Schedule and 2025-26 Results
Regular Season Records: New York 53-29, Cleveland 52-30
Game 1 on Tuesday, 19 May: Cleveland at New York
Game 2 on Thursday, 21 May: Cleveland at New York
Game 3 on Saturday, 23 May: New York at Cleveland
Game 4 on Monday, 25 May: New York at Cleveland
Game 5* on Wednesday, 27 May: Cleveland at New York
Game 6* on Friday, 29 May: New York at Cleveland
Game 7* on Sunday, 31 May: Cleveland at New York
* if needed

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Playing Game 1 @ H:
Ignoring win order; considering site order: The team playing Game 1 @ H (New York) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2026 NBA/NHL Preliminary round:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 1084-548 (.664)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Semifinals round: 236-150 (.611)
series record, NBA only, all rounds: 474-167 (.739)
series record, NBA only, Semifinals round: 90-48 (.652)
Game 1 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 1070-562 (.656)
Game 1 record, all best-of-7 sports, Semifinals round: 245-141 (.635)
Game 1 record, NBA only, all rounds: 459-182 (.716)
Game 1 record, NBA only, Semifinals round: 95-43 (.688)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1632 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2026 NBA/NHL Preliminary round. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

SERIES NOTES:

Pre-series assessment: In the 2025-26 NBA regular season, the New York Knickerbockers finished one game ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers. From 1947 through the 2026 NBA Quarterfinals round, when NBA teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by one regular-season game, they have posted a best-of-7 playoff series record of 25-29 (.463) in those series against those opponents. Best-of-7 MLB/NBA/NHL playoff series 1644 is the 55th best-of-7 NBA playoff series for the New York Knickerbockers, and the 42nd for the Cleveland Cavaliers. In best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the New York Knickerbockers have an all-rounds series record of 24-30, a Semifinals-round series record of 5-6, and a Game 1 record of 27-27, while the Cleveland Cavaliers have an all-rounds series record of 27-14, a Semifinals-round series record of 5-3 (with an active four-Semifinals round series winning streak), and a Game 1 record of 21-20. Series 1644 is the second best-of-7 NBA playoff series meeting between the New York Knickerbockers and the Cleveland Cavaliers. In the only previous best-of-7 NBA playoff series between the two teams, New York defeated Cleveland in five games in series 1536 (in the 2023 NBA Preliminary round).