The Knicks are the East favorites in the sportsbooks and suddenly look like it on the court

The first team to win three straight postseason games by at least 25 points is looking more and more like the one that could make New York’s first NBA Finals appearance in the 2000s. With laughably lopsided scoring margins that resemble UConn women’s basketball more than the NBA, the Knicks have gone from trailing in the first round to a quick lead over the Philadelphia 76ers in the East semifinals, with Game 2 at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. “We're playing well at the right time, but I think we have room to grow,” coach Mike Brown said.

Hard to imagine, because his team is at a level never seen before in the postseason. A 126-97 victory over Atlanta in Game 5, when the Knicks led by 32, was followed by a 140-89 romp in the clincher, when New York built a 61-point bulge. Pouncing on a Philadelphia team that barely had time to catch its breath after needing seven games in the first round, the Knicks went up by 40 on Monday in a 138-97 victory.

Counting their victory in Game 4 against the Hawks to even that series, the Knicks have won four in a row by 135 points. Jalen Brunson is averaging 27. 6 points, third among all players in the postseason.

Karl-Anthony Towns is playing perhaps the best all-around basketball of his career, with his first two playoff triple-doubles as the Knicks rely on their All-Star center to initiate some of their offense with his passing. He's providing 6. 0 assists per game along with his 10.