Celtics Face Must Win vs. Knicks

In one of the biggest twists of the NBA Playoffs to date, the New York Knicks have assured that it's not easy being green.

New York owns a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven conference semifinal set against the defending champion Boston Celtics after posting a 108-105 comeback victory in Monday's opener. It was enough to convince ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins, a center on Boston's 2008 championship group, that the Game 2 follow-up is a must-win for Boston.

"You can't afford to go down 0-2 to the Knicks, drop two straight at the crib and expect to go to Madison Square Garden and think things are going to be sweet," Perkins said during a Tuesday appearance on "First Take." "We're not going to sit up here and disrespect the New York Knicks and act like they don't have the personnel ... Hell yeah, this is a must-win for the Boston Celtics."

"If [the Celtics] go down 0-2, this series is over with." 👀@KendrickPerkins says Game 2 is a "must-win" for the Celtics to keep this series within reach. pic.twitter.com/wgAlHlr52n
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 6, 2025

Road warriors have proven to be particularly formidable in the conference semifinal round, as a home team has yet to win any of the five games staged to date. The Knicks' case, however, is particularly shocking: New York is not only up 1-0 on the most recent Larry O'Brien Trophy hoisters but earned the lead after dropping each of the four regular season meetings by a sizable average margin.

Perkins, who has routinely backed the Knicks on the Worldwide Leader's airwaves, is convinced that his former employers are against the ropes in the aftermath. The ex-center named Knicks point guard and captain Jalen Brunson as a major x-factor in pushing the Celtics to that point after he scored 29 points, 11 alone in the final period, in the Game 1 triumph.

"You go down 0-2, this series is over with," Perkins declared. "When you've a leader and your captain in big-body Brunson, a guy that's averaging 32 [points] in the postseason right now, and you've got Karl-Anthony Towns, who had a subpar game offensively [but] I feel is going to play better at home, you better win Game 2."

Only adding to Boston's desperation is some uncertainty on the medical front: reliable sub Sam Hauser is doubtful to appear in Game 2 due to an ankle injury while former Knicks franchise face Kristaps Porzingis is questionable after an illness interrupted his opener.

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