The New York Knicks' bench outplayed the Cleveland Cavaliers' in Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
One of the biggest storylines heading into Game 1 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks was the role that each bench would play in the series.
It didn't take long for that to come into play in the series opener when Jalen Brunson got into early foul trouble which forced Tom Thibodeau to look to his reserves. The Knicks' bench embarrassingly outplayed Cleveland's and was ultimately the difference in this game.
New York got 37 bench points including 17 from Josh Hart, nine from Obi Toppin, and eight from Isaiah Hartenstein. The Cavs on the other hand only got 14 points from their reserves with the majority of that coming from Cedi Osman who had nine.
Caris LeVert was deemed to be Cleveland's X-Factor heading into the series but did not play well in Game 1. He finished with just three points and was 1-for-7 from the field and was never able to find his groove off the bench on the offensive side of the ball.
Head coach J.B. Bickrstaff acknowledged that the bench needs to help produce when they come into the game. However, he also said the team just needs to figure out a way to score as a whole. He went on to say,
Something has to change looking ahead to Game 2. The Cavs can't rely on Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland to play 40+ minutes every game of the series and do the bulk of the scoring.
Even with the lack of bench production, the Cavs only lost Game 1 by four points. Even if just one player on Cleveland's bench can step up and score 15 points then they could be looking at a different outcome in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
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