Cavs Playoff History vs. Knicks

The #4 seeded Cleveland Cavaliers are matching up with the #5 seeded New York Knicks for the 4th time in franchise playoff history. This will be a tough series, as the Knicks took the season series, 3-1.

Here is a quick recap of what happened in the past 3 matchups:

1. 1978: Knicks win, 2-0.

Cleveland entered the series having won the season series, 3-1. Campy Russell led the #4 seeded Cavs in this series with 27.5 points per game, backed up by 5 other scorers in double-figures, including fellow broadcasters Austin Carr and Jim Chones. However, home court advantage and balanced scoring were not enough to overcome an equally talented #5 Knicks team paced by Bob McAdoo's 34.0 points per game.

This would be the last of 3 playoff appearances under Coach Bill Fitch, who would lead the Boston Celtics to the 1981 NBA Championship. His hall of fame career would also include leading the 1985-1986 Houston Rockets (led by the Twin Towers, Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson) to the NBA Finals. This Rockets team lost to the Celtics and included a young guard at the end of the bench named Craig Ehlo.

2. 1995: Knicks win, 3-1.

The #6 Cavs and #3 Knicks split the season series, 2-2, and this was Cleveland's best past effort to beat New York in the playoffs. After a foul-plagued Game 1 loss, Chris Mills nailed a clutch 3-pointer to keep the Cavs ahead in Game 2. In Game 3, Danny Ferry took arguably the biggest shot of his career but missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer in the closing seconds. Sadly, fans booed as the Knicks pulled away at the end of Game 4.

With Coach Mike Fratello running a stalwart defense alongside a slow ball offense, the Cavs would close the books on the '80s Lenny Wilkens star influence in trading away Mark Price and Hot Rod Williams. (They did reacquire Mark West for the 1996-1997 season to help Tyrone Hill and Michael Cage in the post.) Meanwhile, the Knicks would fail to make it back to the NBA Finals for a rematch with the Rockets, blowing multiple leads during the series and falling to rivals Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers after Patrick Ewing missed a heavily contested, potential game-tying layup to close out Game 7.

3. 1996: Knicks win, 3-0.

#4 Cleveland looked poised to finally defeat #5 New York in the playoffs, having taken the season series 3-1 and narrowly pulling out home court advantage at the end of the season. However, All-Star point guard Terrell Brandon and veteran swingman Dan Majerle were the team's only double-digit scorers in the series as the rest of the offense struggled mightily. On the other hand, 5 of New York's top 6 rotation players scored in double-digits, led by John Starks.

Ownership would force Coach Fratello to speed things up following a win-or-go-home loss to close out the 1996-1997 season, including trading for Shawn Kemp and moving on from the core group of Terrell Brandon, Tyrone Hill, Chris Mills, and Bobby Phills. All the while, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls would beat the Knicks, 4-1, in 1996 en route to a second Three-Peat as NBA Champions in 1996, 1997, and 1998.

Zone Defense: The Rule Change Michael Jordan is Forgetting

In accordance with the release of the new NBA 2K11 basketball video game, legendary Chicago Bulls shooting guard Michael Jordan has returned to the media's spotlight. That is, Michael Jordan has caught the sports world's attention by saying that today's NBA rules would have allowed him to score 100 points in a game. No one is questioning Michael Jordan's uncanny ability to make plays, create shots, and score points. Michael Jordan is right in saying that, overall, today's rules favor offensive players, particularly guards. Much less contact is allowed in defensive play; some of what was legal when Jordan played (such as forearms and handchecking) is now deemed personal foul-worthy. Furthermore, with a 30-team league, talent is spread out more than it used to be, and players--while on average are more athletic today--come into the league much less fundamentally sound. However, Michael Jordan has forgotten about the re-emergence of zone defense in the NBA. True, ...

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Remembering the Last NBA Lockout

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The 2021-2022 NBA season has been quite the ride for the young Cleveland Cavaliers team. There have been ups and downs with multiple winning streaks but loads of injuries and illness. After the New Year’s Eve loss, the Cavs stand at 20-16 and 5th in the Eastern Conference. Coach J.B. Bickerstaff was rewarded for helping guide and teach the team with a Christmas Day contract extension through 2026-2027. Rajon Rondo joins to help fill the void left by Ricky Rubio and Collin Sexton, who both suffered from season-ending injuries. Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Evan Mobley are showing up as big-time players, with Isaac Okoro leading other up-and-coming players on the roster. Trade rumors continue regarding other big-name talent. Regardless, the Cavs are finding their stride this year. 2022 brings much basketball hope to Cleveland, including the NBA All-Star Game in February and hopefully a return to postseason play for the first time in 4 years.

560-342, 95-51 & counting

Picture: The sun shines on the LeBron James billboard across the street from the Q on Monday, April 17th, 2017. In 11 seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron Raymone James Sr. has helped lead his team to a 560-342 regular season record (average of 51-31 per season) and a 95-51 playoff record thus far. Prior to the two LeBron eras in Cleveland, the Cavs had compiled a modest playoff record of 28-49 with two Eastern Conference Finals appearances. It's been quite the ride. However, many analysts, fans, and other NBA conspiracy theorists are calling this weekend the end of the second LeBron-Cleveland era. If this is true, making four Conference Finals in a row, three NBA Finals in a row, and winning one NBA Championship will never be forgotten in Cleveland. No matter how many championships James ends up winning in his career, the 2016 win will always stand out. The Cavs defied all odds by coming back from a 3-1 series deficit to defeat a team with a historic 73-9 regular sea...

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