After an offseason that was full of Donovan Mitchell-New York Knicks rumors, the Cavaliers swooped in and traded for the former Jazz star. Instead of sending him to Utah in a trade, the Knicks signed RJ Barrett to a four-year extension and kept hold of their first-round picks.
Led by Mitchell, Cleveland has been one of the top teams in the East this season. The 26-year-old returned to Salt Lake City as an All-Star starter and is averaging a career-high 27.4 points and is shooting a career-high 47.4% from the field. Not only has Mitchell helped elevate the Cavaliers, but Lauri Markkanen was voted an All-Star and has helped to transform a Utah team that many thought would be one of the worst in the West.
Now that six months have passed since it became official that Mitchell wouldn’t be suiting up for New York in 2022-23, there’s a high possibility that the Knicks and Cavaliers will meet up with one another in the first round of the playoffs. Sure, Cleveland’s good, but so is New York. After losing three straight, though, the Knicks were bumped down to No. 6 while the Cavaliers still sit at No. 4. New York has to get back to the No. 5 spot to face Cleveland, assuming that the Cavaliers will remain No. 4.
Although the playoff series would be a rollercoaster ride for Knicks fans, it’s one that the fanbase should be rooting to happen.
3 reasons Knicks fans should be pulling for New York-Cleveland first-round playoff matchup
3: One of the league’s best playoffs matchups
The Knicks and Cavaliers meeting in the first round would be chaos but in the best way. Donovan Mitchell has notoriously performed well in the playoffs, but let’s not forget what Jalen Brunson did with the Mavericks last season. In fact, it was Dallas that ended Utah’s season in the first round of last year’s playoffs. Will Brunson do the same to Mitchell next month?
Even with a couple of disappointing losses, New York has gelled together at the right time. Brunson has been consistently great for the Knicks (although he has been out with a foot injury), Julius Randle is back playing at an All-Star level, Mitchell Robinson is healthy and a double-double machine, and Josh Hart and Immanuel Quickley have been superb off the bench.
As for Cleveland, Mitchell hasn’t shown signs of slowing down, Evan Mobley has made a huge leap in his second season, Jarrett Allen sits alongside Mobley as one of the top defensive big men in the league, and Darius Garland is flying under the radar but he shouldn’t be.
It may just be the first round, but Knicks-Cavaliers has the potential to be one of the best series that NBA fans will get to see in the playoffs.
2: Knicks’ bench has the advantage
New York might not have traded for a big-name star during the offseason or ahead of the deadline, but the team did get Josh Hart. He’s pretty much a star, right?
Hart has been incredible since playing his first game with the Knicks. Not only does he play both ends of the floor, but he’s been excellent at crashing the boards. That will come in handy if New York has to deal with Mobley and Allen in the first round.
Don’t forget about Immanuel Quickley, who has found himself in the conversation for the Sixth Man of the Year award. He’s made quite the jump in his third year in the league. The work that he’s put in has paid off. His career-high 38-point performance in a double overtime win over Boston is proof of that.
While the Knicks’ bench has vastly improved, the Cavaliers’ bench has been a sore topic of conversation. Cleveland has Dean Wade, who lit up the Knicks with 22 points (6-of-8 from three) in the Cavs’ 121-108 win on Oct. 30, but his shot hasn’t been falling. He’s shooting 36.2% from three and averaged only 2.7 points in the team’s previous 15 games. What’s worse is that he shot 26.5% from three and 32.6% from the field during that span.
There’s also Cedi Osman, who is inconsistent, and Ricky Rubio, who has mainly been a non-factor this season after returning from a knee injury. Caris LeVert is still on the roster after there were trade rumors floating around about him before the deadline. LeVert isn’t a threat from deep but he could disrupt New York on the defensive end.
There are far too many question marks about Cleveland’s bench depth to believe that the team is going to make a run in the playoffs. The Knicks have a clear advantage over the Cavaliers in this regard and it could be what pushes New York to the second round.
1: End the Donovan Mitchell talk with a series win
The only thing that has put the Donovan Mitchell-Knicks talk on hold is how New York has played as of late. Because the Knicks are the Knicks, the organization was clowned for not cashing in for the 26-year-old.
In retrospect, New York might’ve lost players like Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes to Utah in a deal. Yes, Mitchell is a star, but this Knicks team would look drastically different. Not caving to Danny Ainge’s demands hasn’t put New York in the bad position that many assumed it would.
Mitchell could decline his $37 million player option during the 2025 offseason and enter free agency, but who knows what the Knicks will look like at that point. For now, though, there’s no use in continuing to dwell on what might’ve been.
A first-round playoff series between the Knicks and Cavaliers would be must-watch basketball simply because of it being the team that everyone thought Mitchell would end up on versus the team that actually got him. Not only would Knicks fans be able to rejoice about advancing to the second round of the playoffs for the second time in this century if New York knocked off Cleveland, but the series win should end the Donovan Mitchell-Knicks talk once and for all.
Yes, Stephen A. would likely still be screaming on First Take about it, but he doesn’t count. What would count is sending Mitchell and the Cavaliers packing when it mattered.
New York and Cleveland meeting up in the first round would be full of some of the most stressful moments that Knicks fans have experienced in a while (and that’s saying something), but it would also be a prime opportunity for New York to prove that this year’s team has what it takes to survive and advance.
New York Knicks all-time draft bust starting 5
The history of the New York Knicks is littered with poor draft picks. Here is the all-time draft bust starting five, stuffed with frontcourt players.