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THEY ARE THE CHAMPIONS MY FRIEND.
THE 2026 NEW YORK KNICKERBOCKERS
WPCNR VIEW FROM THE 8th AVENUE GARDEN. bY John F. Bailey. JUNE 15 2026:
The love has been returned!
It was a beautiful Sunday in New York City because The Knickerbockers’ defensive, offensive, do-everything-right, relentless drive to eternity forever in our hearts, lifted the spirits of millions New Yorkers sky high.
In the most impressive NBA playoff run to a championship of all time, the pall of perpetual falling short to glamour teams and one-man teams the Knicks turned the league upside down with their victory Saturday night. it was throwback basketball that overcame the odds.
From the days when they used to play in the 69th Regimental Armory (when the Garden had the circus or a Dog Show or the Icecapades booked), the Knicks and the Rangers typified Madison Square Garden sports mediocrity.
This year the Knicks of 2026 emerged from their failures by outclassing the field with effort every minute, last minute miracles, defensive intensity not seen in years, team play that neutralized stars of the other teams, and showing up the entire league, winning even when the matchup was 5 against 8 when the officials were calling everything on the Knicks and allowing on court flagrant muggings of Knick players who never lost their poise under pressure.
Gone in 19 glorious games is the perpetual regular and playoff of losing to the glamour teams of the media: the legendary Celtics, the Bulls, the Indianas, The Baltimore Bullets, and earlier in the first years of the NBA, the Syracuse Nationals, Rochester Royals, Philadelphia Warriors.
Today those memories are phantoms. Those memories of hurt and loss are now just the pungent cigar clouds of the Old Madison Square Garden on 8th Avenue in 1950s, where I’m sitting smoking a White Owl and savoring this unforgettable achievement.
The Knicks steamrollered through the playoffs like no other Champion has.
The Knickerbockers of 2026 have made the Knicks of the past proud and honor the players I used to know when I watched them on WPIX when I was around 10.
The Knicks of the first Knick teams: Vince Boryla, Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, Harry “The Horse” Galatin, and Dick Mcguire.
The Knicks I watched in the late 50s: Carl Braun, Ray Felix, Richie Guerin, Phil Jorden, Willie “The Whale” Naulls, Kenny Sears.
Then the build through the 60s with Coach Fuzzy Levene, followed by Red Holzman, with the ascendance of Dick Barnett, Bill Bradley, Dave DeBusschere, Walt “Clyde” Frazier, Willis Reed, Cazzie Russell, Dave Stallworth, Henry Bibby, Phil Jackson, Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, and Jerry Lucas, culminating in the 1970 and 1973 NBA Championships. (Remember when Willis Reed with a bad leg hobbled onto the court in the last game of the Lakers Finals 1970 at the Garden?)
In the 1980s and 90s the club declined but in the 1ate 80s they resurged with Patrick Ewing, Ernie Grunfeld, Trent Tucker, And in the 1990s, Coach Pat Reilly brought back confrontational defense and were it not for a last minute loss in game 7 in 1994 there would have been another Championship before Saturday night’s.
Then of course there were the crisp Voices of the Knicks on the radio and TV: Bob Wolff, Marty “Good like Nedicks” Glickman, Marv “YES” Albert, Mike Breen, Kenny Albert, John Andraise, and Jim “Bullseye!” Karvellis. They were the comforting, celebrating, and knowledgeable Mel Allen’s of basketball in New York.
The 2026 Knicks Championship recalls and honors the Knickerbockers of the past as much as their triumph honors themselves and makes everyone walking the sidewalks of New York in the sunshine of triumph Sunday and today and for many years to come feeling beyond good.
A memory of decisive triumph, victories for what always matters:
“Never give up!”
“Never lose your poise”
“Never attack your opponent.Respect them.”
“Never lose your nerve”
“Have confidence in your talent!”
“Lose with class.”
“Win with humility.”
“Defense wins.”