“Notes on Knicks Basketball since 1999, Notes on Choking since 1999, and so on.
by Andrew Felsher
May 22, 2025
The Knicks choked. The Knicks choked. The Knicks choked tonight!
I’m not surprised. If I’ve had anything remotely resembling a consistent religion since 1999, then it has been the Knicks, sadly. Very sadly. So sad. Better off loving basketball, better off loving humanity, the cosmos, anything conceivable within this dimension other than the KNICKS!
I was eight years old when the Knicks last made the Eastern conference finals. We had a poster on the wall with Sprewell, Houston, Camby, Ewing. I remember I used to record games on the VHS and replay Allan Houston’s jumpshot, trying to mimic his form on my inevitable journey, like countless young ballers, to arrive at the doorstep of the NBA.
At 5’6” and 34 years old, I haven’t made it anywhere close to an NBA Roster and the Knicks, since 2000, haven’t made it anywhere close to the NBA Finals, even though they have welcomed a long list of talented specimens through the lucrative borders of Madison Square Garden:
Rick Brunson, Marcus Camby, Chris Childs, Ben Davis, Chris Dudley, Patrick Ewing, Allan Houston, Larry Johnson, Dennis Scott, Latrell Sprewell, Kurt Thomas, Charlie Ward, Herb Williams, David Wingate, Etdrick Bohannon, DeMarco Johnson, Andrew Lang, Mirsad Türkcan, John Wallace, Othella Harrington, Mark Jackson, Travis Knight, Luc Longley, Lavor Postell, Glen Rice, Felton Spencer, Erick Strickland, Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley, Larry Robinson, Clarence Weatherspoon, Michael Doleac, Lee Nailon, Frank Williams, Vin Baker, Anfernee Hardaway, DerMarr Johnson, Stephon Marbury, Antonio McDyess, Nazr Mohammed, Dikembe Mutombo, Moochie Norris, Bruno Šundov, Mike Sweetney, Tim Thomas, Cezary Trybański, Keith Van Horn, Trevor Ariza, Jamison Brewer, Jackie Butler, Jamal Crawford, Jermaine Jackson, Malik Rose, Maurice Taylor, Jerome Williams, Matt Barnes, Eddy Curry, Antonio Davis, Steve Francis, Channing Frye, Jerome James, David Lee, Quentin Richardson, Nate Robinson, Jalen Rose, Ime Udoka, Qyntel Woods, Renaldo Balkman, Kelvin Cato, Mardy Collins, Jared Jeffries, Randolph Morris, Wilson Chandler, Fred Jones, Zach Randolph, Joe Crawford, Chris Duhon, Danilo Gallinari, Al Harrington, Larry Hughes, Demetris Nichols, Anthony Roberson, Cheikh Samb, Mouhamed Sene, Courtney Sims, Chris Wilcox, Earl Barron, Jonathan Bender, Toney Douglas, J.R. Giddens, Jordan Hill, Eddie House, Marcus Landry, Tracy McGrady, Darko Miličić, Sergio Rodríguez, Henry Walker, Carmelo Anthony, Derrick Brown, Anthony Carter, Raymond Felton, Landry Fields, Roger Mason, Timofey Mozgov, Anthony Randolph, Andy Rautins, Amar'e Stoudemire, Ronny Turiaf, Shawne Williams, Shelden Williams, Mike Bibby, Tyson Chandler, Baron Davis, Dan Gadzuric, Josh Harrellson, Jerome Jordan, Jeremy Lin, Steve Novak, Iman Shumpert, J.R. Smith, Ronnie Brewer, Chris Copeland, Solomon Jones, Jason Kidd, Kenyon Martin, Pablo Prigioni, Rasheed Wallace, James White, Cole Aldrich, Andrea Bargnani, Shannon Brown, Earl Clark, Tim Hardaway Jr., Toure' Murry, Chris Smith, Jeremy Tyler, Beno Udrih, Metta World Peace, Quincy Acy, Lou Amundson, José Calderón, Samuel Dalembert, Cleanthony Early, Langston Galloway, Shane Larkin, Ricky Ledo, Alexey Shved, Jason Smith, Lance Thomas, Travis Wear, Arron Afflalo, Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Jimmer Fredette, Jerian Grant, Robin Lopez, Kyle O'Quinn, Kristaps Porziņģis, Kevin Séraphin, Sasha Vujačić, Derrick Williams, Ron Baker, Willy Hernangómez, Justin Holiday, Brandon Jennings, Mindaugas Kuzminskas, Courtney Lee, Maurice Ndour, Joakim Noah, Marshall Plumlee, Chasson Randle, Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, Trey Burke, Damyean Dotson, Enes Freedom, Isaiah Hicks, Jarrett Jack, Luke Kornet, Doug McDermott, Emmanuel Mudiay, Frank Ntilikina, Ramon Sessions, Troy Williams, Kadeem Allen, Henry Ellenson, Billy Garrett, Mario Hezonja, John Jenkins, DeAndre Jordan, Kevin Knox, Wesley Matthews, Mitchell Robinson, Dennis Smith Jr., Allonzo Trier, Noah Vonleh, RJ Barrett, Ignas Brazdeikis, Reggie Bullock, Wayne Ellington, Taj Gibson, Maurice Harkless, Marcus Morris, Elfrid Payton, Bobby Portis, Julius Randle, Alec Burks, Jared Harper, Nerlens Noel, Norvel Pelle, Theo Pinson, Immanuel Quickley, Austin Rivers, Obi Toppin, Ryan Arcidiacono, Evan Fournier, Quentin Grimes, Tyler Hall, Danuel House Jr., Feron Hunt, Miles McBride, Matt Mooney, Cam Reddish, Wayne Selden, Jericho Sims, Kemba Walker, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Isaiah Hartenstein, DaQuan Jeffries, Trevor Keels, Svi Mykhailiuk, Precious Achiuwa, Bojan Bogdanović, Charlie Brown Jr., Mamadi Diakite, Donte DiVincenzo, Malachi Flynn, Shake Milton, Dmytro Skapintsev, Jacob Toppin, Dylan Windler, Mikal Bridges, Karl-Anthony Towns, Cameron Payne, Landry Shamet, Tyler Kolek, Ariel Hukporti, Pacome Dadiet, Delon Wright, Anton Watson, MarJon Beauchamp, Kevin McCullar Jr., and P.J. Tucker. (i)
Yes, this current squad is top notch. They can defend and make shots. They possess a hefty dose of Tom Thibodeau-induced grit. But in the final 3 minutes of game 1 at MSG, they choked. Tyrese Haliburton knew just how to communicate the reality of the historical moment/asphyxiation, resurrecting the Spike Lee-induced Reggie Miller choke gesture during the 1994 Eastern Conference semi-finals.
Tyrese Haliburton after Pacers obliterate 14 point deficit with 2:51 left in the 4th quarter. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Haliburton, perhaps subconsciously, even mirrored the right arm over the left, but he’s much more expressive than Reggie Miller’s killer glare toward Spike Lee!
June 1, 1994: Reggie Miller scores 25 in the 4th quarter and becomes the primary villain on and off screen for Spike Lee. In game 1, he dropped 8 points in 9 seconds to finish and win the game…
Of course, I remember all the agonizing years since their last legit run into the Eastern Conference Finals. I love Brunson, OG, and Josh Hart and appreciate some of the shots Towns makes, but this team lacks the magic of last year’s team with Divencenzo that scraped its way along and nearly made it. I agree with Charles Barkley’s comments after the game; the longer the series goes the tougher it will be for the Knicks. They needed the first game. Sorry, Knicks, the Pacers will wear you down.
(i) New York Knicks Roster(s) between 1999 and 2025 based on “Basketball-Reference.com”. Accessed [May 21, 2025]
I never provided my headshot or a Bio to São Paulo Review, so they referred to me as “an unknown American writer.” Then I waited and waited, I waited outside my apartment, moved from one apartment to another, launched 128 LIT, and waited and waited, until Google Maps found me talking on the phone in 2024 in Sunset Park!
