The Eastern Conference's fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and fifth-seeded New York Knicks meet in the first round of the 2023 NBA playoffs. The two franchises haven't faced off in the postseason since 1996 — a best-of-five series in which, as luck would have it, the fifth-seeded Knicks swept the favored Cavs, 3-0.
The big question, again, is where Bickerstaff turns for the fifth member of the lineup. For much of the season, it's been Caris LeVert — the best combination of complementary ballhandling, north-south driving juice, shooting and positional size on offer. Cleveland'sIf Okoro's healthy, though, he's probably the first pick in this particular matchup, largely because the first step to grinding out the Knicks offense is slowing down Brunson.
If Okoro's in the lineup for his defense, you can bet New York will overload its coverage to try to slow down Mitchell and Garland, pack the paint and funnel the ball to him in the corner, and force him to sing for his supper. He couldn't do that last spring; he missed all four 3-pointers he took in the play-in games against Brooklyn and Atlanta, and Cleveland got
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