The New York Knicks and Miami Heat kick off their Eastern Conference semifinals series on Sunday. Both teams were able to advance to the second round after upsetting their respective opponents in the first round. The No. 5 Knicks took down the No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers in five games, and similarly, it took the No. 8 Heat just five games to topple the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks. Now the two teams will square off against each other for the opportunity to advance to the Eastern Conference finals, starting with Game 1 at Madison Square Garden.
The Heat and Knicks, who last met in the postseason in 2012, have a colorful playoff history, and hopefully, this latest series will provide some more memorable moments like past series between the two teams have. For what it's worth, the Knicks won three of four meetings between the teams during the regular season.
Ahead of Game 1, here's a look at the start time, viewing information, odds, storylines and a prediction for the contest.
(5) New York Knicks vs. (8) Miami Heat
- Date: Sunday, April 30 | Time: 1 p.m. ET
- Location: Madison Square Garden -- New York, New York
- TV channel: ABC | Live stream: fubo (try for free)
- Odds: Knicks -4; O/U 207.5 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Storylines
Knicks: The health of Julius Randle is the main storyline for the Knicks heading into this series. Randle re-injured his left ankle during the first half of New York's closeout game against Cleveland in the first round, and he didn't return. He is reportedly out for Game 1 on Sunday. The Knicks are a much tougher team to plan for when Randle is available -- this is a guy who averaged 25.1 points per performance during the regular season -- so they'll be at a disadvantage to start the series.
Heat: For the Heat, the question is simple: How much does Jimmy Butler have left in the tank after virtually singlehandedly propelling Miami to victory over Milwaukee in the first round? Butler scored at least 30 points in four of the five games in that series, and he scored a combined 98 points over the final two games to seal one of the bigger playoff upsets in recent memory. Though other players also stepped up around Butler, the Heat are only going to go as far as Butler can take them, so it will be interesting to see if he can put the team on his back for a second straight series, especially against a Knicks defense that will surely be geared to stop him.
Prediction
Both of these teams are riding some serious momentum after taking care of business in the first round, and this is a series that promises to be a scrappy one. In Game 1, the health of Julius Randle could prove to be a factor, plus it's tough to pick against Jimmy Butler with the way that he has been playing as of late. Pick: Heat +4
