Basketball royalty: These Knicks surpass all others in team history | Opinion

NEW YORK — This is something that spanned generations.

This was 53 years of parents telling their children that, perhaps, this was the year. This was Ewing and Starks and Houston getting ever-so-close in ’99. This was icons like Carmelo and Camby who were players on good teams that could never be great teams. It was even Marbury and Stoudemire, fan favorites who captured the hearts of the city but who often had the misfortune of playing on bad teams.

The New York Knicks, with a magical run through the 2026 postseason – one of the greatest playoff performances of all-time – became basketball royalty with their relentless resilience that saw them claim the NBA Finals in five games over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday, June 13.

These Knicks embodied the grit of the city. No deficit was too much to overcome. Players like Karl-Anthony Towns endured rough stretches and trade rumors. Even their star, Jalen Brunson, was constantly criticized for being inadequate. This city loves a winner, but Knicks fans remained loyal through even the leanest of years. The celebrations that burst out through the city were deserved over those 53 years.

This is why, even though the ’73 team featured a remarkable eight Hall of Famers, these Knicks will go down as the greatest team in franchise history.

New York City turned out to support the Knicks as fans gathered across Manhattan for Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

See how the crowd brought the energy beyond the arena during a citywide watch party.

Above, A New York Knicks fan cheers outside of Madison Square Garden on Plaza 33 for a watch party of Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs.

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New York City turned out to support the Knicks as fans gathered across Manhattan for Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

See how the crowd brought the energy beyond the arena during a citywide watch party.

Above, A New York Knicks fan cheers outside of Madison Square Garden on Plaza 33 for a watch party of Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs.

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In Radio City Music Hall, confetti tumbled from the ceiling of a sold out watch party, as the team’s official anthem, “Go New York Go,” thundered over the sound system.

A block party broke out in the West Village, on W. 4th near Christopher Park, where people gathered on their fire escapes to belt out the chorus of “Empire State of Mind,” joining the thousands who flooded the streets below.

In Harlem, residents poured out of walk-ups and bars to shut down 116th and Frederick Douglass Blvd. They drank and sang, and one man set off Roman Candles in the middle of the street. Another rolled up in his neon green Harley Davidson and blasted Busta Rhymes’ “New York S***” for everyone to hear, a song whose lyrics include “I rep the Giants, Jets, New York Knicks.”

In Wollman Rink in Central Park, where New Yorkers go to pickleball in the summer and ice skate in the winter, a pair of massive screens beamed the game to thousands, backlit by the towering corridor of opulent skyscrapers along Billionaires’ Row.

You can swap the names of the places because they were all interchangeable. This was the vibe across the Bronx and Brooklyn, too, from Highbridge in the shadow of Yankee Stadium, to Williamsburg on the banks of the East River. This spanned all five boroughs.

There were men and women, young and old. They were Black and white and Asian and everything in between. There were recent arrivals to the bandwagon and lifers. It didn’t matter. They all spilled out into this hot night to celebrate together because that is how this city honors its very best.

Though it was under wholly different circumstances, tonight reminded me of another celebration, one far more somber in nature. Back in April of 2020, as COVID-19 cases ripped through the city and we were confined to our apartments, someone found a way to honor first-responders and medical staff who were keeping the city safe: every evening at 7 p.m., residents opened their windows and banged pots and pans to recognize the efforts of those putting themselves at risk.

Tonight, as the final seconds ticked off the clock, there was no need to stay inside. The city chose to celebrate together all the same.

And though the parade has been set for Thursday, June 18, New York almost certainly won’t need to wait another 53 years for this feeling. If anything, these Knicks are built to last.

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Jalen Brunson, the Finals Most Valuable Player, is 29 and signed to an extremely team-friendly deal, one he agreed to on condition that the team use the salary cap space to attract other key players. Karl-Anthony Towns is 30, Mikal Bridges is 29 and OG Anunoby is 28.

Mike Brown was coaching his first season with the franchise, but, more than anything, these Knicks proved in convincing fashion that winning in the contemporary NBA is not necessarily about accruing star players, but finding ones who perfectly fit a system and a vision. In the era of parity – in which New York made it eight different champions in as many seasons – it’s not about a Big Three or blockbuster signings, but about holistic roster construction.

“I love my players, love the organization, but more importantly, let’s go New York,” Brown told reporters after the game, holding his grandson, Iverson, in his lap. “Let’s go New York. We can’t wait to get back home.”