Knicks' Halftime Blowout of Hawks Reached Historic Levels of Dominance

New York took a 83–36 lead into halftime.

New York Knicks guard Mikal Bridges helped his team to the biggest lead in NBA playoff history. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Knicks are ready to put the Hawks out of their misery.

On Thursday night, in Game 6 of their series with Atlanta, New York was utterly dominant from right out of the gate and shattered the NBA record for the largest halftime lead in a playoff game.

Led by OG Anunoby’s 26 points and a smothering defense, the Knicks entered the locker room leading 83–36. That 47-point lead bested the previous record of 41, which has been done twice. The Cavaliers led the Boston Celtics 72-31 at the break during Game 2 of the 2017 Eastern Conference finals, while the Knicks were on the receiving end of a 41-point deficit last year when the Pacers led them 80-39 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Here’s a look at the five biggest halftime leads in NBA playoff history.

YEAR	TEAM	OPPONENT	HALFTIME MARGIN
2026	New York Knicks	Atlanta Hawks	47
2017	Cleveland Cavaliers	Boston Celtics	41
2025	Indiana Pacers	New York Knicks	41
1987	Detroit Pistons	Washington Bullets	40
2025	Cleveland Cavaliers	Miami Heat	39

The lead was so large, it tied for the second-biggest in NBA history, regular season or the playoffs. The record remains the Mavericks’ 50-point lead on the Clippers from December 27, 2020, but New York tied Golden State’s 88-41 lead over the Kings from November 2, 1991.

A look at where this performance stacks up all-time below.

YEAR	TEAM	OPPONENT	HALFTIME MARGIN
2020	Dallas Mavericks	Los Angeles Clippers	50
1991	Golden State Warriors	Sacramento Kings	47
2026	New York Knicks	Atlanta Hawks	47
2024	Boston Celtics	Golden State Warriors	44
1967	Seattle Supersonics	Boston Celtics	44
2014	Dallas Mavericks	Philadelphia 76ers	44

The Knicks had three players in double figures, as Mikal Bridges scored 16, while Jalen Brunson added 13. Perhaps most impressive was the team’s efficiency. They were 28-for-43 (65%) from the floor, 7-for-16 (44%) from three-point range and 20-for-22 (91%) from the foul line.

The offense was impressive, but New York also completely shut down the Hawks. Atlanta mustered 36 points on 39 attempts from the field, while shooting 31%. CJ McCollum, who has been a thorn in the Knicks’ side during the series, was limited to nine points, while Jalen Johnson had 11 and Jonathan Kuminga was limited to three in 12 minutes off the bench.

While the margin was the headline, the Knicks also scored 83 points, which is the third-most in the first half of a playoff game. The record of 87 was set by the Thunder against the Nuggets last year.

YEAR	TEAM	OPPONENT	HALFTIME POINTS
2025	Oklahoma City Thunder	Denver Nuggets	87
2017	Cleveland Cavaliers	Golden State Warriors	86
2026	New York Knicks	Atlanta Hawks	83
2003	Dallas Mavericks	Sacramento Kings	83
1983	San Antonio Spurs	Denver Nuggets	82
1987	Los Angeles Lakers	Denver Nuggets	82

The Knicks’ first half performance was historic on several levels, and it looks like they’ve punched their ticket to the second round.

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