Happy Friday, everyone! Hope you have an exciting long weekend coming your way. A quick programming note: After this afternoon's newsletter, we'll be back in your inbox Tuesday morning, so enjoy Memorial Day!

Following their back-to-back road wins to open the Eastern Conference Finals, the Indiana Pacers now hold a commanding 2-0 series lead over the New York Knicks—and the oddsmakers have taken notice.

The irrepressible Indiana Pacers opened up a 2-0 lead over the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals with a 114-109 win at Madison Square Garden on Friday.The Western Conference Finals resume on Saturday when the Minnesota Timberwolves host the Oklahoma City Thunder trailing 2-0.

The Knicks (94.88) place third in pace among teams remaining in the postseason, barely surpassing the Minnesota Timberwolves (95.43). The Pacers (99.03) rank second behind the Oklahoma City Thunder (100.46). The Knicks, though, were on their way to solving the issue before worsening it themselves.

Pascal Siakam scored a playoff career-high 39 points, and the Pacers beat the Knicks for a 2-0 lead in the Eastern final.

The New York Knicks are set to take on the Indiana Pacers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals on Friday night in a highly-anticipated matchup. The Pacers visit the Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals with a 1-0 lead in the series after shocking New York in overtime on Wednesday with a 138-135 overtime win.

Oklahoma City is the lone No. 1 seed standing as the NBA prepares to crown a new champion for the eighth straight season. The Knicks, Pacers and T-Wolves also in the mix

In their first two playoff series, the Knicks' starting five was outscored by a combined 52 points. But the team executed when it mattered against the Pistons and came back from 20-point deficits twice against Boston en route to the Eastern Conference Finals.