Hard to fathom, but there are literally dozens of grown men (women too) scouring their Inboxes at 5 AM to read your commentary after every big Knick Game.
not hard to fathom; impossible to fathom. Probably best I don't fathom it because then my head would implode and there would be nothin in anyone's inbox.
The Knicks are four wins away from Brunson, Hart, KAT, OG, Bridges and Robinson being mentioned with the sainted Clyde, Willis, DeB, Bradley, Barnett and Monroe!
Flashing back to Berman (and I’ll add Vecsey to that), ouch, not good memories. As for their nadir for me it was Isiah’s sexual assault on a team employee and his subsequent rehiring as president of the Liberty. For those that will argue that Phil’s reign of terror was when we hit bottom I will not quibble, that was an existentially horrendous time.
I'll never forget Berman including a nugget that the Knicks were kicking the tires on trading for John Wall and his bloated contract and I wanted to vomit.
And there I was at the end of the first quarter after Cleveland had analytically won the first 12 minutes.
How could the Knicks possibly recover from this? Well how about an alley-oop here. A live-ball steal into a dunk there. Threes floating through the air like fireflies at dusk.
(And Kenny, the Marie Antoinette was not this tone deaf.)
There was even a brief moment — a very brief moment — where I felt sympathy for Cleveland. Because it’s one thing to lose. It’s another thing entirely to get publicly undressed in a game that matters. That kind of embarrassment sticks to a franchise.
Then I remembered the Knicks seasons where Toney Douglas, Courtney Lee, and Jared Jeffries were essentially being marched out nightly like sacrificial offerings to the basketball gods.
And just like that? Sympathy gone.
Especially after what this embarassment of a front office in Cleveland did to Fat Joe. It's one thing to lose. It's another to instruct your fans how to behave like third-graders when an important politician is visiting.
Favorite moments from the joyous destruction:
— Fat Joe sitting courtside with a white napkin draped over his head like a man surviving emotional weather. Lean Back, indeed.
— Kylie and Timothée sharing a Coke like a modern Knicks version of courtside royalty. Sorry, Swifties. I’m taking our celebrity couple every time.
We’ve got eight days and a thousand more things to say, but for now I’m grateful for three things:
James Dolan getting gloriously distracted by The Sphere long enough to allow Leon Rose to build a basketball civilization.
The selflessness, toughness, talent, and absolute connective tissue of this team. They genuinely like playing together. You can feel it.
All those miserable years. Because suffering is the seasoning. It’s what makes this taste different.”
I'd argue the combined celebrity of Timmy and Kylie surpasses Taylor and Travis because non-football fans didn't know who Travis was before he started dating Taylor.
I think it's OK to feel sympathy for the other team. I used to let that creep in when I was playing, but I learned that, while you can feel sympathy, your job is to crush them. Crush their souls. Then allow your sympathy after the game is over. Mitchell seems like a good dude. He's a Met fan. I'm a Met fan. And guys like Mobley and Allen, they've been putting in the work. They're talented players. Sorry guys, this is sports, and you're in the way.
The proper way for them to react to this drubbing is to respect what the Knicks have built, and learn from it, and try to improve themselves. But what a lot of athletes do is to make excuses, say "We were the better team", "We lost because I had a bad game" et cetera.
In my minds eye, I like to imagine Donovan Mitchell whispering into Jalen's ear, "You guys are fucking good. You humbled us. Go get this fucking thing for the East and for NY"
I’ve been explaining to my 14 year old, with tears in my eyes, that he needs to enjoy this, enjoy every hour/minute/second. It doesn’t happen that often, 3 times in my 52 years. I tell him how I fell in love with the Knicks on December 25, 1984, and have never looked back. Lots of up and downs, MJ ripping my heart out all those years, Charles the BUM Smith, Isiah Thomas..and many more.
Me too, but I think because, as @timgallagher so eloquently puts it, the “suffering is the seasoning,” the young’uns haven’t put in the time and heartbreak. They haven’t eviscerated countless evenings watching all the Lou Amundsons hustle their way to string after string of uninspiring losses (bless his and all their hearts for trying). They didn’t watch Melo, JR, Tyson, and the soft-boned vets tease us with a brief dip into the playoffs, quickly revealing their limitations and modest ceiling. And they haven’t spent decades first envying and hating in equal measure Boston & LA, then San Antonio, Miami, & the Bay Area for having organizations that seemed to churn out stable and accomplished teams for years on end. And hopefully they’ll just come to rely on the Knicks as one of those kinds of orgs. As sweet as this is, there’s no harm in sustained success.
This has been the craziest season by far and we just did close to this last year. They were weeks I literally couldn’t watch games because my anxiety was too high. The analogy of child rearing was spot on with this team, luckily they matured at the perfect time.
It has been a pleasure to read and watch many of you crash out on this platform lol. The Knicks have arrived and we are all euphoric, we deserve this. 4 more and they have more than a puncher’s chance.
Flatter the fragile rich when necessary. I actually think the players like Dolan. Not sure why, but it's something I've noticed. He's a piece of shit but, well, there are worse pieces of shit out there.
Only for opportunity I’m guessing. Put dolan in charge of something where lives are on the line and I’m confident he’d Musk his way to death and mayhem.
Shoutout to our great narrators, especially Jon, Jeremy, Ian Begley, and Fred Katz, through this amazing turnaround!! When rational league media members scoffed at the notion of the Knicks becoming competent, the Knicks Media Community provided thoughtful and encouraging coverage of a team that’s repeatedly taken the league by surprise. In particular, KFS had the audacity to explore how the Knicks could follow the blueprint to build a championship roster. Beyond great content, Jon has built a great community of defiant believers — what a special time this is!
ESPN is so freaking bad. To me, Posting and Toasting, KFTV, and KFS have just stepped up beginning for me almost 20 years ago, and provided a rich, thoughtful environment and I think that just embodies both a New York sprit and what my burner friends like to call 'Do-ocracy' -- If something needs to be done, step up and do it. Even in bad times, it was great, but to have this come together having been on this journey.... It's freaking sublime. I LOVE THIS
The ONLY newsletter to hit the inbox. And you are spot on. The boys are already locked in on next round. This next 8 days is for US. Happy tears were shed last night. My first memory as a 6 year old kid at MSG when we clinched the finals in 1999 and then being there for the finals. Never could have imagined it took 27 years to get back. But we are here. We suffered through Noah Vonleh, Langston Galloway, Kuzminkias, Brazdeikis, Bargnani, Jeff Hornacek, David Fizdale and so many more. But we have finally made it back.
This team is so special man. This fan base is the best across all sports. No one takes over an away stadium like Knicks fans. My flights and hotels are already booked for a potential game 7 in both OKC and SA. WE DID IT MACRI and KFS FAM, WE DID IT .
Jobs not done. And we have a good chance to climb the mountaintop. Let the rest of the world keep doubting us.
OMG the Iggy Brazdeikis hype after his first few summer league games (we won't talk about RJ's first 2 summer league games)...if there was Iggy Kool Aide to be found, I found it.
I really appreciate the full circle nature of this whole playoff run.
Atlanta: Vengeance for the We Here team that laid the foundation. The Hawks won the battle in 2021, but we won the war.
Philly: The whole Embiid/KAT thing. I mentioned in an earlier newsletter how Embiid was the guy I wanted to trade for and I wanted no part of KAT. That take aged like milk.
Cleveland: The culmination of the Donovan Mitchell trade saga. All the assets we held on to by not making that trade went to building out the roster around Brunson, and it ended in a sweep. That the Cavs were the first team the Brunson-era Knicks beat in the playoffs is just the cherry on top.
And now the Finals. If it's the Spurs, it's another '99 parallel. If it's OKC, the I-Hart of it all. Him walking in the summer of '24 was the catalyst for the moves Leon made. I know I-Hart got his ring, but how sweet would it be to beat them in the Finals?
The only thing that would have made this run better is if we swept the Pacers.
I want the Thunder. I want the Knicks to be the ones that smack them off their perch. If it's the Spurs, we gotta send those youngins back. Your time will come, Wemby, but not this year.
But whomever steps to the plate, I feel confident.
I'm thrilled, yet I meet this trip to the Finals with muted elation! (I was on Fanatics right after the game, spending much more money than I should have for T-Shirts & Hats). As all the players said in postgame, they're happy but the job isn't done yet! I love that attitude as opposed to the just happy to be here (See Cavs) attitude. Now, we wait another 8 days until June 3rd for the next game. In the meantime, let's hope the Spurs/Thunder beat the shit out of one another & their series goes the full 7 games (I prefer playing the Spurs, despite Wemby)! Does anyone know who won the analytics game last night? lol #AlwaysKnicks/NewYorkForever
I spent the morning emailing the members of my family who share my Knick fandom, and I really got on a roll, so I'm going to just post the same thing here, because I feel like you all are like members of my extended family at this point.
---
It's been a crazy ride - All through those Ewing years, Pop kept me up to date with constant snail mail articles and box scores until I could watch the playoffs on national TV. Then to see it fall apart as Ewing aged and was finally traded and the team regressed to mediocrity and then to awfulness. But then I became fascinated by the puzzle. What makes a great basketball team? How does that get put together? It takes a lot of patience and smarts but a lot of luck too. There were a lot of false starts in there, but it's gratifying to see it all come together. And the so-called "experts" in the mainstream sports media are usually completely off the mark. It blows my mind that they can be wrong again and again and still get paid.
I think for me, I always believed that the 90s Knicks, with collective effort and teamwork, could have beaten Michael Jordan and the mighty Bulls. But they never did, and the myth of Jordan's singular talent winning championships (which he liked to promote as his own mindgame tactic, bless his heart) was the lesson most young players, analysts, and GMs believed, leading to a generation trying to be or find the "Next Jordan" instead of working to build teams that worked.
Leon Rose smartly signing Brunson and saying no to gutting the team and all its resources for Donovan Mitchell was the key point, and you can see it play out in the series we just watched. He also traded his draft picks down and picked up guys who weren't famous but just outperformed their reputations. So he had no rookies with huge egos coming in. He traded Cam Reddish, a guy with an ego way larger than his basketball skill, and a first round pick for Josh Hart to a team desperately hoping that draft pick turned into the next Michael Jordan. How's that going?
Once they had Brunson and Hart, I feel like the culture was there. These guys don't care much about accolades, they just want to do whatever it takes to win a basketball game. Then Leon traded Quickley, who was really good but was going to demand too much money for a backup point guard, and RJ Barrett, a decent but unspectacular player, for OG Anunoby, a guy that has the opportunistic scoring ability of Obi Toppin with the added benefit of being one of the best defenders in the NBA.
After that, I feel like whoever they plugged in just got with the culture. Back in the 90s, I thought the Knicks blew it when they traded Mark Jackson for Charles Smith in what I think was a panic move to match up with Pippen. I originally thought that the loss of Hartenstein and the trade of Randle and Donte for Kat was a similar thing, because in Kat, I saw a guy who had never in his 10 year career been able to play the kind of defense you need from a center. Meanwhile, if you played him at the 4, they had a logjam at the 3, and only the oft-injured Mitch at the 5. I imagined 10 years ahead, thinking 'What if'.
But then, somehow, whether by culture or coaching, Kat started to hold his own and actually excel on defense! And now that they are unlocking his ability to pass to cutters, they are really able to play him at the 5, which means they have a true stretch 5 that can not only score but can set up teammates. OG has started playing the 4, and he's strong enough to do it, and more mobile than a lot of 4s. Plus, he's improved his rebounding. Hart has turned his shooting from a weakness to a strength. Brunson has gone from being a poor defender to a guy who puts in the maximum effort on that end. And Mikal has just suddenly found his places to fit in, being a guy that can cut to the basket and finish, slow down hotshot ballhandlers, and hit late clock fadeaways.
Then you have a bench full of guys that are really good defenders in Alvarado, Deuce, Shamet and Mitch. And Deuce and Shamet can shoot with range, Alvarado is decent backup floor general and Mitch (who hasn't even been that exceptional these playoffs) is Mitch - he defends the paint and can change games with his offensive rebounding.
Team dynamics in general are fascinating to me. I don't know why, but maybe hearing and reading all those stories about the 69-73 Knicks was formative for me. I've always noticed that on the best teams, the culture of the team results in players improving in ways even they couldn't have imagined. Most folks think that you build a team by combining great players. Maybe... but also, a great team makes good players great. I fully believe that the same person, on the wrong team, can be mediocre, but on another team can grow into great accomplishment. It works with music, it works with life, and it works with any team. I believe that to my core. So to my kids and to my nieces and nephews I say - find a good team, (friendships and relationships count), that pushes you to kick ass and be better and to surprise yourself. Appreciate it, and ride it for as long as you can. And then on your next team, pay it forward.
Maybe the country is collapsing around into a chaos of billionaire greed, and the Knicks are just some team owned by another rich guy, playing games we can't really afford to buy tickets to. But on some level, in a league where every team has to play by the same constrictive salary rules, the Knicks are succeeding not by buying all the best players like the Los Angeles Dodgers, but with hard work, perseverance, and communication and togetherness. So maybe, in some way, something is being set right. I hope so. But in any case, let this country and this economy survive long enough for the Knicks to win 4 more games.
Team dynamics are fascinating to me as well Peter, which is why I read every word of this. I look forward to writing on this concept extensively after this run is over.
I inherited Knicks fandom from my dad, who sadly passed away in 2007. The rest of my family, and even my in-laws, support my passion to the degree they can without being basketball fans. When I found KFS, it felt like a homecoming, and the void left by my father’s absence was filled. It felt cathartic to shed tears along with Andrew and the boys on the watch along as the clock ticked down last night. “We” will never forget this.
This meant a lot Brian. I'm honored that we can fill that irreplaceable void in some small way. Was thinking about my dad as well this week (he passed a year ago on the 23rd). Both of our pops would have surely enjoyed this run.
Me too. RIP to your dad, and I hope he can see what's happening. My dad is slowed but still sharp at 88. Hoping to celebrate with him in a couple of weeks.
What a ride and so much more enjoyable with our KFS Community and your writing Jon.
4 to go!
100 percent. Having gone through the 90s run without this, it's better to have it!
You guys are way too kind. Honored to be able to do it. Thank you!
Hard to fathom, but there are literally dozens of grown men (women too) scouring their Inboxes at 5 AM to read your commentary after every big Knick Game.
not hard to fathom; impossible to fathom. Probably best I don't fathom it because then my head would implode and there would be nothin in anyone's inbox.
The Knicks are four wins away from Brunson, Hart, KAT, OG, Bridges and Robinson being mentioned with the sainted Clyde, Willis, DeB, Bradley, Barnett and Monroe!
Don’t forget Deuuuuuuuuce
Miles ABSOLUTELY is part of that core. My fave player on my fave all time Knicks team.
I think Shamet is on his way to legend status as well.
Flashing back to Berman (and I’ll add Vecsey to that), ouch, not good memories. As for their nadir for me it was Isiah’s sexual assault on a team employee and his subsequent rehiring as president of the Liberty. For those that will argue that Phil’s reign of terror was when we hit bottom I will not quibble, that was an existentially horrendous time.
I'll never forget Berman including a nugget that the Knicks were kicking the tires on trading for John Wall and his bloated contract and I wanted to vomit.
And there I was at the end of the first quarter after Cleveland had analytically won the first 12 minutes.
How could the Knicks possibly recover from this? Well how about an alley-oop here. A live-ball steal into a dunk there. Threes floating through the air like fireflies at dusk.
(And Kenny, the Marie Antoinette was not this tone deaf.)
There was even a brief moment — a very brief moment — where I felt sympathy for Cleveland. Because it’s one thing to lose. It’s another thing entirely to get publicly undressed in a game that matters. That kind of embarrassment sticks to a franchise.
Then I remembered the Knicks seasons where Toney Douglas, Courtney Lee, and Jared Jeffries were essentially being marched out nightly like sacrificial offerings to the basketball gods.
And just like that? Sympathy gone.
Especially after what this embarassment of a front office in Cleveland did to Fat Joe. It's one thing to lose. It's another to instruct your fans how to behave like third-graders when an important politician is visiting.
Favorite moments from the joyous destruction:
— Fat Joe sitting courtside with a white napkin draped over his head like a man surviving emotional weather. Lean Back, indeed.
— Kylie and Timothée sharing a Coke like a modern Knicks version of courtside royalty. Sorry, Swifties. I’m taking our celebrity couple every time.
We’ve got eight days and a thousand more things to say, but for now I’m grateful for three things:
James Dolan getting gloriously distracted by The Sphere long enough to allow Leon Rose to build a basketball civilization.
The selflessness, toughness, talent, and absolute connective tissue of this team. They genuinely like playing together. You can feel it.
All those miserable years. Because suffering is the seasoning. It’s what makes this taste different.”
I'd argue the combined celebrity of Timmy and Kylie surpasses Taylor and Travis because non-football fans didn't know who Travis was before he started dating Taylor.
I think it's OK to feel sympathy for the other team. I used to let that creep in when I was playing, but I learned that, while you can feel sympathy, your job is to crush them. Crush their souls. Then allow your sympathy after the game is over. Mitchell seems like a good dude. He's a Met fan. I'm a Met fan. And guys like Mobley and Allen, they've been putting in the work. They're talented players. Sorry guys, this is sports, and you're in the way.
The proper way for them to react to this drubbing is to respect what the Knicks have built, and learn from it, and try to improve themselves. But what a lot of athletes do is to make excuses, say "We were the better team", "We lost because I had a bad game" et cetera.
In my minds eye, I like to imagine Donovan Mitchell whispering into Jalen's ear, "You guys are fucking good. You humbled us. Go get this fucking thing for the East and for NY"
Love you Jon. So proud and thankful to know you and to be your friend. LGK 4 more
Likewise, Jess, likewise.
I’m so happy.
I’ve been explaining to my 14 year old, with tears in my eyes, that he needs to enjoy this, enjoy every hour/minute/second. It doesn’t happen that often, 3 times in my 52 years. I tell him how I fell in love with the Knicks on December 25, 1984, and have never looked back. Lots of up and downs, MJ ripping my heart out all those years, Charles the BUM Smith, Isiah Thomas..and many more.
It’s time, it’s been too fucking long.
LETS FUCKING GO KNICKS !!!!
Me too, but I think because, as @timgallagher so eloquently puts it, the “suffering is the seasoning,” the young’uns haven’t put in the time and heartbreak. They haven’t eviscerated countless evenings watching all the Lou Amundsons hustle their way to string after string of uninspiring losses (bless his and all their hearts for trying). They didn’t watch Melo, JR, Tyson, and the soft-boned vets tease us with a brief dip into the playoffs, quickly revealing their limitations and modest ceiling. And they haven’t spent decades first envying and hating in equal measure Boston & LA, then San Antonio, Miami, & the Bay Area for having organizations that seemed to churn out stable and accomplished teams for years on end. And hopefully they’ll just come to rely on the Knicks as one of those kinds of orgs. As sweet as this is, there’s no harm in sustained success.
This has been the craziest season by far and we just did close to this last year. They were weeks I literally couldn’t watch games because my anxiety was too high. The analogy of child rearing was spot on with this team, luckily they matured at the perfect time.
It has been a pleasure to read and watch many of you crash out on this platform lol. The Knicks have arrived and we are all euphoric, we deserve this. 4 more and they have more than a puncher’s chance.
Sitting on the runway at Cleveland airport reading this. Beautiful, Jon. And perfect title. Now get some sleep!
I got a little! So thrilled you got to see the game in person Liz.
This is truly fantastic. The only thing I don't like them all saying is thank you to Mr. Dolan, the piece of _______ that he is.
I’d say nice things about a guy who signed my 8 (or 9) figure check even if he ….on me.
Flatter the fragile rich when necessary. I actually think the players like Dolan. Not sure why, but it's something I've noticed. He's a piece of shit but, well, there are worse pieces of shit out there.
Only for opportunity I’m guessing. Put dolan in charge of something where lives are on the line and I’m confident he’d Musk his way to death and mayhem.
Shoutout to our great narrators, especially Jon, Jeremy, Ian Begley, and Fred Katz, through this amazing turnaround!! When rational league media members scoffed at the notion of the Knicks becoming competent, the Knicks Media Community provided thoughtful and encouraging coverage of a team that’s repeatedly taken the league by surprise. In particular, KFS had the audacity to explore how the Knicks could follow the blueprint to build a championship roster. Beyond great content, Jon has built a great community of defiant believers — what a special time this is!
ESPN is so freaking bad. To me, Posting and Toasting, KFTV, and KFS have just stepped up beginning for me almost 20 years ago, and provided a rich, thoughtful environment and I think that just embodies both a New York sprit and what my burner friends like to call 'Do-ocracy' -- If something needs to be done, step up and do it. Even in bad times, it was great, but to have this come together having been on this journey.... It's freaking sublime. I LOVE THIS
The ONLY newsletter to hit the inbox. And you are spot on. The boys are already locked in on next round. This next 8 days is for US. Happy tears were shed last night. My first memory as a 6 year old kid at MSG when we clinched the finals in 1999 and then being there for the finals. Never could have imagined it took 27 years to get back. But we are here. We suffered through Noah Vonleh, Langston Galloway, Kuzminkias, Brazdeikis, Bargnani, Jeff Hornacek, David Fizdale and so many more. But we have finally made it back.
This team is so special man. This fan base is the best across all sports. No one takes over an away stadium like Knicks fans. My flights and hotels are already booked for a potential game 7 in both OKC and SA. WE DID IT MACRI and KFS FAM, WE DID IT .
Jobs not done. And we have a good chance to climb the mountaintop. Let the rest of the world keep doubting us.
LETS GO KNICKS !!!!
OMG the Iggy Brazdeikis hype after his first few summer league games (we won't talk about RJ's first 2 summer league games)...if there was Iggy Kool Aide to be found, I found it.
I really appreciate the full circle nature of this whole playoff run.
Atlanta: Vengeance for the We Here team that laid the foundation. The Hawks won the battle in 2021, but we won the war.
Philly: The whole Embiid/KAT thing. I mentioned in an earlier newsletter how Embiid was the guy I wanted to trade for and I wanted no part of KAT. That take aged like milk.
Cleveland: The culmination of the Donovan Mitchell trade saga. All the assets we held on to by not making that trade went to building out the roster around Brunson, and it ended in a sweep. That the Cavs were the first team the Brunson-era Knicks beat in the playoffs is just the cherry on top.
And now the Finals. If it's the Spurs, it's another '99 parallel. If it's OKC, the I-Hart of it all. Him walking in the summer of '24 was the catalyst for the moves Leon made. I know I-Hart got his ring, but how sweet would it be to beat them in the Finals?
The only thing that would have made this run better is if we swept the Pacers.
I want the Thunder. I want the Knicks to be the ones that smack them off their perch. If it's the Spurs, we gotta send those youngins back. Your time will come, Wemby, but not this year.
But whomever steps to the plate, I feel confident.
I'm thrilled, yet I meet this trip to the Finals with muted elation! (I was on Fanatics right after the game, spending much more money than I should have for T-Shirts & Hats). As all the players said in postgame, they're happy but the job isn't done yet! I love that attitude as opposed to the just happy to be here (See Cavs) attitude. Now, we wait another 8 days until June 3rd for the next game. In the meantime, let's hope the Spurs/Thunder beat the shit out of one another & their series goes the full 7 games (I prefer playing the Spurs, despite Wemby)! Does anyone know who won the analytics game last night? lol #AlwaysKnicks/NewYorkForever
Ordered the hats immediately. Wanted to stay married so skipped the shirts
One of the advantages of being divorced. The dog is always in agreement! lol
Good thing we bought the hats last night, they’re sold out on fanatics!
Well I expect it won't be the last hat we'll get this year. Waiting for the championship had to go with the February one
I don't need merch - I NEED 4 MORE WINS
One more hill to climb & Brunson becomes Messier!
Amen
I was having a tough time deciding who to root for last night. I want a 7 game series but i also want SA to win.
Me too as my money is going south🤣
The job is not done.
nope!
I spent the morning emailing the members of my family who share my Knick fandom, and I really got on a roll, so I'm going to just post the same thing here, because I feel like you all are like members of my extended family at this point.
---
It's been a crazy ride - All through those Ewing years, Pop kept me up to date with constant snail mail articles and box scores until I could watch the playoffs on national TV. Then to see it fall apart as Ewing aged and was finally traded and the team regressed to mediocrity and then to awfulness. But then I became fascinated by the puzzle. What makes a great basketball team? How does that get put together? It takes a lot of patience and smarts but a lot of luck too. There were a lot of false starts in there, but it's gratifying to see it all come together. And the so-called "experts" in the mainstream sports media are usually completely off the mark. It blows my mind that they can be wrong again and again and still get paid.
I think for me, I always believed that the 90s Knicks, with collective effort and teamwork, could have beaten Michael Jordan and the mighty Bulls. But they never did, and the myth of Jordan's singular talent winning championships (which he liked to promote as his own mindgame tactic, bless his heart) was the lesson most young players, analysts, and GMs believed, leading to a generation trying to be or find the "Next Jordan" instead of working to build teams that worked.
Leon Rose smartly signing Brunson and saying no to gutting the team and all its resources for Donovan Mitchell was the key point, and you can see it play out in the series we just watched. He also traded his draft picks down and picked up guys who weren't famous but just outperformed their reputations. So he had no rookies with huge egos coming in. He traded Cam Reddish, a guy with an ego way larger than his basketball skill, and a first round pick for Josh Hart to a team desperately hoping that draft pick turned into the next Michael Jordan. How's that going?
Once they had Brunson and Hart, I feel like the culture was there. These guys don't care much about accolades, they just want to do whatever it takes to win a basketball game. Then Leon traded Quickley, who was really good but was going to demand too much money for a backup point guard, and RJ Barrett, a decent but unspectacular player, for OG Anunoby, a guy that has the opportunistic scoring ability of Obi Toppin with the added benefit of being one of the best defenders in the NBA.
After that, I feel like whoever they plugged in just got with the culture. Back in the 90s, I thought the Knicks blew it when they traded Mark Jackson for Charles Smith in what I think was a panic move to match up with Pippen. I originally thought that the loss of Hartenstein and the trade of Randle and Donte for Kat was a similar thing, because in Kat, I saw a guy who had never in his 10 year career been able to play the kind of defense you need from a center. Meanwhile, if you played him at the 4, they had a logjam at the 3, and only the oft-injured Mitch at the 5. I imagined 10 years ahead, thinking 'What if'.
But then, somehow, whether by culture or coaching, Kat started to hold his own and actually excel on defense! And now that they are unlocking his ability to pass to cutters, they are really able to play him at the 5, which means they have a true stretch 5 that can not only score but can set up teammates. OG has started playing the 4, and he's strong enough to do it, and more mobile than a lot of 4s. Plus, he's improved his rebounding. Hart has turned his shooting from a weakness to a strength. Brunson has gone from being a poor defender to a guy who puts in the maximum effort on that end. And Mikal has just suddenly found his places to fit in, being a guy that can cut to the basket and finish, slow down hotshot ballhandlers, and hit late clock fadeaways.
Then you have a bench full of guys that are really good defenders in Alvarado, Deuce, Shamet and Mitch. And Deuce and Shamet can shoot with range, Alvarado is decent backup floor general and Mitch (who hasn't even been that exceptional these playoffs) is Mitch - he defends the paint and can change games with his offensive rebounding.
Team dynamics in general are fascinating to me. I don't know why, but maybe hearing and reading all those stories about the 69-73 Knicks was formative for me. I've always noticed that on the best teams, the culture of the team results in players improving in ways even they couldn't have imagined. Most folks think that you build a team by combining great players. Maybe... but also, a great team makes good players great. I fully believe that the same person, on the wrong team, can be mediocre, but on another team can grow into great accomplishment. It works with music, it works with life, and it works with any team. I believe that to my core. So to my kids and to my nieces and nephews I say - find a good team, (friendships and relationships count), that pushes you to kick ass and be better and to surprise yourself. Appreciate it, and ride it for as long as you can. And then on your next team, pay it forward.
Maybe the country is collapsing around into a chaos of billionaire greed, and the Knicks are just some team owned by another rich guy, playing games we can't really afford to buy tickets to. But on some level, in a league where every team has to play by the same constrictive salary rules, the Knicks are succeeding not by buying all the best players like the Los Angeles Dodgers, but with hard work, perseverance, and communication and togetherness. So maybe, in some way, something is being set right. I hope so. But in any case, let this country and this economy survive long enough for the Knicks to win 4 more games.
Team dynamics are fascinating to me as well Peter, which is why I read every word of this. I look forward to writing on this concept extensively after this run is over.
I inherited Knicks fandom from my dad, who sadly passed away in 2007. The rest of my family, and even my in-laws, support my passion to the degree they can without being basketball fans. When I found KFS, it felt like a homecoming, and the void left by my father’s absence was filled. It felt cathartic to shed tears along with Andrew and the boys on the watch along as the clock ticked down last night. “We” will never forget this.
This meant a lot Brian. I'm honored that we can fill that irreplaceable void in some small way. Was thinking about my dad as well this week (he passed a year ago on the 23rd). Both of our pops would have surely enjoyed this run.
Me too. RIP to your dad, and I hope he can see what's happening. My dad is slowed but still sharp at 88. Hoping to celebrate with him in a couple of weeks.