While we didn’t necessarily need more evidence that the New York Knicks are the toast of the NBA, Austin Reaves just gave us some anyway. In doing so,he incidentally spotlighted how lucky the team is to be (mostly) running it back despite owner James Dolan getting cagey about entering the second apron.
During a recent appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, the Los Angeles Lakers’ star guard praised the Knicks’ chemistry above all else. “They care for one another,” he explained (h/t Alder Almo of Heavy). “They play for one another.”
First of all: Make note, Lakers. Reaves went on to reminisce about the time he spent playing alongside Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges with Team USA. He is clearly begging for better chemistry in Hollywood, even if he won’t come right out and say it.
Second of all: What a surreal complement for the Knicks to receive. You wouldn’t have caught anyone talking about New York’s willingness to play for one another as recently as February or March.
Going from seemingly, or allegedly, dysfunctional to the standard-bearer not just for team-building, but for overall vibes is an incredible about-face. And it puts the Knicks’ offseason into a whole new, even more critical perspective.
The Knicks running it back wasn’t a given
Losing Mitchell Robinson to the Boston Celtics is a big deal. Andre Drummond will barely begin to replace most of what he brought to the table at the peak of his powers.
Still, the collateral damage of winning it all and being ultra-expensive could have been so much worse. The Knicks are returning the vast majority of their championship core. Around 88 percent of last year’s total regular-season minutes are represented on the current roster. That share climbs above 92 percent when looking at just the playoffs.
Even without Robinson, the Knicks’ chemistry will be intact. His exit does send a message about the limits of their spending, but they have already made reversing the perception of his departure a priority. It also helps that he signed a contract they may have been better off not matching even if money wasn’t an issue.
Keeping as much of the band together as New York did was far from a guarantee. Not only did the contracts for Jose Alvarado, Landry Shamet, and Mohamed Diawara clock in at team-friendly numbers when taken at face value, but none of them are even fully guaranteed.
The Knicks’ offseason is proof they’re chemistry is special
We don’t need Reaves to wax poetic about the Knicks to understand they have built both a special basketball team, and meaningful dynamic.
Brunson’s own discount and the Three Villanova-teers are no longer the only evidence players will do what they can to stay put. Shamet has never been on anything close to a mega contract, and he still spurned bigger offers to re-sign in New York. Heck, it is almost expected that Hart and Karl-Anthony Towns will ink team-friendly extensions to help preserve this window.
This doesn’t just happen. The Knicks’ chemistry is on another level even relative to championship nucleuses. They have built something that, in many ways, can’t be quantified. But it is evident through actions that are now spreading across the roster.
Reaves sees it. He envies it. You better believe the rest of the NBA does, too.
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