The beauty of the New York Knicks is that even when they’re not in the playoffs, there are still plenty of former players that the fans can watch. Everyone in the league has played for the Knicks, right?
That isn’t far off. New York has been a revolving door for players in recent years and because of that, it’s nearly a guarantee that a former Knick will win an NBA championship in June. There are eight teams left in the playoffs and outside of the Golden State-Memphis series, the conference semifinals are a tight race.
Of course, Knicks fans can watch just more than their team’s past players. Donovan Mitchell and the Utah Jazz being a first-round exit could end up benefitting New York, but all eyes are now on Jalen Brunson, who will be an unrestricted free agent if the Dallas Mavericks don’t re-sign him.
While waiting to see what moves the Knicks will make during the offseason, here are 5 players who once called New York home and could soon win a title.
5 former New York Knicks players that could win an NBA championship in 2022
5: DeAndre Jordan
DeAndre Jordan was with the Knicks just long enough to say hello and goodbye before making the short move to the Brooklyn Nets. The center was traded to New York via Dallas in 2019 in the Kristaps Porzingis trade.
Jordan played in a whopping 19 games for New York and averaged 10.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks while shooting 63.4% from the field.
The 33-year-old is on the decline of his 14-year career. He spent a decade with the Los Angeles Clippers as part of the infamous ‘Lob City’ and was with the Lakers at the start of 2021-22.
If Jordan thought that he would be able to win his first ring in a return to Los Angeles, he was wrong, but he has a chance to do just that with the Philadelphia Sixers.
Jordan signed with the Sixers in March and played in 16 games in the regular season. In the playoffs, he’s only played in a total of three contests, in which he’s averaging 3.3 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks.
He isn’t the player that he once was and is no longer good enough to be Joel Embiid’s backup. Jordan’s role in Philadelphia is very limited, but if Embiid and James Harden can win a title for the Sixers, Jordan will get his long-awaited championship.