This past week, the New York Knicks advanced to the NBA Finals. Also, The Late Show signed off on CBS after 33 years. The show, originated by David Letterman and carried on for the last 11 years by Stephen Colbert, was a late-night staple. Colbert was excellent at what he did, but no one could ever match the genius of Letterman. A man who shaped comedy as we know it dating back to his Late Night show on NBC.
One of Letterman’s most famous bits was his now-legendary Top 10 List. Given the fact that The Late Show emanated from New York and that the Knicks are in the NBA Finals for the first time in 26 years, let’s pay tribute to the program. In homage to Mr. Letterman, here are the Top 10 reasons why it’s good for the media to have the Knicks back in the Finals.
#10: Celebrities
Sports seem to bring out the humanity in larger-than-life figures.
Did you see actor Timothée Chalamet acting like a happy 10-year-old after the Knicks beat the Cavaliers to win the Eastern Conference title? He did everything but ask Jalen Brunson for an autograph. How about longtime Knicks fans like Tracy Morgan, Ben Stiller, and John McEnroe? Morgan has more Knicks merchandise than Fanatics. Stiller hasn’t been this happy since De Niro put him in the Circle of Trust, and McEnroe didn’t argue with anyone, yell at an umpire, or break a racket.
The Finals will once again prove that New York remains the place to mix sports and entertainment.
#9: MSG
The Knicks’ home court is dubbed “The World’s Most Famous Arena” for a reason.
Some of the greatest sports moments of all time have taken place at MSG, and in basketball. Numerous players have historically elevated their games when they come to play in New York. In 2009, Kobe Bryant set the arena scoring record with an electrifying 61-point performance. Red Auerbach, Tommy Heinsohn, and those legendary Celtics teams beat plenty of opponents, but they took special joy in going to the Garden and drubbing the Knicks. In the mid-1980s, Madison Square Garden hosted the biggest showcase in men’s college basketball history, the Big East Tournament.
In short, nothing matches the hoops mystique of Madison Square Garden.
#8: History
The New York Knicks have two NBA championships to their credit: 1970 and 1973. If you don’t know anything about those teams, check them out through reels, clips, YouTube, or any other media platform you choose.
They might be the most skilled, unselfish, and coolest team ever to lace up a pair of sneakers. With head coach Red Holzman and players like Bill Bradley, Walt Frazier, Dave DeBusschere, Willis Reed, Earl Monroe, Phil Jackson, Dean Meminger, and Jerry Lucas, they truly created basketball art.
They are not the 1960s Celtics or the 1980s Lakers. The early 1970s Knicks remain a vital part of NBA lore.
#7 – New York, New York
When you are the biggest city, and at times the biggest bully on the block, opponents revel in your misery. And make no mistake, New York has endured plenty of misery.
The Yankees haven’t won a championship since 2009, and the Mets haven’t won one since 1986. The Knicks last won a title when Richard Nixon was president and none of his aides had been indicted. The New York Rangers won the Stanley Cup in 1940, waited 54 years to win another, and are now in year 36 without a title.
Want to venture outside the city?
The Islanders have been Cup-less since 1983. The New York Giants last won the Super Bowl in 2011, and do we even need to bring up the Buffalo Bills and New York Jets?
It will make for great television watching the Knicks try to end New York’s championship drought.
#6 – Big Markets = Big Ratings
While it’s often heartwarming to see the likes of Oklahoma City, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and San Antonio compete for a title, big-market teams operate on an entirely different level of interest.
You may hate the Knicks, but the NBA is healthier and more compelling when they are a viable championship contender. The same goes for cities like Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles. When those teams are successful, the entire league benefits.
The 1980s Lakers and Celtics, the 1990s Bulls, the Lakers again in the early 2000s, and the current Celtics and Knicks prove it. Small markets can have their Cinderella stories, but networks and advertisers are not interested in fairy tales. They want revenue.
#5 – Marquee Franchises
Across the sports landscape this past year, traditionally successful franchises returned to glory.
The New England Patriots were back in the Super Bowl after beating the similarly resurgent Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game. In the NFC, the Chicago Bears made the postseason and won a Wild Card game. In the NHL, former Cup winners like the Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, and the LA Kings all reached the playoffs.
In MLB, the Tigers and Reds returned to October baseball. While in pro hoops, the Spurs, Rockets, and Knicks emerged as contenders.
New York cannot boast the banners of Boston, Chicago, or Los Angeles. But as the saying goes, “You cannot write the history of the NBA without mentioning the Knicks.” Marquee franchises have fans all over the world. More importantly, they sell T-shirts and hats.
The bottom line remains the top priority.
#4 – Tell Me A Story
This season especially, the Knicks are loaded with storylines. These have reporters, writers, and producers loaded for bear.
Leading the way is head coach Mike Brown. The Knicks fired Tom Thibodeau after a 51-win season last year, a move that stunned many members of the basketball media. Perhaps even more confounding was the hiring of Brown, a journeyman coach with stops in seven previous NBA locales as a head coach or assistant.
Another terrific story is the college connection. Three current Knicks — Josh Hart, Jalen Brunson, and Mikal Bridges — won national championships together at Villanova. Karl-Anthony Towns, a perennial loser or also-ran with the Timberwolves, has come to New York and flourished.
This is a workmanlike team filled with lunch-pail players like OG Anunoby, Jose Alvarado, and Landry Shamet, all of whom provide great fodder for features, as does the aforementioned 53-year championship drought.
#3 – Social Media Engagement
The last time the New York Knicks were in the Finals was 1999. At that time, social media was in its infancy. Websites like Classmates.com and SixDegrees.com were considered cutting edge. Facebook launched in 2004. Instagram started in 2010. Snapchat arrived in 2011, and TikTok followed in 2016.
Social media loves the Knicks.
Hart has 1 million Instagram followers. Brunson has 1.2 million, and Towns has 4.3 million. The team’s Instagram account has 4.8 million followers. In addition, both the New York and national media are all over X praising this year’s team.
It’s a multimedia bonanza having the Knicks in the Finals for the first time in the social media era.
#2 – Love And Basketball
We all know that basketball thrives in the neighborhoods and playgrounds of greater Los Angeles. It’s also played in Indiana with makeshift rims nailed to the sides of countless barns and garages. But gritty, hard-nosed city ball traces its roots to New York.
It starts with the iconic Rucker Park and its legendary streetball tournaments. It includes old-school teams like the Syracuse Nats and the ABA’s New York Nets featuring superstar players like Rick Barry and Julius Erving.
It also includes highlight-generating players like Kenny Anderson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Connie Hawkins, and Stephon Marbury. Not to mention Brooklyn-born high school stars Pearl Washington and Chris Mullin, who stayed in state and starred at Syracuse and St. John’s, respectively.
There is a texture and rugged veneer to East Coast basketball, and the Knicks are a part of it.
#1 – Stephen A. Smith
The most ferocious and loquacious sports media personality today is an unabashed New York Knicks fan.
For years, Smith has openly displayed his passion for the orange and blue, and for years, his hopes have been dashed. Perhaps even more painfully than those of the Dallas Cowboys fans he so gleefully mocks.
Can you imagine Smith doing First Take, as well as guest spots on other ESPN shows, live from Madison Square Garden during the NBA Finals? Watching him comment, debate, laugh, and cry with his Knicks over the next three weeks will make for riveting television.
It is the number one reason why having the Knicks back in the Finals is absolute media gold.
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John Molori is a weekly columnist for Barrett Sports Media. He has previously contributed to ESPNW, Patriots Football Weekly, Golf Content Network, Methuen Life Magazine, and wrote a syndicated Media Blitz column in the New England region, which was published by numerous outlets including The Boston Metro, Providence Journal, Lowell Sun, and the Eagle-Tribune. His career also includes fourteen years in television as a News and Sports Reporter, Host, Producer working for Continental Cablevision, MediaOne, and AT&T. He can be reached on Twitter @MoloriMedia.
