In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the New York Knicks will host the Cleveland Cavaliers. During the regular season, the Knicks won three of four meetings.
Latest Injury Report Cleveland Cavaliers vs. New York Knicks
This is the first postseason appearance for the Cavaliers since LeBron James was on the squad that fell to the Warriors in the 2018 NBA Finals.
The Cleveland Cavaliers finished the regular season with a record of 51-31 and are the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.
This season, Cleveland is 43-37-4 against the spread (including the playoffs), but the Cavs are only 18-20-3 on the road.
Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers, averaging 28.3 points per game, and Darius Garland was second on the team, averaging 21.6 points per game and a team-best 7.8 assists per game.
Mitchell has averaged 27.5 points per game and 10.5 assists per game in the first two playoff games, while Garland has averaged 24.5 points and 4.0 assists.
Both Cavs stars will be asked to lead the team in Game 3 against the Knicks.
Following the spectacular guard tandem of Garland and Mitchell, the Cavaliers will look for more consistency from the rest of their young core.
Caris LeVert is one of the players that has had ups and downs this season. LeVert shot 1 for 7 and finished with three points in Game 1, but rebounded to shoot 9 for 16 and finish with 24 points in Game 2.
Dylan Windler (foot) will not play in this game.
Windler played in just three regular-season games and will miss his third postseason game in a row. It’s unknown when he’ll be back, but his protracted absence will have little effect on the rotation.
Cedi Osman is a game-time decision for Game 3 against the Knicks.
Osman is in danger of missing his first game since March 8. He has played 19 and 23 minutes in the first two games of the series, thus his absence could mean greater playing time for Danny Green, Lamar Stevens, and Isaac Okoro.
The Knicks have a 47-35 regular season record and are the fifth seed in this postseason.
For Knicks fans, this has been a long time coming. This is only the second time since the 2012-13 season that New York has only made the playoffs once. In the first round of the 2021 playoffs, the Knicks were defeated by the Hawks in five games.
Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle have led the way for New York in the postseason.
Brunson is averaging 23.5 points per game in the postseason after scoring 24 points per game during the regular season. Randel is averaging 20.5 points per game and 9.0 rebounds in the first two playoff games after leading the team with 25.1 points per game and 10.0 rebounds throughout the regular season.
