I feel like I’ve waited all year for the playoffs to get here and I’m not gonna let a bad end to the season dampen my excitement
We have the Captain, who is That Dude. You know he’s just as sick as you and me of hearing about how good the Pistons are
We have a 6’8, 245 pound demon who is going to have “MotorCade” in Rikers for the next two weeks
We have Josh Hart, who for all his faults is the definition of a 16 game player you want to go to war with
We have the best shooting big man in the league, who is going to be All-NBA and spent all year showing us he isn’t soft
We have Mikal, who has come up big for us on both ends and knows what it takes to win in the playoffs. He’s been to the Finals
We have Mitch, who’s going to make Detroit’s bigs look like 2023 Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen
We have Deuce. Good things happen when Deuce is on the court
We have Cam Payne. Need I remind you last year he had all of us pulling our hair out hitting big shots for Philly in Round 1?
Last, but not least, we have Shamgod. Call him “too small” at your own risk
And leading this ship is only the fourth most winningest coach in franchise history. Someone who led us to back to back 50 win seasons for the first time in 30 years
It hasn’t been perfect, but our group is battle tested. Detroit isn’t. They’re talking about being tough and bringing the Bad Boys back, but those lights are gonna be a lot brighter than they expect. LFGK
First off great great work yet again this regular season by you and your team at KFS . I kind of been indifferent regarding team this season so hopefully they give us a ride this postseason.
Will you be doing a season report card for each player?
I’m counting down the days to the playoffs - the stage where giants walk and heroes are born. Pressure is a privilege. I can’t wait to witness who seizes it. This is that moment where the bright lights reveal who rises and who fades, where greatness isn’t spoken but proven.
Kinda surprised at all the bummed Knicks fans out there. This is a really good team (not without flaws as most every team has) and the postseason which will provide clarity on whether we’re for reals or a paper tiger is here. My advice to all Knicks fans is enjoy this ride. We’ve got a more than competent FO now that will make the necessary adjustments in the offseason whatever the outcome.
Macri - Well written. Another thing that recently occured to me: Part of what made last season so magical was that we saw multiple players make a leap. Brunson made a leap. DDV made a leap. iHart made a leap. All at the same time.
This season, no one has made a leap (OG made a hop?) and Bridges seems to have backslid. so on top of the fact that their 2nd half record is worse, we also don't feel that our players are trending upwards.
Great piece. Jon You stated on the pod that “ interest in the team is down.” I was surprised to hear that and was wondering if you could expend on that sometime. Let’s go Knicks and we’ve made it to the best part of the year.
This is off topic but as of the end of the regular season the first two picks going to Brooklyn for Mikal are number 26 and a coin flip for either 19 or 20. Three to go.
Also the Detroit pick used in the Towns trade will convey to the Twolves and is at number 17.
Excellent review, Jon. This year's playoffs will tell us a lot about this roster and coaching staff and where reinforcements and improvements (and even changes that are perhaps not 1-for-1 improvements but necessary to build a more cohesive roster) are needed.
I’m missing something. Mr DJ on Friday kept emphasizing that we were 0 and 10 against the 3 best teams in basketball and that wasn’t really acceptable. This has been the mantra of many fans. Are we not forgetting, while we bask in the glow of 50 wins, that we were 0 and 2 vs the Lakers: 0 and 2 vs the Clippers: and 0 and 2 vs Golden State. That’s 0 and 18. Which of those 6 teams would you bet the ranch we could beat in a playoff series. It’s a little amusing that on Friday morning you scoffed at those of us upset by the Detroit loss. The next morning you were opining about the end of the Thibs era. I was upset not only about the losses to Detroit or Cleveland or Boston, but also the win against The Suns. All 4 games last week featured fourth quarters where the opposition just picked us apart defensively, while we stagnated offensively. The moribund Suns almost pulled it out. In short, I find the thought of playoff redemption amusing. We have two players who can’t defend. We have several who refuse to play offense. We have some that sometimes can and sometimes can’t. We are what we are. Some great, some bad, and some terribly ugly. Question, do you trust Leon to fix this? Thibs will pay the price. I think he knew that the moment he found out who was going to man the post this year.
I think there’s a chasm of difference between defenses figuring out how to play Brunson and Brunson needing to figure out how to parlay his talents vs the best defenses into success not only for him but for all. Considering there’s like a dozen guys in the history of the sport who have mastered this, I’m not holding it against him (nor am I dismissing the possibility he gets there).
My greatest concern heading into the playoffs (and that includes a concern about Detroit) is that this team hasn’t displayed championship-level defense all season long. The best teams in the league string together stops and dictate terms defensively. There have been countless games this season where we’ve sat seemingly within striking distance and I’ve had little faith we can pull the game out because I knew we wouldn’t get stops. If things go south, Thibs will take the fall, but at some point, adding a second defensive target to a team built around Jalen has to call the front office into question. I understand that the thought was maybe to follow the Denver model of having an elite offense and adequate defense, but Jokic is one of the top 10-12 offensive players of all time.
I hope we learn a lot during these playoffs and have the foresight and ability to pivot accordingly in the offseason if circumstances dictate.
Agree about the defense this season year not being capable enough to sustain runs against great teams. And that’s particularly upsetting because we’re KNICK fans. That is not something we are OK with.
But I think of the KAT acquisition, and to me it’s exchanging KAT for Randle. Is KAT a worse defender than Randle? They both have their lapses but can look good with plus defenders around them.
The issue with their defense this year is no iHart and half a season of a part time Mitch. They’ve had to make do, and rework on the fly.
Can they coalesce in the playoffs ? God I hope so. I do think we’ll see more Mitch and there’s hope that they can dominate stretches of games defensively.
Ok so here’s my thought about last year vs this year, and how things stack up. Last year there was one “elite team” in the entire NBA - the Celtics. The Knicks went 0-3, and finally beat them the last week of the season when the Celtics played everyone but had everything wrapped up. Knicks went 0-2 against the top seeded Thunder, couldn’t crack the Mavs (though the games were funky). The January stretch of dominance was similar to the Knicks December/January stretch this year. Some good wins, but mostly wins against teams they are better than.
I guess my point is this - it may feel like last year’s team was “tougher”, and we should be better this year due to the influx of talent, but I think a lot of that is looking at things through “post 2024 playoffs colored glasses”. That’s where the 2024 Knicks really grew their stripes. The Knicks have that opportunity now.
I will say, last year’s team started the playoffs significantly deeper than this year’s team - even with Randle’s injury. I think that’s why I personally don’t feel as confident. “Maybe shamet will get hot” doesn’t inspire the same confidence as “maybe Bojan can get on a heater”, at least to me.
I never thought last year’s team had a title ceiling either. I also think the obsession with last year’s team is overrated. They were just more of a known quantity.
Yes if you are just looking at title ceiling. But if you are talking about appeal to the hearts and minds of New York fans, last year was as good as it gets without a championship and I would say tied with the Bernard King year (when we beat Detroit in the playoffs and played the Celtics tough in the next round—I would settle for the same results this year) and slightly ahead of most of the Ewing teams.
They just played better defense and at their peak were deeper. We miss Donte’s shot volume, but I’ll tell ya, Bridges being able to make 6 mid rangers per game is pretty helpful too! Remember all those Donte mid rangers or runners that had zero chance? Things weren’t perfect - it was just lower expectations.
IDK what trade was out there. Never assume there's a good trade to be made (to say nothing of the fact that they his injury uncertainty would have made any negotiation fraught from the outset)
I feel like I’ve waited all year for the playoffs to get here and I’m not gonna let a bad end to the season dampen my excitement
We have the Captain, who is That Dude. You know he’s just as sick as you and me of hearing about how good the Pistons are
We have a 6’8, 245 pound demon who is going to have “MotorCade” in Rikers for the next two weeks
We have Josh Hart, who for all his faults is the definition of a 16 game player you want to go to war with
We have the best shooting big man in the league, who is going to be All-NBA and spent all year showing us he isn’t soft
We have Mikal, who has come up big for us on both ends and knows what it takes to win in the playoffs. He’s been to the Finals
We have Mitch, who’s going to make Detroit’s bigs look like 2023 Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen
We have Deuce. Good things happen when Deuce is on the court
We have Cam Payne. Need I remind you last year he had all of us pulling our hair out hitting big shots for Philly in Round 1?
Last, but not least, we have Shamgod. Call him “too small” at your own risk
And leading this ship is only the fourth most winningest coach in franchise history. Someone who led us to back to back 50 win seasons for the first time in 30 years
It hasn’t been perfect, but our group is battle tested. Detroit isn’t. They’re talking about being tough and bringing the Bad Boys back, but those lights are gonna be a lot brighter than they expect. LFGK
Great summation Chris. They can try to Bad Boy their way into this series all they want. If the Knicks play their game, it won't matter.
Well when you put it like that Chris
First off great great work yet again this regular season by you and your team at KFS . I kind of been indifferent regarding team this season so hopefully they give us a ride this postseason.
You're very welcome KW, thanks for the kind words
Will you be doing a season report card for each player?
I’m counting down the days to the playoffs - the stage where giants walk and heroes are born. Pressure is a privilege. I can’t wait to witness who seizes it. This is that moment where the bright lights reveal who rises and who fades, where greatness isn’t spoken but proven.
I will, but feel like it's best to hold off until after the playoffs
Kinda surprised at all the bummed Knicks fans out there. This is a really good team (not without flaws as most every team has) and the postseason which will provide clarity on whether we’re for reals or a paper tiger is here. My advice to all Knicks fans is enjoy this ride. We’ve got a more than competent FO now that will make the necessary adjustments in the offseason whatever the outcome.
Macri - Well written. Another thing that recently occured to me: Part of what made last season so magical was that we saw multiple players make a leap. Brunson made a leap. DDV made a leap. iHart made a leap. All at the same time.
This season, no one has made a leap (OG made a hop?) and Bridges seems to have backslid. so on top of the fact that their 2nd half record is worse, we also don't feel that our players are trending upwards.
All that said. Saturday it starts anew. LFGK
Appreciate you Sekou!
Great piece. Jon You stated on the pod that “ interest in the team is down.” I was surprised to hear that and was wondering if you could expend on that sometime. Let’s go Knicks and we’ve made it to the best part of the year.
Thank you 🙏
Hey AK...just going on what I've heard. My guess is that this is reflected in the ratings from last season to this season.
This is off topic but as of the end of the regular season the first two picks going to Brooklyn for Mikal are number 26 and a coin flip for either 19 or 20. Three to go.
Also the Detroit pick used in the Towns trade will convey to the Twolves and is at number 17.
Excellent review, Jon. This year's playoffs will tell us a lot about this roster and coaching staff and where reinforcements and improvements (and even changes that are perhaps not 1-for-1 improvements but necessary to build a more cohesive roster) are needed.
Thanks Jon and the rest of the KFS team for another regular season of the absolute best coverage.
I’m missing something. Mr DJ on Friday kept emphasizing that we were 0 and 10 against the 3 best teams in basketball and that wasn’t really acceptable. This has been the mantra of many fans. Are we not forgetting, while we bask in the glow of 50 wins, that we were 0 and 2 vs the Lakers: 0 and 2 vs the Clippers: and 0 and 2 vs Golden State. That’s 0 and 18. Which of those 6 teams would you bet the ranch we could beat in a playoff series. It’s a little amusing that on Friday morning you scoffed at those of us upset by the Detroit loss. The next morning you were opining about the end of the Thibs era. I was upset not only about the losses to Detroit or Cleveland or Boston, but also the win against The Suns. All 4 games last week featured fourth quarters where the opposition just picked us apart defensively, while we stagnated offensively. The moribund Suns almost pulled it out. In short, I find the thought of playoff redemption amusing. We have two players who can’t defend. We have several who refuse to play offense. We have some that sometimes can and sometimes can’t. We are what we are. Some great, some bad, and some terribly ugly. Question, do you trust Leon to fix this? Thibs will pay the price. I think he knew that the moment he found out who was going to man the post this year.
I think that we need to admit that the good defenses in the league have figured out how to play Brunson. This is something to keep an eye on.
I think there’s a chasm of difference between defenses figuring out how to play Brunson and Brunson needing to figure out how to parlay his talents vs the best defenses into success not only for him but for all. Considering there’s like a dozen guys in the history of the sport who have mastered this, I’m not holding it against him (nor am I dismissing the possibility he gets there).
I think you are very wrong
My greatest concern heading into the playoffs (and that includes a concern about Detroit) is that this team hasn’t displayed championship-level defense all season long. The best teams in the league string together stops and dictate terms defensively. There have been countless games this season where we’ve sat seemingly within striking distance and I’ve had little faith we can pull the game out because I knew we wouldn’t get stops. If things go south, Thibs will take the fall, but at some point, adding a second defensive target to a team built around Jalen has to call the front office into question. I understand that the thought was maybe to follow the Denver model of having an elite offense and adequate defense, but Jokic is one of the top 10-12 offensive players of all time.
I hope we learn a lot during these playoffs and have the foresight and ability to pivot accordingly in the offseason if circumstances dictate.
Agree about the defense this season year not being capable enough to sustain runs against great teams. And that’s particularly upsetting because we’re KNICK fans. That is not something we are OK with.
But I think of the KAT acquisition, and to me it’s exchanging KAT for Randle. Is KAT a worse defender than Randle? They both have their lapses but can look good with plus defenders around them.
The issue with their defense this year is no iHart and half a season of a part time Mitch. They’ve had to make do, and rework on the fly.
Can they coalesce in the playoffs ? God I hope so. I do think we’ll see more Mitch and there’s hope that they can dominate stretches of games defensively.
Ok so here’s my thought about last year vs this year, and how things stack up. Last year there was one “elite team” in the entire NBA - the Celtics. The Knicks went 0-3, and finally beat them the last week of the season when the Celtics played everyone but had everything wrapped up. Knicks went 0-2 against the top seeded Thunder, couldn’t crack the Mavs (though the games were funky). The January stretch of dominance was similar to the Knicks December/January stretch this year. Some good wins, but mostly wins against teams they are better than.
I guess my point is this - it may feel like last year’s team was “tougher”, and we should be better this year due to the influx of talent, but I think a lot of that is looking at things through “post 2024 playoffs colored glasses”. That’s where the 2024 Knicks really grew their stripes. The Knicks have that opportunity now.
I will say, last year’s team started the playoffs significantly deeper than this year’s team - even with Randle’s injury. I think that’s why I personally don’t feel as confident. “Maybe shamet will get hot” doesn’t inspire the same confidence as “maybe Bojan can get on a heater”, at least to me.
I never thought last year’s team had a title ceiling either. I also think the obsession with last year’s team is overrated. They were just more of a known quantity.
Yes if you are just looking at title ceiling. But if you are talking about appeal to the hearts and minds of New York fans, last year was as good as it gets without a championship and I would say tied with the Bernard King year (when we beat Detroit in the playoffs and played the Celtics tough in the next round—I would settle for the same results this year) and slightly ahead of most of the Ewing teams.
They just played better defense and at their peak were deeper. We miss Donte’s shot volume, but I’ll tell ya, Bridges being able to make 6 mid rangers per game is pretty helpful too! Remember all those Donte mid rangers or runners that had zero chance? Things weren’t perfect - it was just lower expectations.
I thought last year’s team should have been considered title contenders.
Thought they should have traded Randle at the deadline for help for last year. You thought I was crazy.
But what else is new.
Boston didn’t have the championship confidence yet
IDK what trade was out there. Never assume there's a good trade to be made (to say nothing of the fact that they his injury uncertainty would have made any negotiation fraught from the outset)
That’s what you said last year!!
Donte was a big part of our toughness and success last post season.
We miss him. Would love to see KAT get up the same number of threes per game