Celtics in 6	Celtics in 5	Celtics in 5	Celtics in 5
76ers vs. Nets	76ers in 5	76ers in 4	76ers in 4	76ers in 6
Nuggets vs. Timberwolves	Nuggets in 6	Nuggets in 5	Nuggets in 4	Nuggets in 5
Grizzlies vs. Lakers	Grizzlies in 5	Grizzlies in 7	Lakers in 7	Grizzlies in 6
Kings vs. Warriors	Warriors in 6	Warriors in 6	Warriors in 5	Warriors in 7
Suns vs. Clippers	Suns in 6	Suns in 4	Suns in 6	Suns in 6

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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