Congrats to all Knicks fans from this Boston fan. I imagine you must be feeling like I did back in October of 2004. Every long-suffering fan base deserves to feel this way at least once. Except for Yankees and Lakers fans, but they aren't long-suffering (yet).
I'm a New England transplant living in the metro Detroit area. I'm pulling for your Lions, Red Wings, Tigers, and Pistons to bring in some championships for the city. As long as it's not at a Boston team's expense, that is.
As a lifelong Knicks fan I still can’t believe they won. The euphoria of finally winning a title after 53 years is still right at the surface. I can’t stop consuming Knicks content in all its forms. I didn’t even feel this way when the Mets won in ‘86 or Giants in ‘87. I think it’s because of how genuinely likable this team is. Not a single a-hole among them. When your Captain is also your best player, and a truly good human being, it makes it easy to give your heart and soul to the team. When that team repays you 100x over… it’s a fantasy made real. I can’t say I have ever felt gratitude for a team before but that’s what this feels like.
I had a partial season ticket plan in ‘94 and we were there for all the playoff games, Section 425, including the OJ game. We left game 5 feeling like we had it. Win 1 of 2 in Houston and we’re champs! The streets outside the garden that night were a mix of excitement and hope, mixed with the weirdness that came from the White Bronco. Obviously, we didn’t win in Houston and that’s why, even after Game 4 last week and all its glory, and the comeback in Game 5, it didn’t feel real. It still doesn’t. Don’t wake me.
My wife asked me this morning how long I plan to keep talking about this. I said give me a couple of weeks but that may not be enough.
Joe and I are the same age. I’ve lived in Cincinnati for 30 years now. It’s been a really long time since I wished I still lived in NY. This is one of those times, if only for a couple of weeks, just to have been present for all of this. So good.
It all goes back to when Rose took over as Knicks President. Somehow, he kicked Dolan, one of the most meddlesome and worst owners in sports, out of the room. Denied his Knicks to screw with, Dolan turned to the Rangers. Who, last year, had the worst record in the NHL and are now perpetually doomed.
I grew up on the Knicks of Red, Clyde, Willis, et al and felt I could not love a basketball team more. They were poetry in motion and will always be the reason I started to truly love the City game. I played until I couldn't anymore. When a young lawyer, I got thrown into a wall at the 92 St Y and suffered a Joe Theisman/Lawrence Taylor fracture on a play that would now be a flagrant foul. Not even that could ruin basketball for me as the Knicks had Bernard King. I played lawyers' league basketball in NY and recreation league basketball when I moved to Florida and continued to love and follow the Knicks through the Ewing/Pitono/Riley/Van Gundy years - many great but not pinacle years. Then, Dolan bought the team and the Knicks abandoned Patrick. I had taken my kids to every Knicks/Magic game in Orlando until they traded Patrick. I cancelled my NBA league pass on DirecTV. I watched with a combination of disgust and disinterest until 2 people rescued my basketball team and basketball fandom: Leon Rose and Jalen Brunson. I started watching again with muted interest but this scrappy kid from Villanova made it impossible to not buy in. Each year they built the team - brick by brick, body part by body part. They added a heart (Josh) and the best 2 way player in the sport (OG). They created a true team that was bigger than the sum of its parts. They built a team that reminded me of the 90's Yankees - all humble and all winners. And then, they went on a run for the ages and made the unbelievable comeback routine and part of their DNA. Even if this becomes a one off, it was a helluva ride. Proud to be a Knicks' fan. Go NY Go!!
With the Knicks' championship having united all five boroughs as well as the rest of Long Island, the Nets have officially become the Los Angeles Chargers of basketball, wresting the title from the Clippers. Time for them to move back to Jersey. (Also time for the Chargers to move back to San Diego.)
New York City celebrations are wonderful. From the unscripted eruption of the V.E. Day announcement to John Glenn's ticker tape parade to honoring Gary Carter and his Kids, it is a turduken of jubilation, delight, awe and amazement. (Unless it is the Yankees they are celebrating, but that is so obvious that it almost need not be said.) A vibrant, diverse, city showing its joy to the world. Hamilton ending its show post curtain call the other night with cast members holding up Knicks jerseys and leading the audience in singing New York, New York was special.
I was happy for the Knicks and their fans right up the trophy was presented and I was forced to confront that James Dolan still owns the team. Dumbest tradition in sports.
I was waiting for my Joe P column on this and it crushed. My wife’s family are Y/G/K/R NYC sports fans and I think my daughters became Knick fans this month, despite living in Steph’s backyard. Being a (big) fan is awesome.
Yeah, it was really something. I live in Minneapolis. Perhaps 90% of the Timberwolves fanbase was rooting for Karl-Anthony Towns to get the championship that eluded him in Minnesota, which of course meant cheering for the Knicks.
KAT got it. We celebrated that and the Knicks in our own ways, though not nearly like New York did. (Frankly, the Timberwolves fanbase isn’t too fond of - to use Joyce Carol Oates’ scare quotes about him - “Wemby” right now. Look up “Wemby Naz Reid elbow” if you don’t believe me.
Wasn't in Parma in 2016, but was at Game 7 at that scruffy old arena in Oakland. The emotional overload of all those Cavs fans in the building is something I'll always remember.
Yeah, this one hits different. I'm a Knick fan going back to the Reed/Clyde years (though I was a little young to truly appreciate it). I'm a Yankees/Giants/Rangers/Knicks/Nets fan (the Nets were in a different league when I started my rooting life and you don't stop rooting for a team). I've had a ton of good fortune in baseball and football. An embarrassment of riches. Despite that, the Knicks-sized hole was gaping.
The Knicks sit in this weird place in the sports world. The world views them as one of the classic NBA teams, even though they've done little to earn it. "Don't you want to play for the Celtics? Or the Lakers? Or the Knicks?" Um, the Knicks in that threesome? But there is some truth to it. Maybe it is about MSG - which is sort of strangely legendary, too, being the fourth incarnation and one that is misnamed. I've always felt a little embarrassed about all of the talk about the Knicks.
But this was different. For once, they were underrated. They were undersized. They were humble and generous and funny.
I'm still a little in shock. I read every article, partially to convince myself that it is real. It is, right?
I just watched Good Morning America, The Today Show (two different segments), The View and I can't remember what else. They ask the same questions and get the same answers and it is wearing a little thin, but I'm gonna keep watching.
Congrats to all Knicks fans from this Boston fan. I imagine you must be feeling like I did back in October of 2004. Every long-suffering fan base deserves to feel this way at least once. Except for Yankees and Lakers fans, but they aren't long-suffering (yet).
Detroit Lions fans nodding along ...
I'm a New England transplant living in the metro Detroit area. I'm pulling for your Lions, Red Wings, Tigers, and Pistons to bring in some championships for the city. As long as it's not at a Boston team's expense, that is.
As a lifelong Knicks fan I still can’t believe they won. The euphoria of finally winning a title after 53 years is still right at the surface. I can’t stop consuming Knicks content in all its forms. I didn’t even feel this way when the Mets won in ‘86 or Giants in ‘87. I think it’s because of how genuinely likable this team is. Not a single a-hole among them. When your Captain is also your best player, and a truly good human being, it makes it easy to give your heart and soul to the team. When that team repays you 100x over… it’s a fantasy made real. I can’t say I have ever felt gratitude for a team before but that’s what this feels like.
I had a partial season ticket plan in ‘94 and we were there for all the playoff games, Section 425, including the OJ game. We left game 5 feeling like we had it. Win 1 of 2 in Houston and we’re champs! The streets outside the garden that night were a mix of excitement and hope, mixed with the weirdness that came from the White Bronco. Obviously, we didn’t win in Houston and that’s why, even after Game 4 last week and all its glory, and the comeback in Game 5, it didn’t feel real. It still doesn’t. Don’t wake me.
My wife asked me this morning how long I plan to keep talking about this. I said give me a couple of weeks but that may not be enough.
Joe and I are the same age. I’ve lived in Cincinnati for 30 years now. It’s been a really long time since I wished I still lived in NY. This is one of those times, if only for a couple of weeks, just to have been present for all of this. So good.
Need to celebrate with a Schaefer Beer. “Shaefer is the one beer to have when you're having more than one…”
Even Cavs/Guardians (oh no, Ramirez broke his hand) and Browns (clowns) fans are Knicks fans today, for obvious reasons.
San Antonio really wemby'ed this up
It all goes back to when Rose took over as Knicks President. Somehow, he kicked Dolan, one of the most meddlesome and worst owners in sports, out of the room. Denied his Knicks to screw with, Dolan turned to the Rangers. Who, last year, had the worst record in the NHL and are now perpetually doomed.
I grew up on the Knicks of Red, Clyde, Willis, et al and felt I could not love a basketball team more. They were poetry in motion and will always be the reason I started to truly love the City game. I played until I couldn't anymore. When a young lawyer, I got thrown into a wall at the 92 St Y and suffered a Joe Theisman/Lawrence Taylor fracture on a play that would now be a flagrant foul. Not even that could ruin basketball for me as the Knicks had Bernard King. I played lawyers' league basketball in NY and recreation league basketball when I moved to Florida and continued to love and follow the Knicks through the Ewing/Pitono/Riley/Van Gundy years - many great but not pinacle years. Then, Dolan bought the team and the Knicks abandoned Patrick. I had taken my kids to every Knicks/Magic game in Orlando until they traded Patrick. I cancelled my NBA league pass on DirecTV. I watched with a combination of disgust and disinterest until 2 people rescued my basketball team and basketball fandom: Leon Rose and Jalen Brunson. I started watching again with muted interest but this scrappy kid from Villanova made it impossible to not buy in. Each year they built the team - brick by brick, body part by body part. They added a heart (Josh) and the best 2 way player in the sport (OG). They created a true team that was bigger than the sum of its parts. They built a team that reminded me of the 90's Yankees - all humble and all winners. And then, they went on a run for the ages and made the unbelievable comeback routine and part of their DNA. Even if this becomes a one off, it was a helluva ride. Proud to be a Knicks' fan. Go NY Go!!
Nicely stated. And loved the Lawrence reference!
How does the Knicks win compare with the
miracle Mets winning in 1969 or the Mets win in 1986?
With the Knicks' championship having united all five boroughs as well as the rest of Long Island, the Nets have officially become the Los Angeles Chargers of basketball, wresting the title from the Clippers. Time for them to move back to Jersey. (Also time for the Chargers to move back to San Diego.)
New York City celebrations are wonderful. From the unscripted eruption of the V.E. Day announcement to John Glenn's ticker tape parade to honoring Gary Carter and his Kids, it is a turduken of jubilation, delight, awe and amazement. (Unless it is the Yankees they are celebrating, but that is so obvious that it almost need not be said.) A vibrant, diverse, city showing its joy to the world. Hamilton ending its show post curtain call the other night with cast members holding up Knicks jerseys and leading the audience in singing New York, New York was special.
I was happy for the Knicks and their fans right up the trophy was presented and I was forced to confront that James Dolan still owns the team. Dumbest tradition in sports.
I was waiting for my Joe P column on this and it crushed. My wife’s family are Y/G/K/R NYC sports fans and I think my daughters became Knick fans this month, despite living in Steph’s backyard. Being a (big) fan is awesome.
Yeah, it was really something. I live in Minneapolis. Perhaps 90% of the Timberwolves fanbase was rooting for Karl-Anthony Towns to get the championship that eluded him in Minnesota, which of course meant cheering for the Knicks.
KAT got it. We celebrated that and the Knicks in our own ways, though not nearly like New York did. (Frankly, the Timberwolves fanbase isn’t too fond of - to use Joyce Carol Oates’ scare quotes about him - “Wemby” right now. Look up “Wemby Naz Reid elbow” if you don’t believe me.
I’m not sure if Wendy is dirty, or if his physicality is magnified by the sheer size of his body.
Wasn't in Parma in 2016, but was at Game 7 at that scruffy old arena in Oakland. The emotional overload of all those Cavs fans in the building is something I'll always remember.
I was in NE Ohio. My scream from Kyrie’s 3 is still reverberating.
Yeah, this one hits different. I'm a Knick fan going back to the Reed/Clyde years (though I was a little young to truly appreciate it). I'm a Yankees/Giants/Rangers/Knicks/Nets fan (the Nets were in a different league when I started my rooting life and you don't stop rooting for a team). I've had a ton of good fortune in baseball and football. An embarrassment of riches. Despite that, the Knicks-sized hole was gaping.
The Knicks sit in this weird place in the sports world. The world views them as one of the classic NBA teams, even though they've done little to earn it. "Don't you want to play for the Celtics? Or the Lakers? Or the Knicks?" Um, the Knicks in that threesome? But there is some truth to it. Maybe it is about MSG - which is sort of strangely legendary, too, being the fourth incarnation and one that is misnamed. I've always felt a little embarrassed about all of the talk about the Knicks.
But this was different. For once, they were underrated. They were undersized. They were humble and generous and funny.
I'm still a little in shock. I read every article, partially to convince myself that it is real. It is, right?
I can’t stop consuming Knicks media! I literally can’t get enough of it.
I just watched Good Morning America, The Today Show (two different segments), The View and I can't remember what else. They ask the same questions and get the same answers and it is wearing a little thin, but I'm gonna keep watching.