Reaching the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999 would be historic for the New York Knicks, no matter how they pulled it off.
However, just winning the Eastern Conference title doesn’t come close to telling the full story of the Knicks’ run throughout the 2026 playoffs. On Monday, New York completed its second consecutive series sweep to lift the Larry Bird Trophy as the Eastern Conference champions. A total team effort without even one 20-point scorer led the Knicks to a 130-93 victory on the road over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Knicks have been at their best with a chance to close out a series
And having won every game of their sweep of the Cavaliers in convincing fashion, the Knicks became the first team since the 1950 Minneapolis Lakers to win every game of the round before the NBA Finals by double digits, and only the third team to ever advance in that manner.
New York’s dominance started well before the conference finals, too. The Knicks have been at their best with a chance to eliminate a team all postseason, putting up a margin of victory in close-out games of +51 against the Atlanta Hawks, +30 in the conference semifinals and then +37 on Monday night.