Giving Thanks
Because it's never as bad as it seems.
Joakim Noah. The Triangle. Andrea Bargnani. Eddy Curry. Larry Brown. Isaiah Thomas. Antonio McDyess’s knee. Jerome James’ belly. All of Kurt Rambis.
You don’t have to stroll through memory lane for long to realize how depressing things have been at times. It’s not a stroll any sane person should want to take, but sometimes it’s necessary. Today feels like one of those days.
It’s not just because Thanksgiving is tomorrow…it’s more that we’ve all collectively gotten pretty far down in the dumps over the early going this season. Every Julius Randle turnover, every bad shot, every open three, every new media jab and most especially every loss has started to feel like a reminder that Knicks fans were silly for ever believing we could have nice things. We belong in the muck, scrounging for scraps that can distract us from our hopeless, inevitable fate.
I’ve gotten sucked in myself, mostly because it feels like we’re not that far away, at least not compared to so many past seasons when we were years away from even having the right to hope. That this year has been such a struggle might very well be an indictment on the decision makers who put it together, a coach who hasn’t been able to make the pieces fit, and a roster short on top end talent.
Or it might just be early. Regardless of what happens over the rest of this year though, today felt like a good time to remember that things have been worse.
Far, far worse.
It might be the NBA’s lowest bar, but knowing I can turn on a game tonight and watch a semi-competitive team filled with pieces who may actually be around for a while is a nice feeling. So is knowing that another draft pick awaits, and that eventually one of those babies will hit in a big way (and maybe the kid making his homecoming tonight already qualifies). It’s also nice to know there’s a locker room full of guys at least trying to restore pride to this organization.
Mostly though, it’s just nice to have hope, especially since that hasn’t always been the case.
And on that note, for today’s newsletter, I thought I’d go through the 10 things I’m most thankful for as a Knicks fan. To an outsider, there may seem no task more arduous, but if you’ve been around for a while, you know that the toughest part is whittling down the list to just 10.
10. Three to the head
It’s not a secret that I’m not the biggest Melo fan. I let the last few years he was here get to me. I blame him for stuff, probably too much stuff, including things that weren’t hit fault.
But Melo was the best thing this organization had going for it over the last two decades, and nothing he did brought a bigger smile to my face than when those three fingers went up against that headband-wrapped dome.
9. Donnie Walsh
I know it never really came together in the way that he envisioned, but I still appreciate the time Donnie was here.
So much of the last 20 years has been marked by universal derision, or at the very least, a healthy bit of skepticism from more onlookers than not. The day the Knicks hired Donnie Walsh, they became a respectable organization, and that mostly held true throughout his entire tenure, even though it was filled with a lot of losing in anticipation of a prize that never came.
I’ll always wonder what would have happened if he never left.
8. JR Smith
I’ve told this story before, but ICYMI, my wife and I had table names, not numbers, at our wedding. They were based on significant parts of our life – things that held real meaning to us as a couple. One of the tables (the one for my degenerate law school friends, appropriately enough) was named “The Pipe,” after a particularly memorable Instagram interaction the 6th Man of the Year had with a young nymphet:
It was one of dozens of moments JR Smith had while a member of this team that you couldn’t make up. He was far from perfect, but my life as a Knicks fan would be missing something if he hadn’t been a part of it.
7. RJ & Mitch
Whatever real hope I have for this franchise moving forward is tied up in these two kids.
I don’t think it’s an accident that their lockers are on either side of Taj Gibson’s. The franchise seems to know what it has in each of these young men, and despite all the chicanery that has gone on this season, that gives me some modicum of confidence.
They’re also so much damn fun to watch play.
6. Linsanity
I’ll always remember that the game winner against the Raptors – the culmination of Linsanity, the moment it felt like we weren’t all dreaming and this was actually happening – came on Valentine’s Day.
I was in a dumpy Upper West Side bar with a girl I liked who I hadn’t yet realized didn’t like me back. We grabbed dinner and then popped in for a drink to catch the fourth quarter, and when the shot went down, it was one of the half-dozen moments you get in your life when you feel like you’re on top of the world and nothing can take you down.
5. Spree
The baddest motherf----- to ever wear a Knick uniform.
I can’t count the number of times in my life when I was watching a player on the other team and thought to myself “Man, what I wouldn’t give for him to be a Knick.” Spreewell was that guy, except he actually played for us.
The day they traded him for Kieth Van Horn is still the angriest I’ve ever been as a fan.
4. Frank
I’ve never rooted for a player quite like I’ve rooted for this kid, such that every made basket – all 315 of them – feels like a moment worthy of celebration.
That same sentiment is why so many people hate on him, and probably always will, but for me, it’s given me something to be genuinely happy about amidst all the recent losing. Being a Frank fan is like being a member of some exclusive club that feels all the more special because so many people think you’re insane for wanting to be a part of it.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
3. ‘93-94 & ‘99
I can’t separate them out.
1993 was when I became a fan, and it will always have a special place in my heart. I spent that year simultaneously bonding with my dad and stepdad in a way I never had before, and it was all because of that team.
1999 was such a downer for three months, and then for six magical weeks, the impossible just kept happening. I turned 16 during the first round series against the Heat, and there was all kinds of teenage nonsense happening in my life at that time. That run was as welcome a distraction as I’ve ever had.
2. Pat
Every time he stepped on the court, it felt like we had a chance. I took it for granted then, but I certainly don’t now.
1. 2012-13
It might seem odd to put this season at the top of the list.
But it’s the thing I’m most thankful for because midway through that year, I started dating my wife, and several of our earliest memories together were in a bar, a few too many cocktails deep, watching that team go on a magic carpet ride that seemed like it would never end. The Curry Game, the OKC thriller when JR sunk one from what seemed like half court, the third quarter in Game 6 vs Indiana when Shump and Melo nearly brought them all the way back…I remember where we were for every one of them.
She’d never watched much basketball before, but by the end of that year, even though she wasn’t obsessed, she at least understood my obsession. If she didn’t, our marriage wouldn’t stand much of a chance.
News & Notes
compiled by Michael Schatz (@mschatz99)
If you’re only going to read one thing today, let it be Chris Iseman’s superb profile of Michael Arcieri, the Knicks director of basketball strategy who also grew up a fan of the team and took the type of road to get to his current position that you can’t help but be inspired by.
David Fizdale, perhaps after reading yesterday’s newsletter, wants the Knicks to play faster. As he should.
Posting & Toasting has an update on the goings on in Westchester, where the Knicks have quite a few interesting pieces.
Finally, it sure sounds like RJ Barrett is going to play.
Help Us Help Others!!!
Our Thanksgiving Drive ends today!
Help push us across the finish line (our goal is $3500 so we can help feed 100 needy families)…and one more time, thanks to everyone who has already donated!
On This Date: Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell score 30 points each to lead Knicks
by Vivek Dadhania (@vdadhania)
Latrell Sprewell & Allan Houston displayed their potential as a dynamic duo in the victory against the Orlando Magic. In addition to 30 points scored, Sprewell had 5 rebounds, 6 assists, and made 9-9 free throws. Similarly, Houston had 6 rebounds and 5 assists while shooting 60% from the floor and making all 4 of his free throw attempts.
That’s it! I’ll be off for the holiday weekend but I hope everyone has a happy and healthy Thanksgiving, and as always, thanks for reading!