What’s next for Knicks? How injury-shortened playoff run showed why New York is no longer waiting for a star

The New York Knicks may have lost their second-round series to the Indiana Pacers, but it was hardly an outcome they could have avoided given the circumstances. Julius Randle and Bojan Bogdanovic missed all seven games. Mitchell Robinson got hurt in Game 1. OG Anunoby got hurt in Game 2, though he suited up in Game 7 but was pulled after just four minutes of play. Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson played through injury throughout the series. When Game 7’s final buzzer rang, it was a shell of the Knicks walking off of the Madison Square Garden court. The defining feature of the series was the players they didn’t have.

There’s a bitter irony to that sentiment, because the players New York hasn’t had have been the team’s defining feature for decades now. When was the last time the overarching narrative sounding this franchise wasn’t related to a superstar that never ultimately came?

The entire Leon Rose era, even after Brunson’s acquisition, has felt like the build-up to a blockbuster. The Knicks have spent years hoarding picks and movable salaries hoping to trade for a fill-in-the-blank star. At times, that slot has been filled by Donovan Mitchell. Every current and former CAA client has been on the radar at some point.

Rose’s hire was only necessary because Kevin Durant spurned the previous regime. Before the Durant wild goose chase, the Knicks spent most of a decade failing to find Carmelo Anthony a suitable partner. Anthony himself was only really filling in for LeBron James, the star New York truly spent the late 2000’s hoping to land. 

All of the cap clearing they needed to do to chase James was precipitated by failed big-name acquisition after failed big-name acquisition by Isiah Thomas. Heck, the Knicks even made a failed run at Thomas’ greatest on-court rival at one point. These schemes have been so convoluted that in 1996, the Knicks attempted to lure Michael Jordan by making him the face of Sheraton hotels (yes, this really happened).

It may not seem this way to the Knicks at this moment, but from that perspective, this series…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/whats-next-for-knicks-how-injury-shortened-playoff-run-showed-why-new-york-is-no-longer-waiting-for-a-star/

Author : Sam Quinn

Publish date : 2024-05-19 23:19:17

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