3 Things every Knicks fan should be thankful for this Thanksgiving

We've made it through the first month of the season. It's now Thanksgiving, and even though there are no NBA games today (the NBA Cup is back tomorrow!), that doesn't mean New York Knicks fans can't spend some time being thankful for their favorite basketball team.

Let's use this space not to list the issues the Knicks need to fix (there will be plenty of time for that later) but to reflect on why fans should be grateful.

3 Things every Knicks fan should be thankful for this Thanksgiving

Madison Square Garden

Most players' favorite place to play is Madison Square Garden. Why wouldn't it be? There's nothing like playing under the lights at the World's Most Famous Arena.

Knicks fans are lucky not only to watch their favorite team play at MSG (whether watching live in the stands or from the couch) but are fortunate their favorite team gets to play in that environment. There is nothing like playoff basketball at MSG – nothing. Remember how loud it was last season after Donte DiVincenzo hit that three against the Sixers? It's a moment New York fans and DiVincenzo will never forget.

The only con about MSG is that it's more expensive to watch a Knicks game there than it is to watch the team play on the road. However, even if you can only visit the Garden once, it's worth it.

"The Big Three"

Every Knicks fan has been thankful for Jalen Brunson for the past two years. How he's transformed the organization is fascinating, but he's not a one-man show. New York traded for OG Anunoby last year and re-signed him to a five-year deal over the offseason. The front office shocked everyone by trading for Karl-Anthony Towns a few days before training camp.

Brunson, Towns, and Anunoby are the Knicks' "Big Three." Anunoby is the only one who hasn't made an All-Star team, but based on his play, that should change this season. He's headed toward All-NBA territory.

New York's starting lineup includes a star point guard, a stretch five, and one of the best two-way players in the league. It'd be wrong not to shout out other players (like Josh Hart), but watching the Knicks' new trio has been fun. There is still a lot of basketball left to be played, so the fun is far from over.

A competent front office

Previous front-office regimes mismanaged the Knicks, making one of the most popular sports brands unrecognizable. Everything began to change in 2020 when Leon Rose took over as president of basketball operations.

New York hired Tom Thibodeau as head coach. In his first season, he led the Knicks to the playoffs and was named the NBA Coach of the Year. New York missed the postseason in 2021-22 but surpassed the first round in 2023 and 2024.

Rose helped transform the Knicks from an afterthought to a contender. His best move was signing Brunson to a four-year deal in 2022 free agency. Rose has had a couple of bad moves (like the Evan Fournier sign-and-trade), but there have been far more positives than negatives. After dealing with incompetent front offices for years, every fan should be grateful that Rose is in charge.