If the New York Knicks' recent pair of playoff losses felt heartbreaking to an almost historic extent, it's because they quite literally were.
The team wound up on the wrong side of history after their losses in Games 2 and 3 at the hands – or maybe the claws – of the Atlanta Hawks.
No other NBA team has ever lost back-to-back playoff games, in regulation, by one point in the same season. That's not a desirable fate for any squad, but especially not a Knicks group in a first round matchup that they were heavily picked to win.
Inherently ominous threat looms over Knicks' first round struggles
New York has had mountainous expectations looming over them all season, with the inherent threat of sweeping roster change in the case of a disappointing playoff exit. These aren't the set of circumstances they were looking to face in the opening round of the NBA Playoffs.
After following up the most playoff success they've achieved in 25 years with a coaching change, the Knicks showed growing pains. But, on the whole, they ultimately delivered improved play on both sides of the court in the regular season.
Their 53 wins were enough for head coach Mike Brown to beat out Pat Riley for the franchise record in wins during a Knicks head coach's first season.
None of that will matter, at all, if New York can't make it out of the first round. Any losses were going to sting, regardless of how they happened. But the two the Knicks have suffered thus far have been extra burdensome. And if the series continues on like this, it's hard to imagine that it doesn't result in the organization making some kind of change.
Would Knicks change roster, coach (again), or both if they actually lose?
How likely is it that, just one season after swapping Tom Thibodeau out for Brown, the Knicks admit defeat and conduct another coaching search? This time around, there are many more NBA teams looking to fill the same vacancy. The level of competition would be much higher.
Not many other teams can offer any potential coaches as talented of a roster as New York. But, as Brown learned nearly immediately, the expectations are just as great. And the job security that comes along with that level of roster would clearly not be spectacular.
That would leave the Knicks admitting a different kind of failure: one with their vision for their roster. An eventual trade for a bigger fish was always in the cards as an eventual option.
But no team sends out five first-round picks in hopes that they'll have to bench the only player they received in return, in Mikal Bridges, during the biggest game of their season thus far.
Whether it's Bridges, six-time All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns, or both that get the boot in some regard, it's hard to imagine the same cast sticking around for another season of this show.
It was supposed to be a realtime documentary of a Garden serving as home to numerous, intertwining stories of growth and success.
But after great ratings in season five, the studio made a directorial change. And, so far, year number six under Leon Rose has played out more like a horror comedy. Fans are starting to look for the remote.
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