I’ve been a Knicks fan for as long as I can remember. Like most of my sports lineage, I trace back my fandom to the man who left me with far more baggage than wisdom and life lessons, my dad. I would only ever see him on the weekends growing up, but I do remember, in between running around outside and playing video games with my friends, just waltzing into the living room and sitting next to my dad on the couch and watching whatever game he had on.
We live in New York, and so my dad rooted for the Jets, the Rangers, the Yankees, and of course, the Knicks. I never knew the extent of his fandom for the Knicks (he was always more of a Yankees fan at heart), but when I was old enough to care about basketball they weren’t exactly putting their best foot forward on the court, and my dad was not exactly quiet about how bad they were.
I would watch Stephon Marbury (my dad joked about his self-made signature shoe, the Starbury, even though it was an affordable option for kids who couldn’t afford Jordans), Channing Frye, Eddy Curry, Quentin Richardson, small but electric Nate Robinson, sure handed David Lee, and the list goes on. The only game that I ever went to at MSG, I watched this team get the tar beat out of them by Ben Wallace and the Detroit Pistons. It didn’t matter to me that the team was terrible. I just cared that I was spending time with my dad and feeling like connecting with the game was helping me connect with him.
He died in January of 2025, and so he never got to witness the team in its current form. Which is why I’ve been thinking a lot about how he would’ve loved to see this squad succeed. How he would’ve marveled at the maestro, Jalen Brunson. He absolutely would’ve complained about the exaggerated zestiness of Karl-Anthony Towns. And I know he would’ve hated Josh Hart’s pace and motor, mostly because he’s the player that would’ve reminded him the most of himself: stubborn but strong and tenacious.
What I would give to have one more moment on the couch with him, watching the historic game 4 comeback in real time and experience basketball euphoria in a way I’ve never felt before next to him instead of alone trying not to wake up my loving wife and kids. He’ll never know what it felt like to cheer for one of the most dominant playoff teams of all time, but this championship felt like vindication for a lot of us.
Wherever you are, Dad, you can stop cursing at the TV. They finally did it.
And so it’s in honor of this historic event and the memory of my dad that I wanted to analyze the players who made this possible, not from a basketball perspective, but from a personal one. What special quality did each of these players bring to the table in terms of their identities that not only led to the most important win in New York sports history, but that we can learn from and internalize for ourselves?
Follow along as we focus in on each one.
Mikal Bridges – Humility, Sacrifice, and Flexibility
Few players have received as much scrutiny as Bridges. Playing in the tough New York market and acquired in a trade from the Brooklyn Nets for a staggering 5(!) first round picks, there was a pressure placed on him as intense as anyone in the NBA. While notching questionable performances in the regular season, he always showed up when it mattered most in the playoffs, which is all you can ask for a guy whose asking price was as big as it was. Throughout all of the ups, downs, and criticism, he never once said a negative thing about the situation or his teammates. He didn’t say anything about how much his offensive role was reduced, and he didn’t complain about being tasked with some of the toughest defensive assignments in the league. It takes a lot to find a person like that, let alone an NBA player, where ego and confidence are ofttimes the difference between winning and losing.
But Mikal never gave in to the noise, even when the static was deafening at times. He kept his head down low, nose to the grindstone, and kept working. He found a way to thrive in his new role. He put his team over himself, a theme for this entire squad we’re going to find. He stayed consistent and even-keeled, and if there was anyone we could learn a lesson in humility from, it would be him. To dim your own light so others can shine is a gift, and it’s one of the main reasons why this team was able to rise to become a champion.
OG Anunoby – Quiet Strength and Endurance
If he were in a boy band, he’d be the quiet one. But don’t let that fool you. He does his talking with his play on the court. One of the most dominant two way players in the league, OG Anunoby has been an absolute force since he first stepped on the court in blue and orange. He has helped impact the way this team wins in a way that is mathematically improbable, and yet is our reality. We all remember the stretch in January of 2024 after he first got traded to us when it felt like we could beat any team in the league. Fast forward to his miraculous tip in at the end of game 4 and we’ve seen the vision of his greatness manifested in real time.
A man of few words, when he does actually speak (and smile) it is memorable, not because it is profound, but to see what lies beneath the shell of his professional persona is a joy. He’s infinitely tough, absolutely unflappable, and doesn’t get baited into gimmicks or attempts to get a rise out of him. Plagued by injuries for most of the beginning of his career, he represents a testament to letting the work speak for itself. He doesn’t brag, he’s not the type to talk trash, but you feel the influence and the gravity he has whenever he steps on the court. In a society that values being vocal about your status and reputation, OG shows us that it’s more powerful to let your best qualities take people by surprise.
Karl-Anthony Towns – Encouragement and Positivity
Similar to Bridges, KAT’s entrance to the Knicks was loud and full of expectations. You can’t be labeled “the best shooting big man of all time” without people getting ideas in their heads about what you should and shouldn’t be able to do. But no matter the adversity, KAT has always taken the criticism and speed bumps in stride. There are countless stories that speak to his character, his time in Minnesota doing charity work and being personable with members of the staff, and him being transparent about his mental health and the grieving process of losing his mother to COVID. But it takes more than character to win over a New York fanbase. We expect results and we value the work it takes to get there.
Another of KAT’s problematic labels was that he was simply “too soft” to take over games in this league, but we saw night after night he would go out and silence his largest critics, especially during this playoff run. It would be one thing if he were simply just a phenomenal ball player, but what makes him otherworldly is that, to a fault, he always lifts up his teammates. I remember when he first got traded to the Knicks he went out of his way to point out that this was “Cap’s team” (speaking about Brunson). Every postgame conference he would shoutout the unsung hero of the game, always being his team’s biggest hype-man, even if he was the one who deserved the praise and accolades. He didn’t shy away from the spotlight when there were rumors of him being traded after the All-Star Break. He never broke under pressure when it felt like Coach Mike Brown was publicly throwing him under the bus. In fact, after that point, he played his best basketball of the season, and maybe of his career, leading into the playoffs. He has spent his tenure here making sure that his teammates thrive AND being vocal about it, because that kind of validation and affirmation is important to build the chemistry and trust necessary to win championships.
Throughout the maelstrom of rumors and negativity surrounding his presence on this team this past year, KAT has shined through it all, and taken the spotlight in order to reflect his teammates’ greatness even further.
Josh Hart – Relentless Tenacity and Boldness
There’s Type A, there’s Type B, and then there’s Josh Hart. Perhaps one of the players who split the fanbase the most on the team, there’s no denying that Josh is an all time Knick. He is characterized by a toughness that is imprinted in the DNA of every New Yorker. He has a motor that doesn’t quit, he doesn’t shy away from being physical, and he is loud and brash at every point in the game. Hart is cut from the rock of basketball’s past legends, where it was commonplace to exit a game at the end of a night bruised and sometimes bloody. He is the player that most older fans romanticize about, and it is likely that when me and others from my generation play the “Remember that Player” game, Josh Hart will be top of that list.
In basketball terms, he’s an enigma. He’s not a phenomenal shooter, his defense is questionable at times, and he complains about the officiating sometimes more often than the fans do. But something about this guy is just a purebred winner. He has played through countless injuries, placed his body on the line more times than just about anyone else. He is grit personified. He’s unafraid to literally snatch the chain of his opponents on the bench. When teams don’t guard him from the 3 point line knowing that’s a weakness of his, he puts in the work to make them pay. When fans were clamoring to have him sent back to the bench to be the spark and reduce his minutes load, it would’ve been easy to snap back at the haters. But instead he did what Josh Hart does: goes out night after night and gives 1000% to give his team the best chance at winning. He is flawed, and self-aware in that regard, but he makes no apologies and embraces who he is.
You take big swings sometimes and it’s scary to think about what might happen if you miss. Josh is a player who’s not afraid to take the shot and all of the weight and consequences that come with it. His engine was necessary in order to get this team across the finish line, and it’s why he’ll be remembered as one of the greats.
We could all learn a lesson of not being afraid to go for it all when the stakes are the highest.
Jalen Brunson – Leadership and Preparation
I would argue that there is no other player in the history of New York sports who has had the impact that Jalen Brunson has had on the New York Knicks. To join a franchise that was entrenched in a 53 year title drought, was perennially the laughingstock of the league, and that no superstar would dare go near, it would already take a miracle just to right the ship, let alone be responsible for everything we’ve seen over the 4 years that he has been on this team. As great as he is (and now the record books have no choice but to acknowledge him), he has been criminally underrated since high school. Scouts and executives would always talk about his size, his shape, his defense, the flaws in his game, without acknowledging one of the most important ways that he impacts a basketball game: he is better trained and better prepared than just about any other player in the league.
From a young age he was taught to use his size as a strength, expanding a neverending bag of tricks of crossovers, spin moves, footwork, eurosteps, stepbacks, and who knows how many techniques that we haven’t even seen yet. He is on par with some of the best one on one scorers in the business. His stats in the playoffs typically only include himself and Michael Jordan in the conversation. He’s been All-NBA, but never first team. He’s been up for MVP, but not near the top. He has been characterized as a foul merchant and master of the dark arts, but numbers show he doesn’t get nearly as many calls as his contemporaries. He’s been told he’s not a 1A guy and that he can’t lead a team to a championship at his size.
And he has proven every single one of these criticisms wrong.
Across every milestone and record broken he has endlessly credited his teammates and coaches and been humble beyond measure. Even as he led his team to the most dominant playoff run of all time, it was his leadership that kept them desperate and hungry for more. He had been on the wrong end of postseason heartbreak and knew the mentality it took to keep taking it a step further. As his body was literally tossed around violently in the Finals, he did not detract from the goal at hand. When an invitation to MSG turned Game 3 into a circus, he kept the path. There has never been anyone more made for this moment, in this place, on this team, at this time than Jalen Brunson.
It is hard to imagine being able to emulate his qualities on a daily basis, but the magic is in the consistency and the focus. Don’t let the noise in. Keep the vision. Don’t fall for the pitfalls that threaten to keep you from what you’re working for. Trust the work that got you here, and remember that the job isn’t finished until it’s done.
This team is comprised of superb individuals who, beyond being all phenomenal athletes and teammates, have made it easy to root for them as people. We all deserve to have a Bridges, an Anunoby, a KAT, a Hart, or a Brunson in our corner. To have even one of those types of people would make life incredibly easier to walk through. And to be clear, these are not perfect basketball players nor perfect people, but they have shown us through grit, determination, faith, and hope that the highest of heights can be reached when you elevate each other and stick together.
Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed this. It would mean the world to me if you liked, shared, commented, or subscribed to my page.
And remember: Hope is the Rebellion.
Built on Hope 
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