New York Knicks fans have spoken, and their message is abundantly clear: Next season is, in no uncertain terms, NBA Finals-or-bust.
James Edwards III of The Athletic ran a poll in which fans of the Orange and Blue could offer their thoughts on a number of key topics. When it came to the question of how far the Knicks must go for next season to be considered a success, those who answered did not hold back. Over 70 percent of them believe New York must at least make its first trip to the NBA Finals since 1999.
Here's the full breakdown of the results, which featured over 3,000 responses:
- Lose in Eastern Conference Finals: 15.2 percent
- Win in Eastern Conference Finals: 43.1 percent
- Lose in NBA Finals: 30.4 percent
- Win in NBA Finals: 11.3 percent
Progress isn’t always linear, but the Knicks just lost in the Eastern Conference Finals. It makes sense that a vast majority of the fanbase believes they must improve upon that performance for this coming season to be remembered fondly.
Let’s face it: Knicks fans are right
Boiling down an entire year’s body of work to Finals-or-bust can feel reductive. Context must invariably be taken into account. New York cannot be considered a failure if it falls victim to freak injuries, as one example.
The Knicks have nevertheless foisted these soaring expectations onto themselves. They fired head coach Tom Thibodeau after he came two wins away from making the NBA Finals, and then proceeded to make no other major changes, aside from hiring Mike Brown. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to decode this message. New York believes its current core isn’t just another run-of-the-mill contender, but on the precipice of winning the whole darn thing.
That is not an unreasonable conclusion. Again, the Knicks were just in the Eastern Conference Finals. And they got there by beating a Boston Celtics squad that was supposed to be their foil. Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury no doubt helped, but New York was on the verge of going up 3-1 in the series anyway when he went down.
The Knicks may never get another shot like this
This Knicks team is really good, and has the potential to be great. With that potential comes unrelenting expectations from the fanbase.
At the same time, this poll doubles as a recognition from the audience of the opportunity before them. The Eastern Conference may not be this wide-open again anytime soon.
Both the Celtics (Tatum) and Indiana Pacers (Tyrese Haliburton) will be without their best players all season. The Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers, meanwhile, are supposed-to-be powerhouses that have been thrust into an unplanned wild-card phase.
The Cleveland Cavaliers still exist, and are a team the Knicks must respect, if not fear. But squads on the come-up, like the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic, remain unproven. Everyone else just flat-out isn’t supposed to be as good.
Relative to the current landscape, New York’s floor in the East should be second. That says it all. When you factor in how much they’ve invested in this core, the trade assets they no longer have, and the likely entry into the second apron in 2026-27, the Knicks are up against a world of urgency. And the fans clearly know it.