Dylan Backer
By the time the Eastern Conference Finals tip off on Tuesday, the New York Knicks will have had nine full days off between games. Their last game played was on Mother’s Day last week, when the Knicks completed their sweep of the Philadelphia 76ers.
For reference, this year’s All-Star break was an eight-day layoff for the Knicks. Therefore, they will have their longest rest period of the season just ahead of the conference finals.
Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons’ series has gone the distance, with Game 7 Sunday being played to determine who will face the Knicks in the ECF. With such a long layoff between games, it’s reasonable to start asking, how much rest is too much?
There are lots of benefits to the extra rest
The simple answer, is that the amount of rest is likely more beneficial for New York, and history would suggest that. In five of the last six years, the team with the rest advantage has won the Eastern Conference Finals. New York has rested for over a week, while their opponent will be coming off two separate seven-game series’.
Additionally, the Knicks need this time off to get healthy. OG Anunoby missed the last two games of round 2 with a hamstring strain, though he has now returned to practice as a full participant and is expected to be ready to go for Game 1 of the ECF.
Josh Hart is dealing with a finger injury he suffered in Game 2 against Philadelphia, and Karl-Anthony Towns tweaked his back in the series-clinching Game 4 win. Furthermore, they still would like to be cautious with Mitchell Robinson’s workload given his ankle injury history.
While none of those injuries are expected to be a factor in the ECF, they could have been if they didn’t take care of business against the 76ers. New York has been fortunate with injuries for the most part this season, so they cannot afford to lose important pieces this late into the year.
Will the Knicks be out of rhythm?
The thought of having potentially too much rest stems from their performance in the first two rounds. Over the last seven games, the Knicks are 7-0 and have dominated their opponents, owning a +194 point differential through their first 10 playoff games, which is a league record.
The players are aware that losing a step is a possibility with the long layoff, so they are doing what they can to stay in rhythm and avoid rust heading into Game 1 of the ECF.
“It’s good for recovery, but mentally, I’m watching the games just waiting to get back out there. It’s a little long,” Josh Hart said, via SNY.
New York will play the waiting game until Tuesday, where we will know if the rest was truly beneficial or not.
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