Share and Follow
Did Cleveland Cavaliers supporters witness their team’s fourth-quarter collapse due to Dave Portnoy’s ill-timed social media post? The Cavaliers’ commanding lead vanished as the New York Knicks surged ahead in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.
The turning point appeared to happen when Barstool Sports founder, Dave Portnoy, sent a seemingly jinxing message on X. He sarcastically advised Knicks fans to “keep your head up” while Cleveland was leading comfortably.
“As someone with experience winning Eastern Conference finals, I want to tell Knicks fans not to lose hope,” Portnoy, a devoted Boston Celtics fan, wrote. “It looked like a rust game to me. You might have been overconfident after beating a weak Sixers team. It’s a long series. Stay positive. It won’t be easy, but you can still pull through. Keep your chin up.”
Following his post, the Knicks embarked on a remarkable comeback, erasing a 22-point deficit in the last eight minutes and ultimately triumphing in overtime with a 115-104 victory.
Portnoy later acknowledged the Knicks’ dramatic rally, noting that they had gone on an 18-1 run “since this tweet, by the way.”
“I’d also like to point that many people would delete the below tweet, but that is not my style. I will own it. Leaders lead. Credit to me for being accountable,” Portnoy later wrote on X.
The Knicks’ miracle kicked off the team’s second consecutive trip to the conference finals after not having reached the series since 2000.
Dating back to the 1996-97 season, the Knicks were 0-277 when they trailed by at least 22 points in the fourth quarter of a regular season or playoff game prior to Tuesday’s Game 1 win.
Jalen Brunson finished the game with 38 points as he helped lift the Knicks to victory and a 1-0 series lead.
Game 2 is scheduled for Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.