When the New York Knicks tip off against the Boston Celtics at Madison Square Garden tomorrow night for Game 6, it will be the most pressure the franchise has been under in a quarter century. New York can close out the defending-champion Celtics and advance to their first Conference Finals in 25 seasons, when they lost in six games to the Indiana Pacers. Funnily enough, the Pacers are awaiting the winner, giving NY a chance for historical revenge two-plus decades later. For a variety of reasons, the stakes have never been higher for this organization in the 21st century. Jalen Brunson, Tom Thibodeau, and company would do well to finish this series at home.
Knicks Game 6 Vs. Celtics is Franchise’s Biggest Since 2000
The NBA Championship is Wide Open
There is one main reason this game and series are more important than any the Knicks have played this century. For the first time since 2000, New York actually has reason to believe they can hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy. Even in 2000, when NY was two wins away from the NBA Finals, the Kobe Bryant/Shaquille O’Neal Los Angeles Lakers were waiting on the other side. LA would go on to win their first of three straight titles, and would’ve been very tough to beat.
Since their last Conference Finals in 2000, the Knicks have made the playoffs nine times. In the first four instances (2001, 2004, 2011, 2012), New York was ousted in the first round, with two of them being sweeps. It wasn’t until 2013 that they could call themselves fringe championship contenders, as the Carmelo Anthony-led Knicks won their first playoff series since the turn of the century. The 2013 team lost in six games to the upstart Indiana Pacers, but would’ve had to beat the Big Three Miami Heat and the dynastic San Antonio Spurs to win a ring.
Fast forward eight more years of darkness, and Thibodeau, Leon Rose, and Julius Randle lifted NY to the postseason in 2021, only to lose spectacularly in five games to Trae Young‘s Atlanta Hawks. This would be the first of four appearances in five years, culminating in this season’s playoff run. In 2023 and 2024, NY won their first-round series. However, in both instances, they were an extreme long shot to actually win it all. 2023 had the juggernaut Denver Nuggets and 2024 the indomitable Boston Celtics. Neither of those Knicks teams were talented enough (2024 mostly because of injuries).
Knicks Would Likely Be Favored Over All But One Remaining Opponent
This season, however, New York has a golden opportunity to steal what appeared to be an extremely improbable NBA Championship. Heading into the 2025 postseason, these Knicks were counted out due to a disappointing regular season performance against elite teams. Their 0-10 record vs. the NBA’s top-three goes to show that regular-season results mean nothing come playoff time, as NY has been one of the most impressive squads so far.
There are six teams left in the field: the Knicks, Celtics, Pacers, Thunder, Nuggets, and Timberwolves. New York is currently significantly favored to eliminate Boston, with two chances to win just one game against a Jayson Tatum-less Cs team. If they do, they would likely be the betting favorites to defeat Indiana, Denver, and Minnesota when/if they match up. They’d have home-court advantage in those series at a raucous Madison Square Garden. Now, all three of those matchups would be close, and the Knicks would have their work cut out for them. With that said, the path is now wide open to raising the trophy.
The one team remaining that New York would be definite underdogs against is the Oklahoma City Thunder. OKC won 68 games, had a historic point differential, and boasts one of the most dominant defenses of all time. They’d have home-court advantage. However, Denver had OKC on the ropes multiple times this series, and still can come back from a 3-2 deficit. The Thunder are young, inexperienced, and definitely beatable.
For the first time in a quarter-century, the New York Knicks have a genuine opportunity to win a title. They better not waste it.
© Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images
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