After claiming their first NBA Cup in the midst of a blistering stretch, the New York Knicks still have eyes on the bigger picture. Although winning the NBA Cup represents a great in-season accomplishment with added prize money, New York is opting not to raise a banner for its tournament victory inside Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks are supposedly strictly focused on hanging banners associated with postseason accomplishments.

Held without an NBA title since 1973, and without an NBA Finals appearance since 1999, New York and its diehard fanbase are starving for a deep playoff run.

If the last month and an impressive NBA Cup victory are any indication, this season could be falling into place for the Knicks.

As the new front-runner to win the Eastern Conference on BetMGM, New York seems to have its rotation figured out under new head coach Mike Brown. Perhaps most importantly, the Knicks are one of the few teams in the East to avoid injuries to star players in the first quarter of the season.

Although New York is generating plenty of buzz when it comes to winning the East, the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder and a deep collection of Western Conference teams also stand in the way of New York’s first championship in over 50 years.

Knicks overtake Cavs for top spot in East

Even before the Knicks claimed the NBA Cup, New York’s recent surge commanded attention across the sport. Reclaiming the top odds to win the Eastern Conference at BetMGM last week, the Knicks sit at +300 odds to reach the NBA Finals — jumping the Cleveland Cavaliers (+375) in the process.

At 24 percent, New York carries the highest handle (dollar amount bet) in the Eastern Conference market after a flood of new money was placed on the Knicks.

“In the last week, 43 percent of money is on New York to win the East and the Knicks are now the most-bet team to win the conference,” said Anthony Parenti, a sports trader with BetMGM.

Opening as Eastern Conference favorites at +310 odds, a modest 9-6 start dropped the Knicks to second before stellar recent play put them back on top. Winning eight of its last nine regular-season games — 10 of 11 games overall, including the NBA Cup run, which is not counted in regular-season standings — New York is blazing hot and increasingly looking like a dangerous outfit.

After an initial adjustment period to a roster accustomed to playing the hard-nosed style of previous coach Tom Thibodeau, Brown seemingly figured out the proper rotation after inserting do-it-all wing Josh Hart into the starting lineup. New York’s recent winning stretch correlates directly with Hart’s insertion into the starting five last month.

As New York eyes a deep postseason run, the Knicks are aided by a weakened Eastern Conference filled with injuries to star players. Key players have been healthy for the Knicks thus far. Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges have only missed three combined games between them.

Boston Celtics wing Jayson Tatum and Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton both went down with season-ending injuries last postseason — significantly altering the course for both franchises and the Eastern Conference as a whole. Boston has played admirably without Tatum so far, sitting at fourth in Eastern Conference standings and odds. However, the Celtics can’t replace Tatum’s star power, scoring prowess and strong two-way play.

Meanwhile, Indiana essentially pivoted to tank mode without Haliburton, with one of the league’s worst records (6-20) to date.

Cleveland’s injury concerns also leave them susceptible to another early postseason exit. All-star point guard Darius Garland continues to battle a lingering toe injury. Evan Mobley, one of the league’s top defensive players, will also miss the next few weeks with a calf injury.

Swinging for the fences with an offseason trade for shooting guard Desmond Bane, the Orlando Magic (+750 to win the East) are also fighting the injury bug. Star forward Paolo Banchero already missed extended time early in the season before talented wing Franz Wagner went down with a recent high ankle sprain. Orlando’s inability to keep its stars together on the floor has soured heightened expectations after the Bane trade.

Even second-tier Eastern Conference playoff contenders like the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks carried on without all-star caliber players. Tyler Herro missed the first month of the season for Miami following September ankle surgery, while Trae Young has been out for Atlanta since Halloween with a knee injury.

Of course, it would be silly to overlook the Detroit Pistons (+500) in the East after their franchise-record 13-game winning streak earlier this season. Cade Cunningham is performing at an All-NBA level and big man Jalen Duren is one of the league’s most improved players. Detroit’s lack of postseason experience and younger roster subdues postseason expectations after the Knicks eliminated the Pistons in the first round last season.

Western Conference still dominates NBA Finals winner market

While optimism abounds for New York in the injury-riddled Eastern Conference, skepticism remains about the Knicks, or any team from the East, winning the NBA Finals.

The Knicks are the only Eastern Conference team among the top five of the current NBA title market on BetMGM. Skewing heavily towards a much deeper Western Conference, the market believes the West will maintain its recent edge over the East after winning three of the last four NBA championships.

The Oklahoma City Thunder (+115 to win it all), in the midst of a potentially record-breaking regular season, remain the major roadblock for any team trying to raise the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy. Holding a sizable lead in the title market, even after a disappointing NBA Cup semifinals loss to the San Antonio Spurs Oklahoma City remains the team to beat so long as reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is on the floor.

Following the Thunder in the NBA Finals winner market comes the Denver Nuggets (+700) and Houston Rockets (+1100). Nikola Jokić is playing to his expected MVP standards, but the efficient play of guard Jamal Murray has Denver thinking about its second championship in four years. The addition of Kevin Durant bolstered Houston’s perimeter scoring capabilities while the Rockets sustained a top-three defense.

Sitting fourth to win the NBA Finals, the Knicks (+1300) hold a slight edge over the Los Angeles Lakers (+1400) and the Cavaliers (+1800). New York was previously listed at +1600 odds and sixth place among NBA Finals winners before its recent stretch pushed them into the top five.

With Oklahoma City’s dominant 24-2 start, the NBA Finals winner market developed a wider gap. Both the Knicks and Cavaliers started the preseason in second place at +700 odds before dropping to make way for other Western Conference contenders.