Wild fight breaks out in Knicks-Hawks playoff game with referees and coaches knocked to floor in chaotic scenes
New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks stars became embroiled in a chaotic fight during their NBA playoff game on Thursday night.
With the Knicks leading by an astonishing 50 points towards the end of the first half, tempers flared between the two teams following an altercation between New York’s Mitchell Robinson and Atlanta’s Dyson Daniels.
Robinson and Daniels were seen squaring up to one another after a free throw by OG Anunoby, before they grabbed hold of one another and sparked a wild brawl in the process.
Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu was the first to intervene, desperately trying to pull Robinson off his teammate before other players rushed over to get involved.
As mayhem broke out on the court, Knicks head coach Mike Brown and a referee were even knocked to the floor amid the madness.
Robinson and Daniels were both ejected from Thursday’s Game 6 showdown in Atlanta when the brawl came to an end.
New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks stars became embroiled in a chaotic fight on Thursday
It came at the end of a historic half for the Knicks, who set an NBA playoff record by taking a 47-point halftime lead over the Hawks.
New York was 83-36 up at the break, after leading by as many as 51 at one point in the second quarter.
Before Thursday, the biggest halftime playoff lead was 41 points. It had happened twice: Cleveland led in Boston 72-31 at the break on May 19, 2017, and Indiana led the Cavaliers 80-39 at the half of game on May 11, 2025.
The 47-point lead tied for the second-biggest – including regular season games – in the NBA’s shot-clock era, which started in 1954. Dallas led the Los Angeles Clippers by 50 points at the break on December 27, 2020, and Golden State led Sacramento by 47 at the half of their game on November 2, 1991.
New York also tied for the third-highest first-half point total in NBA playoff history. Oklahoma City scored 87 against Denver on May 7, 2025; Cleveland scored 86 against Golden State on June 9, 2017; and Dallas scored 83 against Sacramento on May 8, 2003.
Atlanta actually had a 9-0 run in the early moments to take a 9-5 lead. The Knicks answered that with a 43-6 run.
