I remember how,in the last 2 full seasons, as a fanbase our high water mark was 4 wins in a row. So many of us wanted it so badly, and time and time again, they would get to 3 in a row, then boom,it would all crash down.
Not this team. Not this season.
We all earned every bit of what's happening now. Every loss, every bad organizational move, every former bad trade, every lolKnicks, we earned this, it's real, enjoy it.
You said, "In short, Immanuel Quickley is why we watch sports."
Certainly true. But as wonderful as he has been, this year we have even more. We have the Julius Randle resurrection. And we have the awakening of the franchise. Knicks fans are covered in bruises where they've been pinching themselves.
Closing the newsletter with the comment about IQs joy for the game was brilliant. The image of him skipping down the court after playing 50+ minutes of basketball at both ends of the court was the first thing I mentioned to my wife this morning. Everyone else looked gassed at that point, and he was pogoing his way down court.
I would disagree (softly) with the play of the game. The IQ block down low where he then took the ball to the hoop at the other end, seemed like when the game changed. I will admit to my loving IQs game. Loved the Mitch take (because it was so surprising). Glad we have lots of things to celebrate this morning.
All I got to say is that IQ cemented himself in the history of the franchise as being one of the all time fan favorites. He really went from being a mere footnote, to being a major figure in the history of the franchise, due to the circumstances and due to the performance.
I really don’t think that statement is hyperbole. The win streak, the fact that we practically conceded the game going in, the fact that like many times throughout history, the refs seemed to put their hand on the scale to hand the Celtics a game in the Boston Garden, our legacy against that team in their building, and this guy, who isn’t even a starter just put the team on his back and refuses to let it happen.
The effect and influence this moment has on this franchise CANNOT be overstated.
In the lead up to the start of the season, in arguing with people on this page about whether or not Thibs is the right guy for the job, I mentioned multiple times that what this coaching staff and front office has done is position this team so that it was one move away from a “window of opportunity” to have a young team who could compete for a championship.
Neither I, or anyone else believed that the one guy they needed was going to be Josh Hart, but here he is, and here we are.
30 years from now, 50 years from now the legacy of whatever this team does going forward, people are going to point to this night as being the night where it all really began for this group.
This team is poised to take this franchise to a place they haven’t seen since the 90s teams of Pat Reilly, which really was the only other time they’ve been at that level since Red Holzmann.
In that respect, last night was a statement game, one where we announced our presence to the rest of the league and put the rest of the league on notice. It will be a night that will always be remembered for when this team forged an identity, and when IQ forever forged a legacy.
I disagree to a point about IQ. He wasn’t a point guard when drafted. Your depiction makes it sound he languished on the bench. Although he was a point guard in HS, he didn’t succeed as one at Kentucky. I remember quite distinctly Thibs watching IQ in Las Vegas Summer League. After a game encouraging him although his attempt at Point Guard was not impressive. He was thought to a small shooting guard. No other team drafted him in the 1st round. The Knicks did. If he was thrown into the fire he would have mostly likely failed. Haters of Tom Thibodeau would have mashed their teeth as the Knicks loses mounted and the FO would have been criticized for wasting a 1st round pick. Instead Thibs faith in IQ which seems as strong as IQ’s faith in God has produced what we see today. The FO job is to improve the team . My Knick’s brethren already have questioned them about moves any move they haven’t made. As much as I love IQ if for instance, if Luka or Tatum, Embid was in the offing would IQ be exempt from discussion. I say Fans shouldn’t over estimate their knowledge or experience in player evaluation, development or faith. We’ve won 9 in a row we should be looking forward not backwards .
This is all very fair Chester, and points I've made myself both here and in the newsletter, mostly because, like you, I don't believe fans have the necessary info to ever question a coach. That said, I included the section to point out that IQ could very well have looked at the situation and wondered about what was happening, did they still have faith, etc. Now, it is a credit to Thibs that he knows he can make tough coaching decisions (like keeping the leash short on IQ) and trust that he can get major production because there is a high degree of trust there.
Mar 6, 2023·edited Mar 7, 2023Liked by Jonathan Macri
My wife and I have been on the road since February 1 when we left rural New Hampshire, cruising around the Desert Southwest in our Prius, exploring Big Bend, Tonto National Forest, Anza Borrego, and other glorious places, trying to keep our 73 year old bodies fit with hiking and bicycling. But there is still time and space to watch every Knicks game. I remember the extraordinary magic of the 1969 team coming together, the great vibes that launched the journey when DeBusschere arrived, how that team ended years of similar futility. And it coincided with the great cultural innovations of music, the winds of political change, and my own coming of age as a student at NYU's uptown campus. It was truly a magical time. This winning streak is the most joyful Knicks stretch since that legendary now mythical journey. It surpasses anything the Knicks accomplished during the Riley era which resulted in lots of success through some ugly basketball. Things are coming together in a beautiful way, with a young team, incredibly likable players, a man who will become a legendary coach (detractors notwithstanding), and players who get better with each game. We don't know, of course, where this might lead. Life always unfolds in mysterious ways. So does basketball. This streak and this season is truly magical and the ride is unsurpassed.
This is not a fluke, I repeat, this team is not a fluke. The lingering fear that it will all come crashing down is still there, we are Knicks fans after all, but if you stop listening to your gut for a second you'll recognize a team that is for real. Winning in Boston like this without HIM is not a fluke, it's proof that this team is ready to go places. To all those who still think it was a mistake to not go all in on Mitchell I say this, we now have a team and the value of all our pieces has grown exponentially, this summer we will be in a much better position than the one we were in last summer. Who knows, we may even make a run in the playoffs, New York will be a destination players will finally want to be a part of.
Wow...whatta game! The FO figured out a cheat code by letting a dinosaur in Thibs install an old school, team first system that while painful to arrive at...is working. It’s working because while the whole league is zigging to building teams around a star or stars, the Knicks have simply zagged to building a great team. The beauty of it is now we know who we are and that the system works. We don’t have to add ANY star that wants out of his current situation. He has to be the RIGHT star that fits OUR organization...or we’ll pass. Last point is IQ’s flowers are all deserved as watching this kid mature into the player he has become (and will become) has been a joy. My favorite moment was in 2OT (worth going back and rewatching) when Barrett through the inbounds pass away to Randle, IQ knowing both of them tend to mope around and lose focus, went to both individually and signaled them to keep it rolling and put it in the rearview. That was tremendous leadership and awareness of his guys that said it all. Love this guy. Love this team!
For all the plays tonight where a double take was in order, the play that wins 1st place for, "I need to see that again", goes to Mitchell Robinson's driving stuff in the 2nd qtr.
This game...I'll be honest, I turned it off them down 9 in the 3rd and I had trouble watching when i turned it back on them up 9 in the 4th. How did it happen? I better turn it off. Don't want to jinkx it. Honestly Macri...this is the most nervous I've been watching the team since the 90's or perhaps Linsanity. I couldn't do it! It was too much and I couldn't listen to anyone else calling the game then our guys. I can't believe this game. Marcus Smart must have flopped a million times. I do think IQ has grown a lot as a player. I don't think he had this handle, these drives...it's really something the way he's grown and lately watching him I had been getting the feeling that he was going to go off at some point and what a time to do it! Not against Charlotte or Orlando or something like that. Against the Celtics, on the road, playing 55 minutes? I can't even. It's not like we've been beating teams missing players out there. That's the Celtics and the Heat at full strength on the road! What a world!
Can we please now resign Q and Hart to long-term deals. Please? Pretty please? (FWIW: I know technically we can’t until the new NBA year starts but they better be ready on July 1st at 12:01 am to do such) WOW.
Oh, you can be sure phone calls are being made, and numbers are going back and forth, and these guys will be locked in one the league calendar hits day 1.
If off the top of your head you had to rank three game star performances this season where would this one rank? Some Brunson and Randle games have been pretty special but this has got to be top 3 surely.
I remember how,in the last 2 full seasons, as a fanbase our high water mark was 4 wins in a row. So many of us wanted it so badly, and time and time again, they would get to 3 in a row, then boom,it would all crash down.
Not this team. Not this season.
We all earned every bit of what's happening now. Every loss, every bad organizational move, every former bad trade, every lolKnicks, we earned this, it's real, enjoy it.
You said, "In short, Immanuel Quickley is why we watch sports."
Certainly true. But as wonderful as he has been, this year we have even more. We have the Julius Randle resurrection. And we have the awakening of the franchise. Knicks fans are covered in bruises where they've been pinching themselves.
Great comments about IQ! Joy. Pure unadulterated joy. In short, Immanuel Quickley is why we watch sports.
Closing the newsletter with the comment about IQs joy for the game was brilliant. The image of him skipping down the court after playing 50+ minutes of basketball at both ends of the court was the first thing I mentioned to my wife this morning. Everyone else looked gassed at that point, and he was pogoing his way down court.
I would disagree (softly) with the play of the game. The IQ block down low where he then took the ball to the hoop at the other end, seemed like when the game changed. I will admit to my loving IQs game. Loved the Mitch take (because it was so surprising). Glad we have lots of things to celebrate this morning.
L'chaim!!
All I got to say is that IQ cemented himself in the history of the franchise as being one of the all time fan favorites. He really went from being a mere footnote, to being a major figure in the history of the franchise, due to the circumstances and due to the performance.
I really don’t think that statement is hyperbole. The win streak, the fact that we practically conceded the game going in, the fact that like many times throughout history, the refs seemed to put their hand on the scale to hand the Celtics a game in the Boston Garden, our legacy against that team in their building, and this guy, who isn’t even a starter just put the team on his back and refuses to let it happen.
The effect and influence this moment has on this franchise CANNOT be overstated.
In the lead up to the start of the season, in arguing with people on this page about whether or not Thibs is the right guy for the job, I mentioned multiple times that what this coaching staff and front office has done is position this team so that it was one move away from a “window of opportunity” to have a young team who could compete for a championship.
Neither I, or anyone else believed that the one guy they needed was going to be Josh Hart, but here he is, and here we are.
30 years from now, 50 years from now the legacy of whatever this team does going forward, people are going to point to this night as being the night where it all really began for this group.
This team is poised to take this franchise to a place they haven’t seen since the 90s teams of Pat Reilly, which really was the only other time they’ve been at that level since Red Holzmann.
In that respect, last night was a statement game, one where we announced our presence to the rest of the league and put the rest of the league on notice. It will be a night that will always be remembered for when this team forged an identity, and when IQ forever forged a legacy.
I could watch Marcus Smart get kneed in the nuts 1000 times and it won’t get old
Sometimes life has its added bonuses.
First thing I did this morning was reach for my phone, knowing a newsletter was waiting for me! Thank you Jon!
I disagree to a point about IQ. He wasn’t a point guard when drafted. Your depiction makes it sound he languished on the bench. Although he was a point guard in HS, he didn’t succeed as one at Kentucky. I remember quite distinctly Thibs watching IQ in Las Vegas Summer League. After a game encouraging him although his attempt at Point Guard was not impressive. He was thought to a small shooting guard. No other team drafted him in the 1st round. The Knicks did. If he was thrown into the fire he would have mostly likely failed. Haters of Tom Thibodeau would have mashed their teeth as the Knicks loses mounted and the FO would have been criticized for wasting a 1st round pick. Instead Thibs faith in IQ which seems as strong as IQ’s faith in God has produced what we see today. The FO job is to improve the team . My Knick’s brethren already have questioned them about moves any move they haven’t made. As much as I love IQ if for instance, if Luka or Tatum, Embid was in the offing would IQ be exempt from discussion. I say Fans shouldn’t over estimate their knowledge or experience in player evaluation, development or faith. We’ve won 9 in a row we should be looking forward not backwards .
This is all very fair Chester, and points I've made myself both here and in the newsletter, mostly because, like you, I don't believe fans have the necessary info to ever question a coach. That said, I included the section to point out that IQ could very well have looked at the situation and wondered about what was happening, did they still have faith, etc. Now, it is a credit to Thibs that he knows he can make tough coaching decisions (like keeping the leash short on IQ) and trust that he can get major production because there is a high degree of trust there.
Special performance by a special kid. The whole team is playing well. You love to see it.
Keep up great work KFS!!
My wife and I have been on the road since February 1 when we left rural New Hampshire, cruising around the Desert Southwest in our Prius, exploring Big Bend, Tonto National Forest, Anza Borrego, and other glorious places, trying to keep our 73 year old bodies fit with hiking and bicycling. But there is still time and space to watch every Knicks game. I remember the extraordinary magic of the 1969 team coming together, the great vibes that launched the journey when DeBusschere arrived, how that team ended years of similar futility. And it coincided with the great cultural innovations of music, the winds of political change, and my own coming of age as a student at NYU's uptown campus. It was truly a magical time. This winning streak is the most joyful Knicks stretch since that legendary now mythical journey. It surpasses anything the Knicks accomplished during the Riley era which resulted in lots of success through some ugly basketball. Things are coming together in a beautiful way, with a young team, incredibly likable players, a man who will become a legendary coach (detractors notwithstanding), and players who get better with each game. We don't know, of course, where this might lead. Life always unfolds in mysterious ways. So does basketball. This streak and this season is truly magical and the ride is unsurpassed.
Loved reading this Mitchell, thank you.
This is not a fluke, I repeat, this team is not a fluke. The lingering fear that it will all come crashing down is still there, we are Knicks fans after all, but if you stop listening to your gut for a second you'll recognize a team that is for real. Winning in Boston like this without HIM is not a fluke, it's proof that this team is ready to go places. To all those who still think it was a mistake to not go all in on Mitchell I say this, we now have a team and the value of all our pieces has grown exponentially, this summer we will be in a much better position than the one we were in last summer. Who knows, we may even make a run in the playoffs, New York will be a destination players will finally want to be a part of.
Wow...whatta game! The FO figured out a cheat code by letting a dinosaur in Thibs install an old school, team first system that while painful to arrive at...is working. It’s working because while the whole league is zigging to building teams around a star or stars, the Knicks have simply zagged to building a great team. The beauty of it is now we know who we are and that the system works. We don’t have to add ANY star that wants out of his current situation. He has to be the RIGHT star that fits OUR organization...or we’ll pass. Last point is IQ’s flowers are all deserved as watching this kid mature into the player he has become (and will become) has been a joy. My favorite moment was in 2OT (worth going back and rewatching) when Barrett through the inbounds pass away to Randle, IQ knowing both of them tend to mope around and lose focus, went to both individually and signaled them to keep it rolling and put it in the rearview. That was tremendous leadership and awareness of his guys that said it all. Love this guy. Love this team!
For all the plays tonight where a double take was in order, the play that wins 1st place for, "I need to see that again", goes to Mitchell Robinson's driving stuff in the 2nd qtr.
This game...I'll be honest, I turned it off them down 9 in the 3rd and I had trouble watching when i turned it back on them up 9 in the 4th. How did it happen? I better turn it off. Don't want to jinkx it. Honestly Macri...this is the most nervous I've been watching the team since the 90's or perhaps Linsanity. I couldn't do it! It was too much and I couldn't listen to anyone else calling the game then our guys. I can't believe this game. Marcus Smart must have flopped a million times. I do think IQ has grown a lot as a player. I don't think he had this handle, these drives...it's really something the way he's grown and lately watching him I had been getting the feeling that he was going to go off at some point and what a time to do it! Not against Charlotte or Orlando or something like that. Against the Celtics, on the road, playing 55 minutes? I can't even. It's not like we've been beating teams missing players out there. That's the Celtics and the Heat at full strength on the road! What a world!
Can we please now resign Q and Hart to long-term deals. Please? Pretty please? (FWIW: I know technically we can’t until the new NBA year starts but they better be ready on July 1st at 12:01 am to do such) WOW.
Oh, you can be sure phone calls are being made, and numbers are going back and forth, and these guys will be locked in one the league calendar hits day 1.
Lost in the drama was Mitchell Robinson’s driving dunk on 10:30 in the second. Could you clip it and do a whole newsletter on it tomorrow please?
If off the top of your head you had to rank three game star performances this season where would this one rank? Some Brunson and Randle games have been pretty special but this has got to be top 3 surely.
You just gave me an idea for an offseason column (or end of season one) - ranking the top games by any knick this year.