New York Knicks advance to East finals

The New York Knicks are back in the Eastern Conference finals after a 144-114 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on May 10 finished a 4-0 second-round sweep. NBA.com said the victory sent New York to the conference finals for the second straight season, extending a postseason run that had already included a six-game first-round series win over Atlanta. Oklahoma City has already clinched the Western Conference finals, while the Knicks are still waiting for the East bracket to settle. ### How did New York clinch the spot? Philadelphia was the site of the clincher, and the Knicks closed the series with one of their highest-scoring playoff games of the spring. NBA.com’s game recap said New York made 18 three-pointers in the 30-point win and completed the sweep behind what it described as a swarming defense and hot outside shooting. (nba.com) The four games against Philadelphia were not close in aggregate. StatMuse’s schedule page shows New York won Game 1 by 39 points, Game 2 by six, Game 3 by 14 and Game 4 by 30, with the final two wins coming on the road. The closeout result on May 10 pushed the Knicks to 4-0 in the series and 8-2 overall in the 2026 playoffs at that point. (nba.com) ### What had the Knicks done before the 76ers series? Atlanta pushed New York in the opening round, and the Knicks needed six games to advance. StatMuse’s playoff log shows New York lost Games 2 and 3 of that series before winning the next three, including a 140-89 road victory in Game 6 on April 30. That turnaround set up the meeting with Philadelphia, the No. 7 seed in the East semifinal bracket. (statmuse.com) NBA.com’s series preview published before the round began framed the matchup around Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, but the series itself ended without the 76ers extending it beyond four games. ### Who can New York face next? (statmuse.com) Cleveland and Detroit are still playing for the other Eastern Conference finals berth. NBA.com’s official schedule page shows Detroit at Cleveland for Game 6 on Friday, May 15, and lists a Game 7 on Sunday, May 17, if necessary. ESPN’s schedule page also showed Cleveland and Detroit in an active semifinal series this week, though its listing reflected earlier series status before the NBA’s latest update. (nba.com) The official NBA playoff bracket now has New York alone on one side of the East finals matchup, with the other slot unresolved. ### What does the broader playoff picture look like? Oklahoma City has already moved through in the West. (nba.com) NBA.com’s playoff hub said the Thunder completed a four-game sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers and punched their ticket to the Western Conference finals on May 12. San Antonio and Minnesota are still contesting the other Western semifinal. NBA.com’s schedule page lists Game 6 in that series on May 15 and a Game 7 on May 17 if required, leaving only one conference-final matchup fully set as of Friday. (espn.com) ### When will the Knicks play again? The NBA’s playoff schedule page says postseason dates are updated as official scheduling is announced, and the Eastern Conference finals page is already live with New York attached to the matchup. (nba.com) The Knicks’ opponent, game dates and tip times remain dependent on the result of Cleveland-Detroit. May 16 is the next key date for New York’s path. (nba.com) If Cleveland eliminates Detroit in Game 6, the East finals field will be complete that night; if Detroit wins, the bracket would wait for a May 17 Game 7 in Cleveland. (nba.com)