The Knicks have officially been eliminated from the playoffs after losing the conference semi-finals to the Miami Heat.
Heat:
The Miami Heat had to participate in the play-in tournament, where they defeated the Bulls to earn a spot in the playoffs.
Most people did not expect the Heat to make it past the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks in round 1 of the playoffs, but they ended up doing so in only 5 games.
The Miami Heat then moved on to the conference-semi finals where they just defeated the Knicks in 6 games, making them the 2nd No. 8 seed ever to reach the conference finals.
Jimmy Butler:
Jimmy Butler got injured and missed game 2 of the series, but as soon as he returned in game 3, he was ready to help lead the Heat's offense as usual.
In this series, Butler averaged:
24.6 Points
7.2 Rebounds
6 Assists
1.6 Steals
43.2% of shots made
The Heat will now play the winner of the 76ers/Celtics series in the conference finals.
Knicks:
Despite the Knicks just being eliminated, this season was one of their best in a very long time. At the start of this season, many people doubted that they would even make the playoffs, but they ended up making it to the conference semi-finals for the first time since 2013.
Jalen Brunson:
Jalen Brunson has been the best thing to happen to the Knicks in many years, and he continued to prove this in the playoffs.
In this series vs the Heat, Brunson averaged a very impressive:
31 Points
6.3 Assists
5.5 Rebounds
50.4% of shots made
In the playoffs overall, Brunson averaged 27.8 points per game, which is the 3rd highest in Knicks playoff history.
The only problem was that Brunson was the only Knick who consistently played well in every playoff game.
Julius Randle, who was the Knicks' only all-star during the season, played much worse in the playoffs, scoring fewer points, rebounds, and assists, on less efficient shooting.
In game 6, no Knicks starter besides Brunson made over 22% of their shots, leaving Brunson on his own. Brunson ended the game with 41 points on 63% shooting.
With his incredible play and the immediate impact he has had on the team, I am fairly confident that Jalen Brunson will be an all-star next season.
As a team overall, the Knicks had a very strong season and I'm excited to see how far they can take it next year.