ButtaBall.com

As a self-professed fan of the Knicks it’s easy for me to explain how great it would be for the Knicks to have some good luck tomorrow night when the order of the draft will be decided.  It’s been 24 years since the Knicks got lucky, earning the number one overall pick in 1985 NBA Draft which they would use to select Patrick Ewing, with the promise of multiple championships in the decade to come.  Unfortunately for Knicks fans and the fans of any team in the early 90’s really, Michaeld Jordan was alive and from 1991-1993, no other team had a chance.

Then Jordan retired and announced he was going to play baseball following his father’s death.  Suddenly everybody had a chance and when the Knicks got to the 1994 NBA Finals the first Knicks championship in 2 decades looked to be destiny.  The Rangers lifted the Stanley Cup that same season in thrilling fashion with two Game 7 wins en route to winning their first championship in 54 years, shared Madison Square Garden with the Knicks.  Even at the young age of seven I could almost sense the championship, unfortunately a Hakeem Olajuwon blocked shot in game 6 and a game 7 stinker from John Starks shooting 2-for-18 from the field including a horrific 0-for-11 in the fourth period.  Head coach Pat Riley, called that the worst decision of his coaching career and said in 2006 that he still had not forgiven himself for leaving Starks in the game that long.

Following that the next season the Knicks were ousted by the Pacers in a hotly contested seven game series in the Easter Conference Semi-Final as Ewing’ finger roll rimmed out in the final seconds of the game.  The following years was marked by the development of an intense rivalry with the Miami Heat and constantly being stopped in their tracks by Jordan’s comeback to the Bulls.  Sure the Knicks had an incredible run to the finals in 1999 with Allen Houston’s running jumper with 0.8 seconds left in a deciding game 5 against our bitter rivals the Miami Heat.  That was followed by a four game sweep of the Hawks.

The next series was against the Pacers.  The Knicks stole game one behind an incredible performace by Marcus Camby who seemed to grab every rebound and provided another presence in the paint in addition to Ewing, but after dropping a tight one in Game 2, Ewing was forced to shut himself down for the rest of the playoffs after rupturing his Achilles tendon.  The Knicks still persevered behind Larry Johnson, or as Knicks fans knew him, LJ, hitting a three after being fouled and the free throw to turn the game from a 91-88 loss to a 92-91 Knicks win in game 3 as the Garden erupted.  The Knicks clinched the series in 6 as Allan Houston poured in 32 points and dominating the game for the Knicks.

Entering those Finals, no Knicks fan believed we had a chance, as it turned out we didn’t, but at that point it didn’t matter.  That team had done more than any Knicks team I had seen before or after, overcoming adversity at every step of the way and becoming the first eigth seed to advance to the NBA Finals.  We lost in Game 5 after an incredible scoring duel between Latrell Sprewell and Tim Duncan in the fourth quarter.

Since then the team descended into irrelevance trading Ewing after the following season and the Knicks’ prolonged stay in mediocrity was sealed once former GM Scott Layden lavished a 7 year, $180 million contract on shooting guard Allan Houston.  Since missing the playoffs in the 2001-2002 season the Knicks have not finished with a winning record and made the playoffs once, only to be swept by the cross-river rival Nets.  Isiah Thomas was able to bring in talented players, but with no regard to team dynamics the team continued to flounder.

Following the pathetic self-capitulation that was the Knicks’ season in 2007-2008 the Knicks cut their losses and removed Isiah Thomas as the team president and coach and Donnie Walsh was hired as a replacement.  The Knicks needed a new identity and a fresh face to lead the Knicks out of the hole the organization had been for the better part of a decade.  Walsh wasted no time bringing in Mike D’Antoni, the mastermind behind the Suns’ run-and-gun, seven seconds or less offense.

Last summer as a Knicks fan and knowing our chances of getting the No. 1 pick were slim to none, expectations were low, but any Knicks fan could tell you that everyone was hoping for the unlikely, because of what was available.  Point guard Derrick Rose fresh off of leading his Memphis team to the NCAA Championship Game was entering the draft.  Rose is quick, fast, athletic and strong for a point guard.  Not only that, but he was an almost perfect fit for the Knicks’ new offense.

As the order was being announced, I was hoping against hope that the Knicks would finally get that stroke of luck that they so desperately needed.  As it turned out the Knicks ended up with the No. 6 pick and I was disappointed but not all too much as I realized that the chances had been slim.  When the hated Chicago Bulls received the pick however after entering with less than 1.7% chance of winning the lottery it felt as if there was really no hope the Knicks.  The Bulls, a team that had thwarted the Knicks’ title hopes throughout my childhood into my early teenage years had once again found a way to hurt the Knicks.  A team we had traded a first round picks and had to swap picks with the following year, which was 14 spots higher, because of the failed Eddy Curry trade made it even that much worse.

The Knicks were at least competitive this year going 32-50 and showing a fighting spirit in the team I hadn’t seen in so many years.  The Knicks face the prospect of losing young pieces of that team in David Lee and Nate Robinson who both head into restricted free agency this summer amid rumors of trades and interest from other teams.  The Knicks will certainly keep one, but stand a strong chance of losing the other.  As a result this draft becomes even more important for the Knicks’ future and to provide hope for a fan base that desperately wants a winner.

Enter Ricky Rubio, the next great point guard prospect who earned accolades from Kobe Bryant among other NBA players during the Olympic Games this summer.  Rubio is a European prospect that scouts are comparing to a Steve Nash clone, with better size, bigger frame, Maravich-like flair and the ability to create havoc in the passing lanes and get into the open court.  The Knicks once again stand unlikely to receive the No. 1 or No. 2 pick they would need to draft Rubio with the eigh best chance at the No.1 pick or one spot better than where the Bulls were when they lucked into the pick last year.

The Knicks could use a player with his abilities not just in order to improve the team next year, but also because of the summer that awaits following this year.  The Knicks cleared enough cap space to make a run at possibly two major free agents in a summer that could see stars moving around the league.  While I find it hard to see Lebron leaving Cleveland for New York, I expect the Knicks to be major players, perhaps signing a combination of Joe Johnson and Amare Stoudemire.  The Knicks need talent on the team so that New York is a preferred destination for free agents.

More than anything getting the No.1 pick and drafting Rubio would be welcome to Knicks fans who have had very little to cheer for the past five years outside two Nate Robinson dunk contest crowns.  Long gone are the times when Madison Square Garden was a constant sellout with a raucous crowd that created one of the best basketball atmospheres throughout the 90’s.  We need something to make us believe that things are turning around, that this organization has left behind its recent past and is on its way to recovering its lost glory and pride.

There was a time when wearing the orange and blue wasn’t just a jersey.  The Knicks may not have the prestige and history that the Celtics and Lakers carry, but that jersey has stood for a toughness that was embodied by Willis Reed coming out for Game 7, for Walt Clyde Frazier in the same game having one of the greatest all-around dominating performances in Finals history, for Ewing wearing more padding than previously thought possible by a human.  The Knicks don’t have a realistic chance at the No.1 pick, but if there is no team and a franchise that need it more.