The Knicks now get a giant Saturday evening on the Backyard out of the previous, out of the time when Magic Johnson and the Lakers used to solely are available every year for what felt like a one-night-only present on Broadway. They get LeBron James and the Lakers, earlier than they get a fair larger Saturday evening, what’s going to really feel like Tremendous Saturday to Knicks followers, when the Boston Celtics come to city. There are solely three groups in professional basketball with extra wins than the Knicks heading into this weekend, and the Celtics are considered one of them. The others are the Cavaliers and Thunder, who’ve been the 2 greatest groups to right here.
It’s a well-established truth at this level, changing into much more established with every passing recreation and every time the Knicks hold ringing the bell with this type of scoring, that they’re ok to go toe-to-toe with anyone of their league. We will see, particularly on this newest successful streak, that they’re ok to play with anyone.
And we proceed to see one thing else, in lights, and that’s completely essentially the most enjoyable Knicks staff in 50 years. It doesn’t imply they may change into the primary Knicks staff since 1999 to make it to the Finals. It doesn’t imply they will put collectively a physique of labor corresponding to what Patrick Ewing and them did throughout the ’90s, the final time we had this a lot gentle and noise and enjoyable on the Backyard. However what they offer you, recreation to recreation, earlier than and after they have been stumbling towards the higher groups, is all of the season for which any Knicks fan might have requested.
Having mentioned all that? We’re going to have to attend, by the huge waste of time that All-Star Weekend has change into within the NBA, then by the tip of the common season to see if they’re lastly ok to make a run, and that doesn’t simply imply to the Japanese Convention finals. We’re going to discover out if they’re ok to ring the ball in June when, within the phrases of the good Dave DeBusschere, the cash goes on the desk. And so you already know? No. 22 at all times threw a colourful adjective earlier than desk.
Yankee followers know all about this, over the previous a number of years, at a time in their very own historical past after they’ve performed much more within the postseason than the Knicks have performed in 25 years. They’ve been champs at being ok. Simply not actual champs.
Here’s what Nikola Jokic, who has been an actual champ and who continues to be top-of-the-line gamers on the planet, mentioned the opposite evening after the Knicks rolled his staff on the Backyard:
“They’re a really good team. I think they are the favorites — not the favorites, but, I think [they are] top-five candidates for the title.”
Excessive reward certainly. Excessive bar being set for Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks. A decrease bar — Japanese Convention semis — isn’t going to be sufficient, or practically sufficient this time round. Leon Rose didn’t come right here to construct a staff that was solely ok to try this, and to solely go that far. Rose was uninterested in being in the midst of the pack and now the Knicks positive aren’t there. After the Knicks did roll Jokic and the Nuggets the way in which they did, with LeBron and the Lakers on their manner and the highlight goes to be as large on Saturday evening because it has been for the Knicks all season, they have been just one recreation behind the Celtics within the standings. One.
Massive Saturday evening. Greater one in every week. All final season, as soon as we noticed how actually nice a participant and level guard Jalen Brunson had begun, how the opposite ‘Nova Knicks organized themselves and their games around him, the main event was supposed to the Knicks finally make it back to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2000, and getting their shot at a team that would go on to win the title.
We all saw what happened. They never made it up to Boston because everybody, including Brunson, broke down and they lost to the Pacers in seven games, the last one at the Garden. In the end, they came up one round short of what the Knicks did 25 years ago, when they limped into their own series against the Pacers; when they were the ones who broke down before making it back to the NBA Finals.
Now here they are, trying not to break down again by spring, even as Thibodeau once again rides his starters hard. And by the way? Two things can be true at the same time. It is without question that Thibodeau continues to be one of the elite coaches in his sport. But without sending the minutes posse after him, how can the amount of minutes he is playing his starters not give even the most passionate Thibs defenders pause as they take a good, long look down the road?
For the moment, though, Knick fans should just try to enjoy the moment, even if parts of this season have been a rollercoaster ride. They should enjoy seeing their team go at LeBron this weekend and then Tatum and Brown and Old Friend Porzingis next week and, at the same time, seeing all those guys going up against the Knicks and against the place, which will be even more full-throated than it has been all year. These are good times, and sometimes great times, even if these fans get eventually their hearts broken again.
No trophies will be handed out over the next week. No titles won. And no matter. Just win these next two Saturday nights. Who wouldn’t have signed on for 2 precisely like this in February after the way in which issues ended on the Backyard final Could?
