The Knicks are back. I mean, back to the ’90s, to a time when they were contending for championships, which were the glory days when the team was part of Metro New York’s conscience.
If you’re a fan under 40, you won’t understand. You didn’t experience the era when the Knicks were the biggest show in town. I was a high school dropout doing nothing but enjoying the team’s ’90s run in the Eastern Conference. It was beautiful. Sure, they fell short of a championship. But the memories are magical, and no one can take them away. Who wouldn’t enjoy a balmy May night waiting till 9p for a Knicks game with so much at stake? Yeah, that was fun.
Right now, it matters not that the Knicks aren’t all the way there yet. It doesn’t change the fact this is fun. For the first time since ’94, they’re building a team capable of contending for a championship. It’s refreshing, unique, and overdue after decades of bad basketball.
It seems like James Dolan finally found his wise basketball wizards in Leon Rose and Tom Thibodeau. It’s like 2000 all over again — the Knicks can actually play in the Eastern Conference Finals this year. And if they can do that, it’s a sure sign this franchise is finally breaking through. I never thought the day would come when the Knicks would grow up to be an Eastern Conference contender.
For people of all ages, it’s a terrific turn of events. For those who never knew the Knicks as a winning team, it’s beautiful to witness. For fans who grew up watching the Knicks contend for a championship, it’s even more special. We know what a challenge it is to build a championship team. We get what it means to get there after taking it for granted in the first go-round.
So yeah, they’re back. And it’s beautiful.
When the Knicks suffered a 122-108 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden, they lost two of three after winning 15 of 17 to start 2024. It’s hard to be too broken up about this latest loss. The Knicks had no hope of beating an offensive-loaded team after missing Jalen Brunson (sprained ankle), Julius Randle (shoulder), OG Anunoby (elbow), and Mitchell Robinson (ankle) to injuries. Isiah Hartenstein sat out of the second half with a sore left Achilles tendon.
This loss doesn’t mean we should lose sight of the big picture. This Knicks team is coming together. We know what Brunson, Randle, and Anunoby can do. Josh Hart, Donte DiVincenzo, and Hartenstein have played well since January, and that’s why the Knicks look like an elite team.
The Knicks have demonstrated they can defeat elite teams, so this spring is a season of optimism. It’s not a crazy thought about the Knickerbockers hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy. They could be on the cusp of doing just that starting this year. It’s going to depend on seeding. If they can win the division, their chances of going to the conference finals should be solid.
This team has enough to win the division. They are 6 1/2 games back. They still have a shot if their players can heal, get healthy, and get on the court before too long.
But let’s not forget that Rose did not add a scorer at the trade deadline to complement Brunson and Randle. That’s okay since it was hard to believe stars would be traded in the middle of the season. Instead, he settled with adding depth by acquiring Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks while dumping Quentin Grimes and Evan Fournier. What’s impressive is that he did not give up first-rounders, which is huge since they may be important in adding a key piece this offseason.
It was the right approach to take. Let’s see how far this team can go with what they have right now. There’s no reason to add a star to change the chemistry. Guys know their role on the team, so it makes sense to ride with them and see what happens.
I have been paying attention to the Knicks for a long time. It’s refreshing to see sports bars such as Scallywag’s draw a big crowd for a Knicks game on a Thursday night. This shows that the public knows this team has a chance to do great things in 2024.
This journey has raised the curiosity around what else the Knicks can do. That’s why there’s optimism on the team that hasn’t been there since 2000. This is an exciting thing, and it’s beautiful when the tri-state area can rally around the Knicks.
It hasn’t been a great decade for New York sports. Most of the teams in town have been so bad. But now, the Knicks have brought hope finally. They are writing themselves a remarkable story with many chapters yet to be composed.
