The 2025 NBA Playoffs are finally here and hoops fans are truly in for a treat. The New York Knicks and Detroit Pistons square off in a first round series which opens with plenty of star power under the bright lights of basketball’s Mecca at Madison Square Garden.
These teams haven’t met in the postseason since 1992, but this series feels like a bit of a blast from the past as two historic franchises face off on hallowed ground. They’re linked in another aspect too, having each spent a significant portion of the last decade as the punchline to NBA fans’ jokes. Yet, here they are in a playoff matchup, both with bright futures which prove light does exist at the end of the proverbial tunnel.
Knicks vs. Pistons preview, prediction
New York Knicks
Expectations are high for the New York Knicks. After coming up short in the playoffs over the last couple of years, they made a massive splash prior to this campaign by acquiring Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, effectively creating what many NBA fans called the next superteam. Their lineup is fierce on paper, and their 51-31 record and No. 3 seed indicate a serious contender in the Eastern Conference.
Towns is enjoying one of the best seasons of his career and appears revitalized in the Big Apple with 24.4 points and 12.8 rebounds per contest (second-best in the league) while shooting 42.0% from three, just shy of his career-high. His co-star, Jalen Brunson, missed roughly a month-long stretch from March to early April but is working his way back towards his typical form of 26.0 points and 7.3 assists per night. To top it off, OG Anunoby and Bridges contribute around 18 PPG each, while Josh Hart scores a bit less but contributes just as much as the other two on defense. It sounds like the Knicks possess the makings of a deep title team, yes?
The franchise’s path to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999 is, well, a bit tricky. Sure, they’re an efficient squad at fifth in offensive rating and FG%, as well as eighth in 3P% and net rating. They’re tied for the fourth-fewest turnovers per game, while their defense falls a respectable ninth in opponent points per game and 13th in defensive rating, too. Even though they’re 24th in rebounding, the Knicks still allow the second-fewest boards to opponents. This all sounds great, but there’s one truly damning stat — the Knicks are a combined 0-8 against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics, and their track record against the Pistons isn’t spectacular, either.
Detroit Pistons
Let’s talk about those Pistons, now. While they were a somewhat popular pick to outperform their win total before the season began, Detroit has completely outperformed expectations to make it here.
J.B. Bickerstaff was hired as the franchise’s head coach in July and has completely revitalized the team since taking over. The addition of a great coach and steady veterans such as Tobias Harris and Tim Hardaway Jr. — as well as Malik Beasley, who boasts the second-most made threes in the NBA this season — helped flip the culture from rebuild mode into a locker room which believes they can beat anyone in the league. While not truly elite in any team stat categories, mentality and a renewed intensity on defense have been instrumental in the Pistons’ run to the sixth seed and their best record since the 2015-16 campaign.
It’s also impossible to discuss the revelation of Detroit’s resurgence into the playoff picture without mentioning their star floor general. Fourth-year point guard Cade Cunningham is in the midst of the best season of his young career and made his first All-Star appearance this year. The former first-overall pick averages 26.1 points along with 6.1 rebounds and 9.1 assists per contest, fantastic all-around production which has propelled the team into contention on a nightly basis. Cunningham deserves a ton of credit for his leap not only as a scorer, but as a playmaker who sets the table for teammates and puts them in position to succeed. As long as the 23-year-old is on the court, the Pistons possess a fighting chance.
Knicks vs. Pistons series pick, best bet
With the research out of the way, what direction will this series go?
Pistons fans may want to look away from the oddsmakers. DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Knicks at -400 odds to win the series outright, while the Pistons hold +310 odds to pull off the upset and advance. It sounds like New York should handle their opponent without much to worry about, right?
Wrong. Here’s the wild part. These two teams faced off four times during the regular season, with the Pistons winning three of those matchups. Both teams were healthy for these contests, too, with Karl-Anthony Towns the only star to miss one of these past matchups. The results of these clashes are as follows: Knicks win 128-98, Pistons win 120-111, Pistons win 124-119, Pistons win 115-106. Detroit’s only loss in the season series came on November 1, so early in the campaign that it would be irresponsible to glean much from the outcome.
The one constant throughout those games is that New York had no answer on defense for Cunningham’s excellence. Across those four matchups, he averages a staggering 30.8 points and 8.3 assists on a wild 56.3%/52.0%/80.0% shooting split. The Knicks are certainly working on defensive schemes to contain the star point guard, but the task is easier said than done.
While New York boasts bigger names and a better record, they aren’t a team that’s easy to trust in this series. Look at it this way — they’re favored to win, but this ought to play out as a much more competitive affair than most people expect. The top pick for this one is Detroit +1.5 games at +135 odds, but for a series with genuine upset potential, taking them outright for a +310 payout is tempting.
TOP PICK: DET Pistons +1.5 games (+135)
When does the Knicks vs. Pistons series start?
The first game of this first-round series between the Knicks and Pistons in the NBA Playoffs tips off at 6 p.m. on Saturday, April 19.
