New York Knicks: An Urgent Letter To The Current Roster
The New York Knicks have faced immeasurable adversity early in 2016-17. This is a plea with the current roster to push through and turn things around.
The New York Knicks entered the 2017 calendar year at 16-17 overall, 11-5 at Madison Square Garden, and 5-12 on the road. The month of January has been far less rewarding, however, as the Knicks have gone 3-9 in 12 heartbreaking games.
Though the potential for a trade has become more realistic by the disastrous result, the current roster has the potential to turn this season around.
New York may be 19-26 overall, 12-11 at home, and 7-15 on the road, its season is far from lost. It trails the No. 8 seed Chicago Bulls by just 3.0 games with 37 games remaining on the 2016-17 NBA regular season schedule.
New York also has two wins over Chicago, and given the fact that it only has one game left against the Bulls, it would hold the tiebreak in the event of the two teams finishing with an identical record.
Before the postseason can become a reality for the Knicks, however, they must create buoyancy for this sinking ship.
Sitting seven games below .500 is an uncomfortable position to be in, but the Knicks are much closer to being a postseason-caliber team than they may seem. The proof is in the fact that 10 of their 26 losses have come by five points or less.
Four of New York’s past five losses have been by three points or less.
If one were to turn those four close losses into victory, New York would be 23-22 and we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Two of its past eight losses have been on buzzer beaters, which makes it six losses since Jan. 4 by three points or less.
The fact that New York is losing by slim margins on such a consistent basis is a sign that it has the talent to win at a high level.
That brings us to the current plea with the players on the roster.
Playing in New York isn’t easy. Criticism and trade rumors surround the Knicks on a daily basis. Though it may seem unfair, one simply can’t help but plead with the players on the roster to push through.
Ignore the outside noise, trust one another, and play for the player next to you.
The Knicks were once the epitome of greatness. The 1973 NBA champion Knicks may be the greatest team ever assembled, and in the decades that have followed, there have been some unforgettable teams.
Bernard King revitalized New York in the 1980s, Patrick Ewing led the Knicks to consistent success in the 1990s, and Jeff Van Gundy helped the stars of The Mecca become the first and only No. 8 seed in league history to reach the NBA Finals.
In the 18 years that have followed the Knicks’ run to the 1999 NBA Finals, however, the fans’ loyalty and patience has yet to be rewarded.
New York reached the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals and won 48 games in 2000-01. Since then, the Knicks have made the playoffs just four times in 15 completed seasons and have won just one postseason series.
Thus, while I apologize for the fact that you the players are enduring the wrath of such a frustrated fan base, but this is what it’s like to play for the Knicks.
When times are hard, New York Knicks fans will be as hard on the players and coaches as any fan base in the vast world of sports. When times are going well, Knicks fans will put you on a pedestal and praise you in ways you’ve never experienced before.
It may not always be fair, but all this fan base wants is to end its incomparable 44-year title drought.
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The praise for any progress towards that goal will be immeasurably exhilarating.
There simply has to be progress—and this team is capable of making it. It’s all about playing as one.