Knicks host Sixers in Game 1

The Knicks and Sixers are finally on the board, and now the shape of the series is clear. Game 1 is Monday, May 4, at Madison Square Garden, with New York hosting Philadelphia at 8 p.m. ET. More important for fans, teams, and TV people — the NBA also filled in the whole early map of the series, so this is no longer a wait-and-see bracket slot. (nba.com) ### What got announced? The concrete news is the second-round schedule. New York and Philadelphia start Monday, May 4, in Manhattan. Game 2 stays in New York on Wednesday, May 6, at 7 p.m. ET. Then the series shifts to Philadelphia for Game 3 on Friday, May 8, at 7 p.m. ET, and Game 4 on Sunday, May 10, at 3:30(nba.com)May 14, and May 17. (nba.com) ### Where can people watch? Game 1 is on NBC and Peacock. Game 2 is on ESPN. Game 3 is on Prime Video. Game 4 is on ABC. That mix matters because the league is spreading playoff inventory across old-school broadcast TV, streaming, and cable partners, so “when is the game?” now also means “which app do I need?” (nba.com) ### Why is New York at home first? Because the Knicks are the No. 3 seed and the Sixers are the No. 7 seed in this matchup. The higher seed gets home court in the series, so New York hosts Games 1, 2, 5, and 7 if the series goes that far. That is the basic structural edge here — the Knicks do not need to steal one early on the road, but Philadelphia does. (nba.com) ### How did this matchup come together? Philadelphia earned it the hard way. The Sixers knocked out Boston in seven games, finishing the series with a 109-100 Game 7 road win. New York got here in a much louder way — the Knicks closed out Atlanta 140-89 in Game 6, a result the NBA’s playoff page highlighted as (nba.com) but with very different vibes: Philly survived a grinder, and New York blasted the door open. (nba.com) ### Who are the names to know? The NBA’s series page puts Tyrese Maxey and Karl-Anthony Towns right at the center. Maxey is listed as Philadelphia’s series leader from the first round at 26.9 points and 6.6 assists per game. Towns is listed for New York at 18.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 6.0 assists. Joel Embii(nba.com)ly after Philadelphia’s Game 7 win over Boston. Basically, this is not a role-player series — it is built around star shot creation and big-man pressure. (nba.com) ### What’s the rhythm of the series? Fast. Four games land in seven days. That means less practice time, less tactical reset time, and a lot more pressure on rotation choices and injury management. The first two games are only two days apart, then the travel switch comes immediately. If one team gets punched in Game 1, there is not much time to sit with it. (nba.com) ### Why does the schedule itself matter? Because second-round series do not feel real until the bracket slot turns into actual appointments. Once the dates, times, and networks are locked, ticket prices move, travel plans get made, and the matchup stops being hypothetical. ESPN’s schedule page already showed Ga(nba.com)market knows this is a heavyweight East series. (espn.com) ### Bottom line? The news is simple, but it matters: Knicks-Sixers starts Monday night in New York, and the first four games are now fully set. The bigger story is what that unlocks — a compressed, star-heavy East semifinal with home court in New York and very little breathing room for either side. (nba.com)