Knicks vs. 76ers Game 5 Preview: How, Who to Watch
You want Philly Philly? The New York Knicks have certainly had enough.
Up 3-1 in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals' best-of-seven series, the Knicks have a chance to dispose of the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 5 on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks have not won at least one playoff series in consecutive seasons since a nine-year tally between 1992 and 2000.
New York dealt a sizable blow in the latter of two games staged at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center on Sunday afternoon, earning a 97-92 decision behind the brilliant 47-point effort of Jalen Brunson, one that set a new franchise playoff record for points in a single game. For as much as they put on the board, the Knicks were equally adept at keeping things off it, holding Sixers franchise face Joel Embiid to but a single point in the final period of Game 4.
The Knicks did most of their damage with only seven men in their rotation, having lost both Bojan Bogdanovic and Mitchell Robinson to lower body injuries. Bogdanovic has been ruled out for Tuesday's game while Robinson is questionable, his minutes taken over by Precious Achiuwa in relief. Brunson is also listed as probably,having briefly left Tuesday's game after some knee-on-knee contract with Kyle Lowry forced him to miss the onset of the fourth period.
What: Philadelphia 76ers @ New York Knicks, Eastern Conference Quarterfinals Game 5 (Knicks lead series 3-1)
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
When/Watch: Tuesday, 7 p.m. ET, MSG/TNT
Who's Favored: NYK -4.5
Keep An Eye On: Jalen Brunson
Beyond participation in a certain event come June, what more can he do? What more can Jalen Brunson do? The metropolitan point guard has continually answered that question with increasingly impressive responses, the latest being his historic output on Sunday in his former collegiate stomping grounds. With a clinching opportunity on the line and the Knicks well aware of the implications of letting Embiid and Co. linger, Brunson has a chance to offer one of his loudest statements yet.
Sixer to Watch: Tobias Harris
No matter what happens on Tuesday, the 76ers' headliners are going to be OK: Embiid's MVP prowess speaks for itself and Tyrese Maxey is poised to be a problem for the foreseeable future. The fact of the matter is that the Knicks can survive their scoring bouts: problems instead surface when the supporting cast contributes ... remember Kelly Oubre's output from Game 3? Harris is working through the final stages of a five-year, $180 million contract, one that the Philadelphia fateful has had no issue voicing their displeasure over. Harris has struggled to score ... averaging less than nine a game over the first four ... but he's been one of the few hopes the Sixers have had of keeping up with New York's rebounding prowess. It'll take his best effort yet to assist Embiid and keep this rollercoaster season alive.
They Said It
“I’m going to continue to say it: we’ve got to be better if we want to close it out and move onto the next round because this team is not going to quit fighting."-Jalen Brunson on the importance of clinching in Game 5 (h/t Stefan Bondy, New York Post)
Prediction
It has finally arrived: the most prominent of the Knicks' manageable tasks this season, a huge opportunity to turn first-round advancement into a relative norm for a new generation in Manhattan. Homecourt advantage feels like a moot point considering the weekend's metropolitan invasion, but the Knicks will want to stomp out all hope as quickly as they can. It hasn't been the prettiest series but there's a chance to win it cleanly ... and ignite the first (of four?) major parties outside of MSG.
Knicks 100, 76ers 97
GEOFF MAGLIOCCHETTI
Editor-In-Chief at All Knicks