Whether the New York Knicks were reluctant to pursue Kevin Durant due to his torn Achilles or not, the reality is this — there’s no excuse for striking out on every superstar.
New York is supposed to be an attractive and appealing place for big-time players looking to further establish themselves in history. Taking over a team and organization and making it something of their own, but ownership seems to be too involved.
James Dolan, the owner of the Knicks and CEO of Madison Square Garden, is the perennial problem that Knicks fans face every year. Passing on one of the best players of all time because of an injury is simply blasphemous, especially when you consider the value he would bring to RJ Barrett and the other young talents collectively learning on the roster.
Dolan did a disservice to every single fan and player by not attempting to bring in Durant, instead, he snatched Julius Randle, Taj Gibson, Wayne Ellington, Bobby Portis, and Reggie Bullock. Second and third-tier players that will help the Knicks to another losing season and hopefully another lottery pick at this point.
The New York Knicks are in purgatory:
Without the likes of a max-contract player, the current team is nowhere close to being a legitimate competitor. It seems, however, that Knicks management, aka Dolan, was resistant when it came to putting their money where their mouth is. Passing on Durant, not even having an interview with Kawhi Leonard, losing Kyrie Irving to the Brooklyn Nets before free agency even opened…
The current state of the team and front office is in shambles, in fact, they’re an embarrassment to the basketball world and a consistent let-down to the fan-base. There’s reason to riot against the powers above that simply don’t understand the concept of winning and the influence of New York.
It makes you appreciate the influence and attempt by Carmelo Anthony. He was the only player that even dared to drag the Knicks out of the ashes. Clearly, no other superstar is even willing to tread foot in a place that seems to end careers before they start. Making Dolan obsolete seems to be the only way out of this dark age, but there’s no end in sight.
We just have to pray consistent losing and high draft picks fixes the issues that have plagued the organization for years.