What a difference a quarter makes! The New York Knicks pulled off one of the most stunning comebacks in NBA Playoffs history Tuesday night, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-104 in overtime.
A demoralized Cavaliers team went from having a comfortable lead heading into the fourth quarter to completely demoralized in just a few minutes. Just as the Knicks heated up, Cleveland shooting fell off a cliff, as the visiting team scored only 3 points in the overtime period. The 2026 Eastern Conference Finals return to Madison Square Garden this Thursday for Game 2.
As awful as Cleveland performed down the stretch Tuesday night, we still like the economy-play of 21 cents for a Cavaliers series win. The Cavs were up by 22 points with less than 8 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, and somehow blew it.
Their defense was still pressuring the Knicks perimeter shooters, and it took several courageous shots by Jalen Brunson to keep New York in the contest. The series winner line of 21 cents for Cleveland provides plenty of value, even if the Cavaliers find themselves down a game in the best-of-7 series.
There’s also plenty of interest in the eventual Eastern Conference Finals MVP. Jalen Brunson has moved well ahead following Tuesday’s overtime win, but Donovan Mitchell at 25 cents is an attractive line.
Similar to San Antonio’s thrilling victory over Oklahoma City on Monday, the NBA news cycle is currently being dominated by the individual performance Jalen Brunson put up against Cleveland. The 29-year old New Jersey native shot better than 50% from the field in Game 1 at Madison Square Garden, and was instrumental in giving the Knicks a chance to catch up in the final minutes of regulation.
Between Brunson and Wemby, news outlets are trumpeting the efforts of two players who failed to receive the 2025-26 Most Valuable Player award. Lost in that context is just how poorly veteran James Harden has performed in his last few games. If Harden doesn’t hit his stride Thursday, the Cavs could be looking at a 2-0 series deficit once they return to Rocket Arena for Game 3.
Prediction market odds for Jalen Brunson winning the series MVP have worked their way down to 75% for a “yes” prediction. That’s way too expensive for our tastes, but interesting nonetheless. Clutch shooting against an aggressive defense is something that’s hard to replicate over a best-of-7 match of competitive athleticism combined with individual willpower.
As one might expect, the price for a Cavaliers series victory plummeted late Tuesday night. New York’s Game 2 heroics have sent the “yes” option to a low of twenty percent. If that line remains as-is leading into Thursday, Kalshi traders might find the offer too good to pass on.
Game 2 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals tips-off at 8:00pm at Madison Square Garden on Thursday. Fans who don’t want to opt for a $50,000+ front row midcourt seat can watch the game live on ESPN.
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