Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Knicks Ready For Blessing ... and Curse? ... of Madison Square Garden
Could there ever be too much of a good thing? The New York Knicks are about to find out.
The Knicks' Eastern Conference playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers moves to their Manhattan dwelling for Game 3 on Friday (8:30 p.m. ET, MSG/ABC) after splitting the opening pair of the best-of-seven at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Professional postseason basketball thus returns to Madison Square Garden after a one-year absence.
Knicks fans' support of their team was well-documented after the first and only playoff win of the squad's last visit against Atlanta, as the MSG faithful treated a Game 2 victory in the quarterfinal round no different from a triumph in the NBA Finals. Making their exuberance all the more notable was the volumes they created despite a limited number of tickets being sold as the NBA Playoffs operated under toned-down settings due to restrictions in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Five members of the Knicks' regular rotation will be partaking in their first-ever MSG playoff game ... at least as a member of the primary tenant.
"It’s going to be a great place to play," point guard Jalen Brunson, per Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post. "It’s always been the best place to play in the league. It’s going to be unreal. I just know that it’s going to be an electric atmosphere, for sure."
Brunson and one of his newest teammates, Josh Hart, are well-versed in victorious affairs on MSG's hardwood: the two helped Villanova University win the 2017 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament and each added one more for good measure on their own. From the minute the Knicks clinched their playoff spot earlier this month, Hart, previously a playoff virgin, expressed his desire to see the Garden in playoff mode.
"I'm extremely excited, personally, because that's something that I wanted to do and I haven't had that opportunity in the last five years," Hart said. "I can't wait to see the Garden rocking during that time."
The loyalty and noisemaking ability of Knicks fans is unquestionable. But now comes the hard part: the team successfully defending its hardwood, especially in the wake of a one-sided loss in Game 2 on Tuesday.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau offered a somber reminder in the report from Vaccaro, acknowledging that fan volume doesn't end up in the final box score. If it did, the Knicks certainly wouldn't be closing in on a five-decade title drought.
“It’s always an advantage to play at home if you’re giving them things to cheer about," Thibodeau said. "But if you’re relying on them to win the game they can’t win the game for you. They can bring energy to the game. We know we have we feel the best arena, best fans, best city. So go out there and play the best you can, do it together, and play smart. If we do that we know our fans will respond to that.”
The Knicks have won six of their past 10 home playoff games, which has followed up a seven-game losing streak. New York has not clinched a playoff series at home since the 1999 conference finals against Indiana.
"It can be good or bad, depending on how you use it," All-Star Julius Randle likewise warned. “The crowd’s going to be on our side, it’s going to be a lot of fun. MSG’s going to be rocking. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be hard to talk. The floor’s going to be shaking, all that different type of stuff."
"It’ll definitely be a cool atmosphere to play in. You’ve just got to stay poised out there, be in the moment. Realize what you have to do. The game is still the same. It’s still the same game, regardless of everything that’s going on out there.”
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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