Game ID: 22500009
Cleveland Cavaliers @ New York Knicks
Thursday, December 25, 2025 at 12:00 PM ET
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
NYK 23 37 24 42 126CLE 38 20 38 28 124
CLE @ NYK ScoutingCLE @ NYK Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
NYK availability going into 12/18 · 4 days' restOUT Shamet missed 9 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK Anunoby back 12/05 after 9, 29 min since (86% of 33)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 24 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/19 · back-to-backOUT McBride missed 2 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 10 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK Anunoby back 12/05 after 9, 30 min since (90% of 33)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 26 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/21 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 3 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 11 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Clarkson 16 to 22 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/23 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 4 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 12 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Bridges 33 to 38 min over the last 4
NEW Clarkson 16 to 22 min over the last 4
NEW Kolek 11 to 18 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 5 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 13 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Bridges 33 to 38 min over the last 4
NEW Hart 31 to 37 min over the last 3
NEW Robinson 18 to 25 min over the last 3
NEW Clarkson 16 to 23 min over the last 4
NEW Kolek 11 to 24 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 6 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 14 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Bridges 33 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Clarkson 16 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 24 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 7 since 12/09, returns tonight: 18 min (78% of 24)
OUT Shamet missed 15 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Clarkson 16 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 22 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Hart missed 2 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 16 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/29 after 7, 18 min since (78% of 24)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 22 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 22 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Hart missed 3 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 17 since 11/24, out tonight
OUT Robinson missed 2 since 12/29, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/29 after 7, 22 min since (94% of 24)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 20 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 12/17 · 2 days' restOUT Merrill missed 12 since 11/19, out tonight
OUT Nance Jr. missed 7 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Allen back 12/14 after 6, 23 min since (83% of 28)
BACK Ball back 12/03 after 2, 26 min since (123% of 21)
BACK Proctor back 12/14 after 4, 6 min since (63% of 10)
NEW Tyson 24 to 33 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 12/19 · 1 day's restOUT Mobley missed 2 since 12/14, out tonight
OUT Merrill missed 13 since 11/19, out tonight
OUT Nance Jr. missed 8 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Allen back 12/14 after 6, 25 min since (91% of 28)
BACK Proctor back 12/14 after 4, 6 min since (63% of 10)
NEW Tyson 24 to 33 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 12/22 · 2 days' restOUT Mobley missed 3 since 12/14, out tonight
OUT Merrill missed 14 since 11/19, returns tonight: 26 min (104% of 25)
OUT Nance Jr. missed 9 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Allen back 12/14 after 6, 27 min since (97% of 28)
BACK Proctor back 12/14 after 4, 13 min since (129% of 10)
NEW Tyson 24 to 32 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 12/23 · back-to-backOUT Mobley missed 4 since 12/14, out tonight
OUT Nance Jr. missed 10 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Allen back 12/14 after 6, 25 min since (90% of 28)
BACK Merrill back 12/22 after 14, 26 min since (104% of 25)
BACK Proctor back 12/14 after 4, 11 min since (103% of 10)
CLE availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT Mobley missed 5 since 12/14, returns tonight: 25 min (77% of 33)
OUT Nance Jr. missed 11 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Allen back 12/14 after 6, 25 min since (91% of 28)
BACK Merrill back 12/22 after 14, 26 min since (104% of 25)
BACK Proctor back 12/14 after 4, 10 min since (98% of 10)
NEW Bryant 11 to 18 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 12 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 12/25 after 5, 25 min since (77% of 33)
BACK Merrill back 12/22 after 14, 27 min since (108% of 25)
CLE availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Tomlin missed 2 since 12/25, returns tonight: 5 min (37% of 14)
OUT Nance Jr. missed 13 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 12/25 after 5, 23 min since (69% of 33)
BACK Merrill back 12/22 after 14, 27 min since (107% of 25)
CLE availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 14 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 12/25 after 5, 25 min since (75% of 33)
BACK Merrill back 12/22 after 14, 26 min since (106% of 25)
BACK Tomlin back 12/29 after 2, 5 min since (37% of 14)
CLE availability going into 1/02 · 1 day's restOUT Ball missed 2 since 12/29, returns tonight: 15 min (71% of 21)
OUT Nance Jr. missed 15 since 11/30, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 12/25 after 5, 26 min since (79% of 33)
BACK Tomlin back 12/29 after 2, 9 min since (62% of 14)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 114, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 32 and Towns at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without McBride (5 straight), Shamet (13 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 126, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 19 free throws a game; Mitchell at 26 and Garland at 23 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Mobley (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-6 a night and Cleveland minus-4 and the defense, New York allowing 114 a night to Cleveland's 126. Call it New York 121, Cleveland 117, Cleveland keeping it close.
12/18 @ IND 114-113 — NYK notes
NYK won 114-113. NYK shot 47% (43 of 92) to IND's 46%, 17 of 43 from three. Brunson led with 25 (10 of 23, 3 of 8 from three); Bridges added 22, Clarkson 18. The hinge was Q2, 34-26: the deficit went from 11 to 3. NYK trailed 59-62 at the half and won the second half 55-51.
12/19 vs PHI 107-116 — NYK notes
NYK lost 107-116. NYK shot 44% (39 of 88) to PHI's 45%, 8 of 32 from three. NYK turned it over 18 times to PHI's 10. The glass went 57-36 for them. Brunson led with 22 (7 of 22, 1 of 7 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Towns added 22, Bridges 21. Q2 was theirs, 30-28, but the other 3 periods went 88-77 against them. Hart's -12 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/21 vs MIA 132-125 — NYK notes
NYK won 132-125. NYK shot 55% (47 of 85) to MIA's 47%, 20 of 38 from three, and got to the line 21 times to MIA's 35. Brunson led with 47 (15 of 26, 6 of 13 from three, 11 of 11 at the line); Bridges added 24, Anunoby 18. The hinge was Q2, 36-25: NYK came in trailing by 7 and left it ahead by 4. Kolek was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
12/23 @ MIN 104-115 — NYK notes
NYK lost 104-115. NYK shot 41% (41 of 99) to MIN's 45%, 11 of 30 from three, and got to the line 15 times to MIN's 23. NYK turned it over 19 times to MIN's 11, and MIN turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 55-42 for them. Towns led with 40 (14 of 24, 3 of 6 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Kolek added 20, Bridges 15. Q3 was theirs, 27-27, but the other 3 periods went 88-77 against them. Robinson's -15 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/25 vs CLE 126-124 — NYK notes
NYK won 126-124. NYK shot 47% (44 of 94) to CLE's 52%, 21 of 44 from three. Brunson led with 34 (10 of 25, 6 of 12 from three, 8 of 10 at the line); Clarkson added 25, Kolek 16. The hinge was Q2, 37-20: NYK came in trailing by 15 and left it ahead by 2. Kolek was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
12/27 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 133, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Johnson at 29 and Young at 24 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Porziņģis (8 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 119, shooting 47 percent and 41 from three, 20 free throws a game; Brunson at 32 and Bridges at 19 a game. Without McBride (6 straight), Shamet (14 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-8 and the defense, New York allowing 119 a night to Atlanta's 133. Call it New York 122, Atlanta 118, Atlanta keeping it close.
12/29 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 120, shooting 46 percent and 30 from three, 32 free throws a game; Williamson at 24 and Murphy III at 17 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Jones (3 straight), Murray (3 straight), Jordan (29 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 46 percent and 40 from three, 23 free throws a game; Brunson at 34 and Towns at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without McBride (7 straight), Shamet (15 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-8 a night and New Orleans minus-6 and the arc, New York at 40 percent from three to New Orleans's 30. Call it New York 119, New Orleans 118, New Orleans keeping it close.
12/31 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 31 from three, 27 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 21 and Castle at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest. New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 123, shooting 47 percent and 44 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 36 and Towns at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Hart (2 straight), Shamet (16 straight). One day's rest.
So: San Antonio wins, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 44 percent from three to San Antonio's 31 and the defense, San Antonio allowing 113 a night to New York's 123. Call it San Antonio 120, New York 116, New York keeping it close.
1/02 vs ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 125, shooting 46 percent and 42 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 31 and Towns at 24 a game. Without Hart (3 straight), Shamet (17 straight), Robinson (2 straight). One day's rest. Atlanta comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 124, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 20 free throws a game; Johnson at 26 and Alexander-Walker at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Without Young (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-9. Call it New York 124, Atlanta 119.
12/17 @ CHI 111-127 — CLE notes
CLE lost 111-127. CLE shot 48% (42 of 87) to CHI's 56%, 12 of 39 from three. CLE turned it over 20 times to CHI's 15, and CHI turned those into 12 steals. Mitchell led with 32 (11 of 23, 4 of 9 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Tyson added 21, Garland 15. Q1 was theirs, 34-33, but the other 3 periods went 94-77 against them. They led by as many as 12. Garland's -18 in 30 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/19 vs CHI 125-136 — CLE notes
CLE lost 125-136. CLE shot 48% (48 of 101) to CHI's 52%, 14 of 39 from three. Garland led with 35 (13 of 27, 6 of 12 from three); Proctor added 16, Tomlin 15. Q3 was theirs, 44-35, the deficit cut from 11 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 101-81 against them. They led by as many as 11.
12/22 vs CHA 139-132 — CLE notes
CLE won 139-132. CLE shot 55% (48 of 87) to CHA's 49%, 24 of 44 from three, and got to the line 19 times to CHA's 25. CLE turned it over 13 times to CHA's 19. The glass went 30-44 against them. Mitchell led with 30 (10 of 18, 6 of 11 from three); Garland added 27, Hunter 27. The hinge was Q2, 37-27: CLE came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 7, and the lead reached 19. Wade was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
12/23 vs NOP 141-118 — CLE notes
CLE won 141-118. CLE shot 53% (56 of 105) to NOP's 46%, 20 of 49 from three, and got to the line 11 times to NOP's 25. Mitchell led with 27 (11 of 16, 2 of 6 from three); Merrill added 22, Tyson 18. The hinge was Q1, 32-22: from level to 10 ahead, and the lead reached 28. Hunter was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
12/25 @ NYK 124-126 — CLE notes
CLE lost 124-126. CLE shot 52% (45 of 86) to NYK's 47%, 15 of 34 from three. Mitchell led with 34 (12 of 25, 4 of 9 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Garland added 20, Tyson 16. Q1 was theirs, 38-23, but the other 3 periods went 103-86 against them. They led by as many as 17.
12/27 @ HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 117, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Durant at 27 and Thompson at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 128, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 18 free throws a game; Mitchell at 31 and Garland at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-10 a night and Cleveland minus-2 and the defense, Houston allowing 117 a night to Cleveland's 128. Call it Houston 122, Cleveland 118, Cleveland keeping it close.
12/29 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 21 and Castle at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 126, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 17 free throws a game; Mitchell at 27 and Garland at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: San Antonio wins, and the game turns on the glass, where San Antonio has been plus-8 a night and Cleveland minus-3 and the defense, San Antonio allowing 110 a night to Cleveland's 126. Call it San Antonio 123, Cleveland 116.
12/31 vs PHX — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 119, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 17 free throws a game; Mitchell at 23 and Garland at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 110, shooting 48 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Booker at 26 and Brooks at 21 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Allen (6 straight), Green (22 straight), Dunn (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Phoenix has been plus-4 a night and Cleveland minus-4 and the defense, Phoenix allowing 110 a night to Cleveland's 119. Call it Cleveland 118, Phoenix 116, Phoenix keeping it close.
1/02 vs DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 37 from three, 17 free throws a game; Mitchell at 24 and Tyson at 17 a game. Without Ball (2 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 129, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 26 free throws a game; Jokić at 35 and Murray at 26 a game. Without Braun (22 straight), Johnson (4 straight), Gordon (18 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the defense, Cleveland allowing 115 a night to Denver's 129 and the line, where Denver takes 26 free throws a game to Cleveland's 17. Call it Cleveland 123, Denver 119, Denver keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NYKAH A. Hukporti
JB J. Brunson
JC J. Clarkson
JH J. Hart
KT K. Towns
MB M. Bridges
MD M. Diawara
MR M. Robinson
OA O. Anunoby
TK T. Kolek
CLEDG D. Garland
DH D. Hunter
DM D. Mitchell
DW D. Wade
EM E. Mobley
JA J. Allen
JT J. Tyson
LB L. Ball
SM S. Merrill
TB T. Bryant
NYK/CLE the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Brunson and the reserves lead a Christmas comeback as the Knicks beat the Cavaliers 126-124
NEW YORK -- — Jalen Brunson scored 34 points, reserve Jordan Clarkson had 25 and the New York Knicks came from 17 down in the fourth quarter to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-124 on Thursday and win on Christmas Day for the third straight year.
Reserves Tyler Kolek and Mitchell Robinson sparked the comeback after the Cavaliers led 103-86 early in the final period. Kolek had 16 points and nine assists, and had fans chanting his name after a late block on Donovan Mitchell that originally was called a foul but was overturned on review. Robinson hustled after offensive rebounds to keep possessions alive and finished with 13 boards.
Brunson made the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:05 remaining, after he, Kolek and Clarkson all hit from behind the arc in a 13-2 run that cut Cleveland's 12-point lead to 111-110.
Mitchell had 34 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Darius Garland added 20 points and 10 assists, but the Cavaliers blew their chance at a third straight win.
Evan Mobley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds after missing five games with a strained left calf .
The Cavs raced to an 18-3 lead behind 10 points from Mitchell and led 38-23 after one quarter. But Clarkson opened the second with consecutive 3-pointers, and after a Cavs 3-pointer, the Knicks ripped off an 18-0 burst to take a 47-41 lead.
The Knicks made 12 of their first 14 shots in the second, before Mobley had Cleveland's final four baskets as New York took a 60-58 edge into the break.
Cleveland quickly regained control in the third. Mitchell slammed down a lob pass that Garland threw from beyond halfcourt to cap a 10-3 burst to open the period, and Mitchell later hit a 3-pointer to cap an 18-4 spurt that turned a 71-all tie into an 89-75 advantage for the Cavs.