On Saturday night, the New York Knicks were officially crowned as 2026 NBA Champions, snapping a 53-year title drought with an improbable and forever-memorable playoff run.
Less than 72 hours later, major media outlets find themselves reverting to toxic habits of yore.
Recently, the folks at DraftKings Sportsbook revealed their list of favorites to take home the 2027 Larry O'Brien Trophy. Shockingly, the reigning champs rank fourth at plus-650.
For the better part of the 21st Century, the Knicks have regularly been overlooked and counted out by rival fans and pundits alike.
Now, to their credit, New York hasn't done itself many favors throughout this stretch, what with their putrid signings, polarizing draft decisions, and the sheer fact that they witnessed two separate "dark ages" (i.e., the Isiah Thomas and Phil Jackson eras) in a 26-year span.
This Leon Rose-run organization, on the other hand, has clearly proven to be light-years ahead of these past regimes, with their recent title run serving as the ultimate example of why.
Yet, despite literally proving themselves capable of becoming the league's top dogs, they're still being disrespected in the title-odds department, coming in behind teams like the Spurs, who they literally just embarrassed via a 4-1 Finals series win, and the Celtics, who they've gone 7-3 against dating back to last year's postseason.
Even with their label as NBA Champions, we still find classic Knicks slander being shelled out.
Knicks have Celtics on brink of admitting current core isn't good enough
Despite what the odds may be suggesting, the road for the Celtics to usurp the Knicks out East is far from a straight shot.
Interestingly enough, it appears they already fully understand this.
According to The Ringer's Bill Simmons, Boston is actively star hunting this offseason following their quarterfinals exit against Philadelphia, and, per the veteran sports writer, has "made an offer in the past week" for two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Greek Freak was regularly rumored as a possible target for the Knicks to pursue a trade for if they were to have succumbed to an early playoff exit this past postseason.
Obviously, such a hypothetical scenario never came to be, as New York now reigns supreme and is in no way in need of adding Giannis' talents to their core.
The Celtics, on the other hand, find themselves simply trying to catch up to Jalen Brunson and company, which, in turn, makes this reported pursuit of Antetokounmpo far from surprising.
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