2024-25 Eastern Conference First-Round Preview: No. 6 Detroit Pistons vs. No. 3 New York Knicks

2024-25 Eastern Conference First-Round Preview: No. 6 Detroit Pistons vs. No. 3 New York Knicks

The 2024-25 NBA Postseason is here. The No. 6 Detroit Pistons had one of the most drastic year-by-year improvements in recent NBA History, while the No. 6 New York Knicks are looking to make a run at the NBA Finals this summer after an unfortunate exit last season. Both teams are nasty (in a good way) and hungry for success, so who comes out on top? Let’s dive into it!

GAME	DATE	MATCHUP	TIME (EST)	TV
Game 1	Saturday, April 19	Pistons @ Knicks	6:00 p.m.	ESPN
Game 2	Monday, April 21	Pistons @ Knicks	7:30 p.m.	TNT
Game 3	Thursday, April 24	Knicks @ Pistons	7:00 p.m.	TNT
Game 4	Sunday, April 27	Knicks @ Pistons	1 p.m.	ABC
Game 5*	Tuesday, April 29	Pistons @ Knicks	TBD	TBD
Game 6*	Thursday, May 1	Knicks @ Pistons	TBD	TBD
Game 7*	Saturday, May 3	Pistons @ Knicks	TBD	TBD

What to know about the Detroit Pistons:

Starters:

• Cade Cunningham
• Tim Hardaway Jr.
• Ausar Thompson
• Tobias Harris
• Jalen Duren

Key Reserves:

• Malik Beasley
• Dennis Schroder
• Ron Holland

The Pistons were one of the best stories in the NBA this season, point blank.

Detroit experienced not only the worst season in franchise history a year ago, but one of the worst in NBA History, finishing 14-68. They cleaned house in the front office and hired former Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff. They also brought in a slew of veterans–such as Malik Beasley and Tobias Harris–injecting life into a budding core led by Cunningham.

Their star guard broke out and the Pistons improved by 30 wins. Yes, THIRTY, finishing 44-38 with the 14th-best offense and 10th-best defense–better than the likes of the New York Knicks, Memphis Grizzlies and Milwaukee Bucks.

Cunningham made his first-ever All-Star team, averaging 26.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 9.1 assists per game. Beasley was one of the best 6th men in the entire NBA, canning 319 3-pointers at a 41.6 percent clip; Ausar Thompson was sensational defensively while Harris, Hardaway and Schroder, who they acquired midseason, were invaluable veterans.

Bickerstaff did a commendable job this year, but now his squad matches up with a formidable foe contending for a title.

What to know about the New York Knicks:

Starters:

• Jalen Brunson
• Josh Hart
• Mikal Bridges
• OG Anunoby
• Karl-Anthony Towns

Key Reserves:

• Miles McBride
• Mitchell Robinson

The New York Knicks flamed out in the Eastern Conference semifinals a year ago to the Indiana Pacers after being the second-best team in the East. They entered the summer needing they needed more firepower, acquiring Mikal Bridges for five first-round picks before adding Karl-Anthony Towns days before camp opened.

New York had its lumps along the way, but it still finished with one more win than it did last year. It had the league’s fifth-best defense with the ninth-best effective field goal percentage and 10th-best true-shooting percentage. The Knicks did take a slight step back defensively with Towns, but they were figuring it out over the last month, finishing as the ninth-best defense with the 11th-best rebound percentage.

Led by Brunson and Towns, the Knicks have a rock solid top-7 with a relative drop-off after that. Thankfully, Tom Thibodeau only needs six or seven players. He’s not going to rely on anyone else.

Key Questions:

1. Can the Knicks stay out of foul trouble?

Postseason basketball is more physical than your average regular season game–especially as the series plays out. The Knicks fouled at the sixth-lowest rate (on a per-possession basis) in the NBA, but they aren’t deep. The Pistons ranked just outside the top-10 in free-throw attempts and fouls drawn per 100. Stars win, but benches matter, and the Pistons had one of the most productive benches in the NBA. This will be a very physical series. If Detroit can get the Knicks in foul trouble, it could get dicey within certain periods of the game for the No. 3 seed.

2. How does Cade Cunningham navigate New York’s point-of-attack defense?

Detroit’s former No. 1 overall pick is an ascending star. But he will have a tall task ahead with the bevy of defenders New York can throw his way. Hart, Bridges and Anunoby are all capable–as is McBride off the bench. Bridges was his most frequent defender this season; looking at individual matchups can be a little bit deceiving, but Cunningham went 8-of-21 against Bridges on 107 partial possessions this season, according to NBA.com’s tracking data. The Pistons will likely put Brunson and Towns–their two-worst defenders–in plenty of action, but how Cunningham navigates their series will be important to Detroit’s success.

Prediction: Knicks in 6

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