Cleveland rocks, but the New York Knicks have had their share of production near the Factory of Sadness.
The latest incarnation of the budding 2020s rivalry between the Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers is set to be staged on Tuesday night at Rocket Arena. It marks the first meeting between the two sides since the trade deadline earlier this month, when the Cavs took a big swing by acquiring James Harden.
New York has posted a 4-2 record since the deadline, adding a pair to the win column with a successful weekend. Less than 24 hours after erasing an 18-point deficit en route to a win over Houston at home, the Knicks staved off a valiant effort from the reeling Chicago Bulls to the tune of a 105-99 victory on Sunday night at United Center.
Karl-Anthony Towns shot 20-of-32 over the back-to-back pair, capping things off with a 27-point, 11-rebound double-double in Chicago. The latter victory pushed the Knicks to a season-best 16 games over .500.
With Harden in tow, Cleveland conjured a seven-game winning streak to bookend the All-Star break, but that came to an end with a 121-113 loss to defending champion Oklahoma City on Sunday. Harden, Sam Merrill, and Donovan Mitchell each put up 20 points. That wasn’t enough to keep the momentum rolling against a Thunder group still missing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Cavaliers have no doubt picked up the pace since their Christmas courting at Madison Square Garden, going 19-7 since the Knicks posted a comeback victory on Dec. 25. New York, however, has handled business to date, winning nationally-televised tilts against the Cavs on both Christmas Day and opening night.
The Knicks trailed by as much as 17 in the final frame of the holiday haunt before another Jalen Brunson masterclass gave way to 34 points and a 126-124 decision. Reserves Jordan Clarkson and Tyler Kolek united for 41 tallies while Mitchell Robinson snagged 13 rebounds.
Tuesday marks the third and final meeting between the Knicks and Cavs this season, and New York will go for its first sweep of the set since 2012-13. The Knicks have already secured a vital tiebreaker, as they lead fourth-place Cleveland by one game on the current Eastern Conference leaderboard.
What: New York Knicks (37-21) @ Cleveland Cavaliers (36-22)
Where: Rocket Arena, Cleveland, OH
When/Watch: Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. ET, MSG/Peacock
Who’s Favored: CLE -4.5
Keep An Eye On: Jose Alvarado
Trading for Alvarado isn’t exactly a nuclear Wojnarowski/Shams bomb. Considering the names moved at this deadline, it might not have even registered as a fictional thermal detonator.
But there’s no denying that Alvarado has perfectly defined the middle initial of “MVP” in his brief time as a Manhattanite, mostly recently coming to the Knicks’ rescue on both sides of the ball during the Saturday liftoff against the Rockets.
That puts Alvarado in a spotlight situation for the rest of the season, but he’ll be particularly relied upon against a Cleveland team that has posted the top offensive rating in the Association since Harden donned wine and gold.
Cav to Watch: Jarrett Allen
Amidst the Cavaliers’ wheeling and dealing (the trade deadline also acquired Dennis Schroder and former Mike Brown disciple Keon Ellis), sometimes you can’t mess with the classics. In Cleveland’s case, that department is headed by Mitchell and Allen, two of the lingering leftovers from the Cavs and Knicks’ 2023 playoff series that partly placed the East on its current course.
Set to go up against a resurgent Towns (as well as Mitchell Robinson, back from his traditional one-game absence enforced by back-to-backs), the tenure post man Allen has found a second wind since Harden’s arrival, averaging a double-double while posting the third-best rebounding percentage and ninth-best offensive rating in that span (since Feb. 4, min. 20 minutes/game).
They Said It
“I remember the belt-to-[butt] we received. You never want that game to translate to more. You know, 48 hours ago, we didn’t play our best, [but] we came out here and showed resiliency, even when we weren’t playing our best. It’s a testament to this team, not only what we show tonight, but the growth of our team and that resiliency that I think we saw a lot of last year, kind of showing his head again today.”—Towns on the Knicks’ comeback victory over Houston on Saturday (h/t Vincent Goodwill, ESPN)
“We haven’t even gotten to playing a two-man game together and [figured out] what that looks like. So I think as we build, you’ll start seeing that as well. But I think the biggest thing now is [that] we found something that works.”—Mitchell on collaborating with Harden (h/t AP)
Prediction
Last weekend allowed the Knicks to build some distance from their dreary return to action against the mighty Detroit Pistons last Thursday night. They managed to secure the necessary wins, but the fact that they needed Garden magic and a makeshift Bulls club to make things right hints at some lingering discomfort that’s hard to immediately exorcise.
Going up against a new-look Cavs team seeking a statement spells trouble, and it feels like the Knicks could finally get burned after playing with fire for just a little too long.
