The New York Knicks have reason to be optimistic this season

More often than not, fans of the New York Knicks have often been subjected to seeing their team at the center of controversy. Whether it be watching a legend like Charles Oakley be dragged out of Madison Square Garden or even superfan Spike Lee announcing he would not attend games for a period of time. To put it in simpler terms, it wasn’t good.

Meanwhile, outsiders got a kick out of it, especially while watching ESPN’s Stephen A Smith and NFL Network’s Rich Eisen go off on hilarious rants. Now, the Knicks are trending once again, only this time, it’s in a positive direction. The team is above 0.500 at 19-18 after a 111-104 victory over the Detroit Pistons before the All-Star break.

Want more good news? They have an All-Star in power forward, Julius Randle, who was consolation for missing out on Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, a situation that had fans of the orange and blue wailing for owner James Dolan to sell the team due to his bad luck. Now, Randle is loved, as is guard R.J. Barrett, taken third overall after the Knicks failed to win the lottery for the right to draft Zion Williamson.

Need we forget the play of rookie Immanuel Quickley, whose strength is an outside game that fits in the modern NBA instead of the outdated “triangle” system implemented by Phil Jackson? Or how Derrick Rose, despite a few gray whiskers as a seasoned veteran, looks refreshed and is playing a style of basketball that is both entertaining and disciplined? There’s a reason fans are cheering outside of Madison Square Garden as opposed to the customary boos.

The New York Knicks have a lot of work ahead of them to rebuild their brand.

Yes, the New York Knicks are in the playoff hunt right now. Currently, they sit at the 5th spot in the Eastern Conference. For a team that has not been in the postseason for quite some time, that’s a respectable feat, but not exactly what head coach Tom Thibodeau and team president Leon Rose has in mind.

They both are about establishing a winning attitude, and Thibodeau is known for making his players grind and establish a level of toughness, an attitude that he rode to a championship with the Boston Celtics back in 2008, albeit with the help of players such as Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Rajon Rondo.

Furthermore, when Rose and Thibodeau were hired, they inherited a lottery pick, which turned out to be #8 overall. With it, they chose Obi Toppin out of Dayton. Though he has only averaged 4.7 points per game, Toppin is still young, meaning there is a chance for improvement, which will be essential given how players taken after him, specifically Sacramento’s Tyrese Haliburton, have looked well with their respective teams. Furthermore, having Quickley by his side can only help rather than hinder his development.

The New York Knicks are looking very improved, and it’s sporadic that you hear those words coming out of people’s mouths given their recent history. But the facts are the facts. However, there’s a lot more to be accomplished, but we know that a sign of positivity is much needed in the world’s media capital.