Despite the likes of Stephon Marbury, Carmelo Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire, Phil Jackson, Isiah Thomas, and Mike D’Antoni, the Knicks have always found a way to sputter in the clutch, cause more off-court news than on, or unsuccessfully chase that franchise player.
Players such as LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving spurned Manhattan, but agent-turned-general manager Leon Rose made the risky decision to build his franchise around an upstart 6-foot-2-inch former second-round pick who was offered a ridiculously low extension by the Mavericks.
New York signed Jalen Brunson to a $104 million deal, allowing the crafty lefthanded scorer to develop into one of the league’s best guards. Rose then added Minnesota cornerstone Karl-Anthony Towns and acquired OG Anunoby and Mikal Bridges to form one of the NBA’s top defensive duos.
The prices were gaudy. Anunoby is on a $212.5 million contract. Bridges was acquired from Brooklyn for five first-round picks. And those decisions were heavily criticized prior to this season, when the Knicks were eliminated from the Eastern Conference finals by the underdog Pacers.
Rose continued to draw criticism and controversy by firing the successful Tom Thibodeau and replacing him with affable but four-time-fired Mike Brown. And two-thirds into this season, the underachieving Knicks were fighting off the Cavaliers for the third seed.
But something happened during Game 4 of their first-round series against the Hawks, when they trailed, 2-1, and desperately needed a win. Brown changed his offense to center around Towns, and the Knicks won their next 11 games — looking like the team Rose envisioned when he made those daring moves in recent years.
With Brunson splashing baskets, Anunoby knocking down threes, Bridges hitting midrange jumpers, Towns scoring at the rim, and Josh Hart doing a little bit of everything, the Knicks have won 11 straight by an average of 23.8 points — choking the likes of the 76ers and Cavaliers into submission.
This is perhaps the best basketball the Knicks have played since they defeated the Celtics and Lakers en route to their last championship in 1973. While it appeared that any team coming out of the East would be a considerable underdog against whichever team emerged from the Spurs-Thunder battle royale, the Knicks’ dominant run turned them into just slight underdogs against Victor Wembanyama and friends.
The Spurs snatching the Western Conference finals from the defending-champion Thunder by winning Games 6 and 7 has been the completion of a renaissance for the proud organization. San Antonio went through some difficult times after it traded the disgruntled Kawhi Leonard and waved goodbye to the likes of Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, and Manu Ginobili, missing the postseason for six consecutive years.
But what the Spurs did during that retooling period was amass lottery picks, make astute signings, and build a roster filled with versatility surrounding the once-in-a-lifetime Wembanyama, who has developed into a top-five player faster than expected.
Wembanyama can do everything on the basketball floor — effortlessly run with the strides of a greyhound, block shots with vigor, drain 3-pointers, and use his length to dunk over fellow 7-footers with ease. After a sophomore season in which he dealt with ailments that included a serious blood clot, Wembanyama returned for Year 3 stronger and more determined to lead his team back to prosperity.
Not only has Wembanyama taken a significant step forward, but so have his teammates. Former UConn standout Stephon Castle has developed into a premium two-way player. Devin Vassell has become a smooth scorer. Keldon Johnson accepted a bench role and won Sixth Man of the Year, while Julian Champagnie has transformed from an undrafted journeyman once waived by the 76ers into a reliable 3-point shooter and staunch defender.
The Spurs were tabbed as a team that was a few years away, not quite ready for a deep playoff run because this group hadn’t experienced any success. There’s a general theory that every team needs to experience a playoff disappointment before triumph. The Thunder lost in 2024 to the Mavericks in the Western Conference finals. The Celtics went through years of playoff letdowns before winning title No. 18 in 2024.
But this is the first playoff run for this edition of the Spurs, and so far it’s been wildly successful. So it’s an intriguing duel between a franchise that’s seeking to end a five-decade wait against one looking for a return to prominence. The Yankees and New York football Giants have combined for 11 titles since the Knicks were last champs. They have watched 18 other NBA franchises raise the Larry O’Brien Trophy in the past 53 years, making just one appearance in the Final, until now.
They’re hungry, but so are these young Spurs, who have blended into a juggernaut under first-time coach Mitch Johnson and a unicorn of a superstar. It will make for captivating theater: two evenly matched teams chasing greatness.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.
