Knicks complete 4-0 sweep of 76ers, advance to Eastern Conference finals
- New York crushed Philadelphia 144-114 in Game 4 on May 10, finishing a 4-0 second-round sweep and sending the Knicks back to the East finals. - The knockout punch was absurd shotmaking — an NBA playoff-record 11 first-quarter threes, 25 made threes total, and 39 points from Jalen Brunson. - It puts the Knicks in a second straight conference finals and gives them rare rest after a one-sided series.
The Knicks didn’t just finish off the 76ers. They detonated the series. New York beat Philadelphia 144-114 on Sunday, May 10, to complete a 4-0 second-round sweep and reach the Eastern Conference finals again. The score matters, but the way it happened matters more — this was a full-on avalanche of threes, pace, and confidence that made the series look over long before the final buzzer. ### How bad was Game 4? It got ridiculous almost immediately. The Knicks set an NBA postseason record with 11 made threes in the first quarter, then kept firing until they finished with 25 for the game, tying the playoff record for total threes in a game. That’s not just “hot shooting.” That’s the kind of shotmaking that breaks a team’s spirit and empties any suspense out of an elimination game. (dr1.com) ### Who drove it? Jalen Brunson was the headliner again, because of course he was. He scored 39 points in the closeout and kept controlling the game whenever Philadelphia hinted at a push. But this wasn’t a one-man rescue act. Deuce McBride drilled seven threes and scored 25, and the Knicks got the kind of supporting offense that turns a star-led team into a real contender. (bostonglobe.com) ### Was the whole series this lopsided? Basically, yes. New York opened the matchup by smashing Philadelphia 137-98 in Game 1, then kept squeezing the life out of the series. By Game 3, the Knicks were already up 3-0 after a 108-94 road win behind Brunson’s 33 points. So Game 4 wasn’t a sudden collapse by the 76ers — it was the loudest version of a trend that had been there all round. (nbcnewyork.com) ### Why does the sweep matter so much? Because sweeps buy time, and time is gold in May. The Knicks are heading to the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight year, but this time they get there without a dragged-out six- or seven-game tax. That means more recovery, more prep, and fewer minutes piled onto Brunson and the rest of the rotation before the next series starts. (espn.com) ### What does this say about the Knicks? It says they’re not sneaking anywhere anymore. New York’s defense swarmed Philadelphia all series, and the offense looked way more explosive than a grind-it-out playoff team is supposed to look. When a team can win one game with half-court control and another by raining 25 threes, that team gets much harder to scheme against. (nba.com) ### And what about the 76ers? The ugly part for Philadelphia is that this wasn’t some heartbreaking near miss. The 76ers got overwhelmed early in the series and never really found a counter. A second-round sweep means the questions get bigger fast — roster construction, top-end shot creation, defensive answers, all of it. When a series ends 4-0, nobody gets to hide inside “we were close.” (nba.com) ### So what’s the real takeaway? The Knicks look like a team arriving, not just advancing. Brunson is still the engine, but the bigger story is that New York just blasted a playoff opponent off the floor and walked into the conference finals with momentum and rest. That’s the profile of a team that thinks the season’s biggest games are still ahead. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2)
