Knicks complete sweep of Sixers, advance to Eastern Conference finals

The Knicks didn’t just close out the Sixers. They detonated the series. New York beat Philadelphia 144-114 on Sunday, May 10, to finish a 4-0 second-round sweep and get back to the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight season. The big thing wasn’t just the margin. It was how cleanly the Knicks solved this matchup — with pace, spacing, and a three-point avalanche Philadelphia never really contained. ### Why did this one feel over so fast? Because New York’s offense hit the kind of ceiling that breaks playoff games open. The Knicks made 25 three-pointers in Game 4, which set a franchise playoff record and tied the most threes ever made in an NBA playoff game. Once that started snowballing, Philadelphia’s defense had no stable answer — help too much and New York sprayed the ball out, stay home and the Knicks attacked gaps. (nba.com) ### What was the final score, exactly? It was 144-114, and that number matters because 144 in a closeout road game is absurd. New York had already won the first three games 137-98, 108-102, and 108-94, so this wasn’t some weird one-night outlier. The sweep was comprehensive — two blowouts, one solid road win, one competitive game that still tilted Knicks late. (nba.com) ### Who drove it for New York? The series belonged, broadly, to Jalen Brunson and the Knicks’ two-way wings. Brunson averaged 29.0 points and 6.0 assists across the four games, and New York kept getting scoring support from multiple spots instead of leaning on one bailout creator. That’s the part that makes them dangerous — the offense can run through Brunson, but it doesn’t stop with him. (nba.com) ### What went wrong for Philadelphia? The Sixers never found the offensive consistency or defensive shape to slow this down. Their series average was just 102.0 points, and by Game 4 the math got brutal — New York’s spacing pulled the defense apart, while Philadelphia couldn’t generate enough efficient offense to keep up possession for possession. Once the Knicks got comfortable from deep, the game turned into a scoreboard chase the Sixers were built to lose. (nba.com) ### Was this just hot shooting? Partly — but not in the fluky sense. Hot shooting always looks random from a distance, but the Knicks created the kind of shots that make a heater sustainable for a night. Basically, they turned the floor into a pick-your-poison problem. Help on Brunson, and shooters get daylight. Stay attached to shooters, and New York gets cleaner drives and kickouts later in the possession. (nba.com) That’s why 25 threes can be both outrageous and still feel earned. ### What changes now? Now the Knicks wait for the winner of Pistons-Cavaliers. That rest matters. Sweeping means less wear, more prep time, and a chance to get into the East finals without the drag of a six- or seven-game semifinal. In playoff terms, that’s not a side benefit — that’s real equity. ### Why does this matter beyond one series? (nba.com) Because this is no longer a nice run. It’s a repeatable one. Back-to-back Eastern Conference finals trips change the way a team gets discussed — from fun contender to actual power. The Knicks didn’t survive this round. They owned it. The bottom line is simple: New York looked deeper, sharper, and way more modern than Philadelphia in this matchup. (nba.com) A sweep can hide weird bounces sometimes. This one didn’t. The Knicks were just better — and Game 4 made that impossible to argue with. (nba.com)