How the Knicks stack up against the Pistons, Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals

Who’s up next for the Knicks ? That question won’t be answered until Friday at the earliest — or as late as Sunday — as the Detroit Pistons and Cleveland Cavaliers exchange blows in their tightly contested second-round playoff series. With that best-of-seven series tied 2-2 entering Wednesday night’s Game 5 in Detroit, all the Knicks can do now is wait to see who will join them in the Eastern Conference Finals .

When the conference finals do finally begin, the Knicks will have enjoyed at least a week of practice and rest since wrapping up their low-stress sweep of the Philadelphia 76ers . This isn’t exactly unfamiliar territory for the Knicks, who went four days between their previous series and didn’t know their opponent for two of them. “You can always get better.

It’s about us,” head coach Mike Brown said at the time, before the Sixers emerged as the Knicks’ second-round opponent. “And a lot of times, it’s about us even if we know who we’re playing. There’s plenty that you can work on without knowing who your opponent is, because you’re trying to get better, or sharper, in the areas that make you who you are.

” With that said, it’s never too early to break down the Knicks’ potential third-round opponents. Here’s how the Pistons and Cavs stack up: PISTONS Behind a hyper-physical playing style, Detroit was the clear class of the Eastern Conference in the regular season, going 60-22 to run away with the No. 1 seed.