Knicks extend playoff win streak to nine, outscoring opponents by +221

The New York Knicks have opened the 2026 postseason with a level of week-to-week control that now reaches beyond their 2-0 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers. After Thursday’s 109-93 win in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals, New York has won nine straight playoff games and owns a plus-221 point differential through 12 games, according to an NBA post published on May 21. The league said that is the best point differential through 12 playoff games in NBA history. The Knicks are now two wins from the NBA Finals, which the league has scheduled to begin on June 3. ### How did the Knicks get to nine straight wins? The Knicks’ streak reached nine on May 21 when they beat Cleveland 109-93 at Madison Square Garden, according to NBA.com. That followed a 115-104 comeback win in Game 1 on May 19, when New York erased a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit with a 44-11 closing run. New York had already swept Philadelphia 4-0 in the conference semifinals after beating Atlanta 4-2 in the first round, according to the official playoff bracket. NBA.com described the Game 4 win over the 76ers as the Knicks’ franchise-record seventh straight postseason victory, which means the two wins over Cleveland pushed the run to nine. ### What does the plus-221 number actually measure? (nba.com) The plus-221 figure is total scoring margin, not average margin. Through 12 playoff games, the Knicks have scored 1,428 points and allowed 1,207, based on season-and-playoff totals compiled by Land of Basketball, producing the 221-point gap cited by the NBA. NBA.com had already flagged the scale of New York’s margins earlier in the run. (nba.com) After seven playoff games, the league said the Knicks were outscoring opponents by 20.6 points per game, a pace that “would be the best point differential in playoff history,” and after 10 games it said New York’s 19.4-point average margin was the best through two rounds in the 43 years of the 16-team playoff format. (landofbasketball.com) ### Which past teams are the Knicks being measured against? The NBA’s social post said New York’s plus-221 through 12 games surpassed the marks set by the 2017 Golden State Warriors and the 1996 Chicago Bulls at the same stage. StatMuse lists the 2017 Warriors finishing their full playoff run at plus-230 and the 1996 Bulls finishing at plus-190 overall, figures that help frame why those teams are standard historical comparisons. (nba.com) The comparison is notable because both of those teams won championships. The NBA post made that point directly in presenting the Knicks’ margin alongside those earlier title teams, according to the social briefing and the cited X post. ### Who has driven the Knicks’ latest wins? Josh Hart scored 26 points in Game 2, while Jalen Brunson recorded a playoff career-high 14 assists, according to NBA.com’s East finals coverage. (statmuse.com) In Game 1, Brunson scored 38 points as New York completed its late comeback. Jalen Brunson has also been central to the broader postseason run. (x.com) NBA.com’s playoff page highlighted him in its coverage of the East finals, and social discussion around the team has focused on how New York’s playoff results have accelerated during his tenure. ### What comes next in the series? Game 3 is scheduled for May 23 in Cleveland, with the Cavaliers returning home trailing 2-0 in the Eastern Conference finals, according to the official NBA playoff bracket. (nba.com) The same bracket shows a potential Game 4 on May 25 and the NBA Finals opening on June 3. Cleveland entered the conference finals after a seven-game series against Detroit, and NBA.com said Donovan Mitchell would need big performances to bring the series back to Madison Square Garden. (nba.com) New York, meanwhile, will try to extend a streak that has already produced one of the largest scoring margins the postseason has seen through 12 games.