2026 NBA Playoffs - East First Round - #3 New York Knicks vs #6 Atlanta Hawks (ATL leads 2-1)

[SFour]

Knicks in 6 seems most likely.....wouldn't be surprised if Hawks pull off an upset though

[NYPiston]

The Hawks are becoming a trendy pick but a lot of those guys haven't seen playoff basketball and the Knicks know how to play playoff basketball so I see the Hawks getting treated a harsh lesson, similar to Charlotte against whoever they play. NBA playoff basketball is historically very unkind to inexperienced teams, the intensity from regular season to playoffs is night and day just as much if not moreso than any sport really.

[Lemmie_live]

Hawks will be leading by 15 with 6 minutes to go to force a Game 7 then lose. 4-2 Knicks

4-2 is 6 games. I do agree with the outcome though

[knicksstuff]

the Hawks are 18-6 in their lat 24 ..... only 7 of those come against teams in the top 6 of each conference

Rockets Loss
Pistons OT win no Cade
Boston Loss
Boston Win no Tatum
Knicks Loss
Cavs Loss
Cavs Win No DMitch or Allen

[knicksstuff]

How are the Hawks going to hide CJ on defense and how will they game plan for Dyson on offense being left alone due to his 3 point shooting

[djsunyc]

who's gonna take over the game for the hawks in the final minutes of a tight game?

[DaGawd]

who's gonna take over the game for the hawks in the final minutes of a tight game?

probably whoever is hot between mccollum and naw

[tmorgan]

The key here is KAT. Atlanta has good perimeter defenders to slow down Brunson, although hiding McCollum might be a challenge.

Atlanta has nobody to deal with Towns. If Towns can stay focused and avoid his usual playoff offensive fouls and generally goofiness, and if Brunson is wise enough to actually feed him the ball, he should go off in this series.

I agree with whomever said this is the series with the best chance for the underdog to win, but I don’t think it’s as high as a 20% chance. Atlanta’s going to need some good shooting in any game they win, and while they do have some good shooters, New York is going to force the weaker shooters into taking a lot of shots. Daniels has to step up in particular.

[ShootersShoot]

The Hawks are becoming a trendy pick but a lot of those guys haven't seen playoff basketball and the Knicks know how to play playoff basketball so I see the Hawks getting treated a harsh lesson, similar to Charlotte against whoever they play. NBA playoff basketball is historically very unkind to inexperienced teams, the intensity from regular season to playoffs is night and day just as much if not moreso than any sport really.

The hawks starting 5 actually all have been on playoff teams before..just with much reduced roles. I think KAT will be a tough matchup for them and interesting to see if OG can put the clamps on JJ

[jayu70]

The Hawks are becoming a trendy pick but a lot of those guys haven't seen playoff basketball and the Knicks know how to play playoff basketball so I see the Hawks getting treated a harsh lesson, similar to Charlotte against whoever they play. NBA playoff basketball is historically very unkind to inexperienced teams, the intensity from regular season to playoffs is night and day just as much if not moreso than any sport really.

Hawks playoff experience:

Read on Twitter

?s=20

[jayu70]

How are the Hawks going to hide CJ on defense and how will they game plan for Dyson on offense being left alone due to his 3 point shooting

Similar to how the Knicks will hide Brunson on defense?
Regarding Dyson left open for 3, an abysmal year shooting from 3 in the teens, until March/April at 31.3% (sss), but more in line with last and prior year percentages. Still problematic but Hawks counter by having Dyson in the dunkers spot, setting screens and running more of the offense per below. He has to stay moving.

Read on Twitter

[E-Balla]

This will be like the Pistons series last year or the Sixers 2 years ago. Knicks in 5 but it'll be 4 tight games. I trust JB in the playoffs but Atlanta has played us well and their perimeter defenders will make life hell for him.

[E-Balla]

The key here is KAT. Atlanta has good perimeter defenders to slow down Brunson, although hiding McCollum might be a challenge.

Atlanta has nobody to deal with Towns. If Towns can stay focused and avoid his usual playoff offensive fouls and generally goofiness, and if Brunson is wise enough to actually feed him the ball, he should go off in this series.

I agree with whomever said this is the series with the best chance for the underdog to win, but I don’t think it’s as high as a 20% chance. Atlanta’s going to need some good shooting in any game they win, and while they do have some good shooters, New York is going to force the weaker shooters into taking a lot of shots. Daniels has to step up in particular.

The issue is this year against them we haven't used KAT like we should. Mike Brown isn't in love with giving him the ball and telling him to get a bucket.

[Tacoma]

Also i would much rather go the knicks route because of if we do make it to round 2 i would much rather face the Pistons than the Celtics. Celtics have a ton of playoff experience and Detroit we somewhat matchup with and can give them a good fight i think.

The Hawks/Knicks are on the same side of the bracket as Boston.

For some reason i thought it was always best ranking played the worst ranking if you moved on to the next round. Which is why i was thinking if we won being ranked 6th we would get Pistons. Not sure why i had that in my mind or why i was thinking that. Sucks for us then celtics gonna be the toughest opponent for anyone imo.

Huh?? That's not what you said (see above). You said you'd "much rather go the Knicks route" because it leads to Detroit, which is what Chuck corrected you on because the " Knicks route" leads to BOS, not DET.

But even if we go with your revisionist thinking that there's no set route but rather it's always re-ranked best against worst each round, then (all else being equal) you'd still be the "worst" in round 2 thus still get Detroit no matter if you beat NYK or CLE, so your logic still doesn't make sense.

[LFGK]

5 games, 4 tight games, 1 blowout....they have no answer for Towns. The Brunson/KAT 2 man game will be a big part of the offense

[Daddy 801]

I’m very interested in this series. I don’t think it’s likely but this is the series in the east with a ton of upset potential. Quinn is a good coach and he has his guys rolling and believing in themselves.

[Scalabrine]

Jalen Johnson and NAW don't shoot well against the defense of OG and Bridges, so Knicks win 4-1. If Hawks get down 3-0, they probably get swept. Knicks fans will invade the State Farm Arena. In fact, there may be more Knicks fans than Hawks fans' there because the tickets are cheaper than MSG.

NAW shot the lights out the other night.

But it is facts.

Round trip flight to Atlanta: $150
Seats in the lower bowl: $200
Hotel room: $200

Any decent seats at the Garden start at like $800.

[whatisacenter]

Jalen Johnson and NAW don't shoot well against the defense of OG and Bridges, so Knicks win 4-1. If Hawks get down 3-0, they probably get swept. Knicks fans will invade the State Farm Arena. In fact, there may be more Knicks fans than Hawks fans' there because the tickets are cheaper than MSG.

NAW shot the lights out the other night.

But it is facts.

Round trip flight to Atlanta: $150
Seats in the lower bowl: $200
Hotel room: $200

Any decent seats at the Garden start at like $800.

Watching them lose to the Hawks….priceless!

[DaGawd]

Jalen Johnson and NAW don't shoot well against the defense of OG and Bridges, so Knicks win 4-1. If Hawks get down 3-0, they probably get swept. Knicks fans will invade the State Farm Arena. In fact, there may be more Knicks fans than Hawks fans' there because the tickets are cheaper than MSG.

NAW shot the lights out the other night.

But it is facts.

Round trip flight to Atlanta: $150
Seats in the lower bowl: $200
Hotel room: $200

Any decent seats at the Garden start at like $800.

Watching them lose to the Hawks….priceless!

still a worthwhile experience being able to attend an nba playoff game.. one msg is increasingly pricing fans out of..


spoiler:







knicks win btw

[celtxman]

Knicks in 6 with a series similar to last year's, Knicks- Pistons seriee