The New York Knicks haven’t played a basketball game since sweeping Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers on May 10.
The Oklahoma City Thunder haven’t played since sweeping LeBron James and the L.A. Lakers on May 11.
Newly-minted NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder will have had a week off when they host Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals Monday night against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs (8:30 p.m, NBC/Peacock).
It will have been nine days since Jalen Brunson and the Knicks last played when they host Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden (8 p.m., ABC/ESPN).
And former NBA head coach Stan Van Gundy believes the time off will serve as a disadvantage to the Knicks and Thunder.
The Cavaliers and Spurs “have a little bit of an advantage in Game 1” because “they’re still in rhythm,” Van Gundy said on Amazon Prime during the Cavaliers’ 125-94 victory over the Detroit Pistons in Game 7 Sunday night.
“I’ve been the team that’s been rested as a coach, it takes time to get back into it,” he added. “….I think they can both go in and have a great shot at getting road wins in Game 1 of the next series.”
Of course, the counter argument is that the Cavaliers and Spurs could be worn down, especially the Cavaliers, who had to go seven games and came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the top-seeded Pistons.
The Knicks, meantime, have been able to rest OG Anunoby (hamstring) and Josh Hart (thumb).
New York is favored to win Game 1 by 6.5 points and are at -270 to win the series, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
The Knicks took 2-of-3 during the regular season, but both wins came before Cleveland traded for James Harden.
The Cavaliers are into their first Eastern Conference Finals without LeBron James since 1992.
“It’s going to be special for sure, but they are a talented team,” Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell, who averaged 29.3 points in three games vs. the Knicks, told reporters.
“Obviously, it starts with Jalen Brunson and KAT [Karl-Anthony Towns], but Mikal [Bridges] and OG [Anunoby] have been phenomenal, Josh Hart. You look at their bench, it’s been great so we know them, obviously.
“I think the biggest thing is, they’ve been off, they got a bunch of rest. So we gotta be ready to go from the jump, from Game 1. I get to play at home, woo, but it doesn’t matter. We gotta be locked in and ready to go. And I know we will be, they’re a tough team and we’re excited.”
As for the Spurs and Thunder, San Antonio took 4-of-5 from Oklahoma City during the regular season and appeared at times like they had the magic sauce to unseat the defending NBA champions.
But beating them in the playoffs with a young, unproven team is something altogether different.
The Thunder are a perfect 8-0 in this postseason. They are -260 favorites to win the series DraftKings while the Spurs are at +210 odds to reach the NBA Finals.
“I don’t have anything I specifically want to do besides win,” Gilgeous-Alexander told reporters of winning his second straight MVP Award.
