Why Running It Back is the Best Option for Knicks After Championship Run

The New York Knicks are coming off a season in which they won the NBA Championship and had a dominant run in the playoffs to achieve their ultimate goal. The Knicks won 13 consecutive games in the postseason, stretching from the first round to the NBA Finals. 

Not only did the Knicks have a dominant 16-3 playoff record this year, but they also had historic comebacks. In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, New York was down 22 points with under 8 minutes to go in the game, and a 44-11 run led by Jalen Brunson propelled them to a win. 

In Game 4 of the NBA Finals, the Knicks were down 29 points against the San Antonio Spurs, and they clawed their way back to win 107-106, making it the biggest comeback in Finals history. New York was down double digits at one point in every game during the series as well. 

With the offseason moves the franchise has made, the Knicks have indicated they are keeping essentially the same team for next season, and this could benefit them. The Knicks were a team that went under the radar in terms of title contenders.

The Thunder, Spurs, and Boston Celtics, when Jayson Tatum came back, were all talked about as the favorites to win the championship, and the Knicks were overlooked. 

New York finished the season as the 3rd seed in the Eastern Conference behind the Detroit Pistons and the Celtics. The difference between those teams and the Knicks was that New York played better as a unit than everyone else. 

The Knicks' starting lineup and their reserves played the most efficient basketball of the postseason, and they were able to do so at a fast pace.

New York also had a go-to guy in every late-game situation in Jalen Brunson, and he delivered when called upon. Brunson had multiple clutch moments throughout the playoffs, especially in the Finals, where he gave the Knicks a go-ahead basket in the clutch in the first two games of the series. 

Reserves like Jose Alvarado, Landry Shamet, and Miles McBride also played at a high level when called upon throughout the postseason. In the Eastern Conference Finals, Landry Shamet shot 91.7 percent from three-point range, and he was extended by the team this offseason. 

The only true loss the Knicks had this offseason was Mitchell Robinson, but after bringing in Andre Drummond from the Philadelphia 76ers, the Knicks got a player who brings a similar skill set to the bench. 

New York has the chance to be the first team to win consecutive NBA Championships since the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018.