Back at home tonight against the New York Knicks.

The first matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Knicks since Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals. After a big win against the top team in the East on Friday night, can the Cavaliers get it done against their rival?

Likely an emotional game for many reasons, this game is also part one of the Cleveland Cavaliers celebrating the 10-year anniversary of their 2016 NBA Championship while going against the team that took away their 2026 championship hopes.

From start to finish, this is going to be a high-strung, emotion-filled matchup with a lot on the line.

New York Knicks

The Knicks this year are a little different from their ring team. They are sitting at 4-4, just as the Cavs were last night.

Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart have been looking for big contract extensions that were shut down. With those extension talks shut down, things seem a little rocky for the Knicks, so the Cavaliers will look to continue to rattle them.

New York is coming into this game with back-to-back wins against the Nets and the Bulls.

Jalen Brunson is coming into this game as the team's only 20+ a game scorer with 25.6 points a game, with Towns right behind him at just under 20 points himself.

The Knicks, similar to last night with the 76ers, are a top defensive team but are lacking this season on the offensive side of the ball. Statistically, they are lined up with the Cavs offensively, with Cleveland having a slight edge.

Best Gameplan

Towns and Mobley are really going to battle it out tonight. With Jarett Allen likely missing this game tonight, that duty falls to Evan, who just had a great night scoring against Joel Embiid.

Embiid is better defensively than Towns is, as well, but he provides more perimeter scoring and box-out than Joel would. If Mobley can have another night like yesterday, this game is more than likely in Cleveland’s favor.

Donovan Mitchell has a great opportunity to do what he was not doing in the Eastern Conference Finals: be aggressive and take over the game. Get the switches to Jalen Brunson defensively and attack.

Where to catch the Knicks at Cavs game?

Channel: NBA TV and DAZN

Time: 8:00 p.m.

Knicks at Cavaliers predictions, odds, best bets

Odds: New York -4.5

O/U: 223.5

Best Bet: Donovan Mitchell 30+ Points +300

Cavaliers 113, Knicks 105: Just think about what the Knicks did to James Harden in the playoffs. Players were able to score 20+ points just by having Harden as their defender.

That can not happen again; almost certainly, they will try to utilize that mismatch, though. The problem with doing that again is the addition of Peyton Watson and rookie Meleek Thomas, who have willingly taken on the best players defensively multiple times this year.

As important as Sam Merrill would be in this game, his elbow injury is really hindering him from hitting three-pointers, something so crucial to his game, leaving it up to guys like Meleek Thomas, Mario Hezonja, and the team's consistent bench unit.

All NBA Odds on FanDuel

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