New York Knicks vs. Atlanta Hawks: Playoff history, TV schedule for conference rivals

The New York Knicks step into the arena with newfound NBA Finals aspirations. The Atlanta Hawks swoop in off an ambitious trade deadline and a white-hot closing stretch. They tangle together for one of the first round’s most intriguing matchups. In prior iterations, this rivalry gave us wrestling-style heel turns and midcourt dice rolls.

Jalen Brunson leads a smooth, efficient offense. Jalen Johnson’s side counters with pace and pressure. Woke up and now it’s two Jalens in this series! Here’s Knicks versus Hawks at a glance, updated as the TV listings are revealed.

How to watch No. 3 New York Knicks vs. No. 6 Atlanta Hawks

Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.

* if necessary

NBC is also free over the air.

What to know about the Knicks

Fresh off their first conference finals berth in 25 years, the blue and orange went 53-29 — a third straight season with 50+ wins and the franchise’s best record since 2012-13. Mike Brown succeeded Tom Thibodeau, then broke Pat Riley’s record for first-year Knicks coaching wins.

New York finished fourth in offensive efficiency, seventh on defense and fifth in net rating. The twitchy, fearless Brunson averaged 26 points per game, good for 10th in the league officially. OG Anunoby was a first-team All-Perimeter-Defense selection for The Athletic’s Fred Katz. The wing anticipates sets, constricts passing lanes and guards above his size.

Mikal Bridges played every game for the fifth consecutive campaign. Josh Hart hit 3s, scooped up boards and offered secondary playmaking. Karl-Anthony Towns saw a slight dip in his numbers, but he still topped 20 points per game for the 10th time in a row.

Leon Rose’s front office added hometown energy-riser Jose Alvarado at the deadline. The New York bench also includes Mitchell Robinson, a 7-foot force off the glass. Robinson was a game-changer last spring with nearly four offensive boards per playoff game.

In December, these Knicks glided past the formidable San Antonio Spurs and won the third annual NBA Cup. Their rafters are saving room for a championship banner.

What to know about the Hawks

There were two disparate Hawks teams that played out this season. Atlanta curdled to an 18-21 record before it traded franchise staple Trae Young. That move brought in CJ McCollum, while a deadline deal landed Jonathan Kuminga for Kristaps Porziņģis.

It was an ambitious few weeks for general manager Onsi Saleh, and the early returns have been revelatory. Following the All-Star break, Atlanta went 20-6 and was second in defensive rating, fourth in net rating and third in plus-minus.

Johnson posted impressive averages of 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds and 7.9 assists. Per Cleaning the Glass, the first-time All-Star ranked in the 98 percentile in assist-to-usage ratio. The Hawks enjoyed a second breakout star in Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who was added via an offseason sign-and-trade. After he averaged 8.4 points per game with the Minnesota Timberwolves, the rubbery Alexander-Walker jumped up to 20.8 for his Atlanta debut.

Meanwhile, McCollum continued to produce from the perimeter, and Kuminga notched a few exclamation-mark dunks in his new home.

The rejuvenated defense has high-low anchors in swipe artist Dyson Daniels and big man Onyeka Okongwu. Coach Quin Snyder did a remarkable job with his midseason adjustments. He’ll have to get creative with his frontcourt rotation now that backup Jock Landale has a sprained ankle.

Head-to-head matchups this season

The Knicks took two of three regular-season dates, with both wins coming by three points. They built an early lead in Atlanta back on Dec. 27; New York held on even as it lost the third and fourth quarters. NYK also survived in ATL on April 6 — McCollum’s potential game-tying heave from beyond half court was reviewed and ruled just late.

Atlanta won 111-99 in the lone Madison Square Garden matchup on Jan. 2. Towns was on ice for that one.

In the other two Hawks games, Towns averaged 28.5 points on sterling 63/50/94.7 percent splits. Brunson played in all three contests and put up 29.3 points per game, but he shot just 8-for-27 (29.6 percent) on treys. Johnson was a few dimes shy of a triple-double average versus New York, though he had a combined nine turnovers in the last two meetings.

Knicks vs. Hawks playoff history

New York leads the all-time series 2-1. Walt Frazier was hooping and swooping at 25.6 points per game when his team won the 1971 Eastern Conference semifinals. And the eighth-seeded Knicks, team of destiny in the 1999 playoffs, notched a second-round sweep of the favored Hawks. It was highlighted by Marcus Camby’s posterizer atop Mount Mutombo.

Then there was the opening round of 2021 … when Young was public enemy of all five boroughs and the tristate area. His Game 1 silencer became instant NBA canon. Atlanta seized that series 4-1, then surged to a surprise conference finals run.

Streaming and ticketing links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process, and do not review stories before publication.