Going into the NBA Conference Finals, all eyes were on the most anticipated playoff series we have seen in years, as the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs face off in a battle of stacked young cores we expect to see deep in the playoffs for years to come.
But somehow flying under the radar out in the East, the New York Knicks have just put together the most dominant 10-game stretch in NBA history.
After falling down 2-1 to Atlanta in the first round, the Knicks won three straight to get past the Hawks, resoundingly swept the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round, and have now rattled off three straight to take a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals, extending their winning streak to 10 games.
New York has a +225 margin of victory over this stretch, the best in any 10-game span in NBA history, regular season or postseason.
While the Cleveland Cavaliers had the Knicks on the ropes in Game 1, up 22 points with eight minutes left, they have since looked completely outclassed in this series, and are on the verge of getting swept in their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance without LeBron James.
Can Cleveland prolong this series and give themselves a chance to head back to New York for a Game 5?
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First Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers ML (+105) over New York Knicks
Rundown: A team has never come down from 3-0 to win a series in NBA history, but winning Game 4 at home is a different story.
While the Cavs have looked absolutely deflated since their crushing collapse in Game 1, there are still key factors in this series that make it unlikely they go down without taking a game.
Three-point shooting is a major variable in any playoff series, and often swings in favor of the home team.
However, despite these teams being comparable three-point shooting teams in the regular season, with New York shooting 37.3% to Cleveland’s 36%, the Cavs are yet to have a solid shooting performance from beyond the arc in this series.
Even in Game 1 which they led for the majority of the contest, the Cavs shot just 32% from distance, and in Game 3 at home, shot an abysmal 29%.
To sweep a team, you’re going to have to fend off their best punch at least once, and it doesn’t feel like the Cavs have thrown it yet.
While James Harden has had an extremely up-and-down postseason, he’s yet to have a high-level performance in this series, scoring under 20 in all three games while shooting 41% from the field.
Additionally, while Donovan Mitchell has been solid in this series, averaging 26 a night, the star guard is due for a scoring explosion that we often see from him at least once in this series.
Mitchell is seventh all-time in NBA history in postseason points per game, and is sixth among active NBA players in 30-point playoff games with 36.
A better shooting night for the Cavs role players and an improved performance from their star backcourt should result in a decisive victory, so we’re bypassing the 2.5 points and taking Cleveland straight up.
Second Pick: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. New York Knicks – Over 218.5
Scott Galvin-Imagn Images
May 23, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Max Strus (2) moves with the ball in the fourth quarter against the New York Knicks during game three of the eastern conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Rocket Arena.
Rundown: I might sound like a broken record here, as I’ve picked the over in every game of this series, but it’s hard not to when you look at the combined offensive star power in this series.
The over is 2-1 through three games, and has been a trend for both teams through this postseason, as both the Knicks and Cavs have hit the over in six of their last nine games.
If the Cavs are to pull off the upset, it’s not going to be because of their defense, as the Knicks and Jalen Brunson have gotten every look they have wanted in this series.
Brunson has averaged 29 points with 8.7 assists per game in this series, and doubling him has just gotten the Cavs picked apart from the three-point line.
However, with cause for belief in a much better shooting night for Cleveland, expect this to be a high-scoring affair, making this a very enticing same-game parlay opportunity.