The New York Knicks took full advantage of their ridiculous amount of open-to-wide-open looks during their Game 6, series-clinching blowout win over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night.
This was no mere aberration, of course, as the ball club ranked second during the regular season in most open field goal attempts per game with 30.6 and stormed into their latest contest leading all teams in uncontested field goal percentage this postseason at 64.0 percent.
Their high-end efficiency bodes well for a round two matchup against either one of their potential foes in the Celtics and 76ers, as the former is currently giving up the second-most open shots (closest defender within four to six feet) while the latter is letting up the most wide-open shots (closest defender is six or more feet away) during this year's playoff run thus far.
Needless to say, capitalizing on any type of advantage over an opposing team at this point in the season is crucial when it comes to pulling away victorious.
Fortunately for the Knicks, no matter who ends up advancing from Saturday's Game 7, it seems they already have the capability of capitalizing on one of Boston and Philadelphia's more pressing postseason weaknesses.
Knicks coming into round two well rested while Celtics, 76ers sweat it out
Frankly, seeing Boston or Philadelphia letting up a bevy of uncontested looks may become even more abundant in round two due to the sheer fact that they'll likely be coming in with an overwhelming amount of fatigue.
Though it may have seemed virtually impossible just a few short days ago, Jalen Brunson and company find themselves coming across some much-needed rest before the start of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, while their opponent will be forced to play Game 1 just 48 hours after the conclusion of a hard-fought, seven-game series in round one.
Frankly, outside of the fact that a 76ers win would give New York homecourt advantage, there seems to be no real preference when it comes to which of these teams the Knicks would rather face.
After all, dating back to last year's postseason, the Knicks have gone 7-3 against the Celtics over their last 10 games.
As noted earlier, every advantage matters at this point in the season. Be it an edge in the uncontested shooting department or the sheer fact that they'll have more well-rested legs, whether it's against Boston or Philadelphia, New York should find itself heading into a best-of-seven series with the odds of advancing in their favor.
Add us as a preferred source on Google