Just like on the morning of the Knicks playoffs opener last year, I won't be long-winded (for a change) or use a bunch of nerdy numbers to prove a point this morning.
We've dissected the details and parsed the potential particulars plenty.
Now comes the fun part.
There's nothing quite like playoff basketball—the jitters leading up to Game 1, the anxiety and anxiousness one experiences watching their favorite team play a do-or-die contest, in which every single possession in the fourth quarter feels like life or death for die-hard fans on both sides.
But that's the purpose of this post: to remind everybody to embrace the angst and apprehension, to soak up the suffering and suspense.
Knicks fans know postseason appearances aren't guaranteed.
Pressure is a privilege.
So, for folks who have remained loyal to this franchise despite suffering through the awfulness of the past two decades, make sure you enjoy today!
For fans who lived through the Scott Layden and Isiah Thomas and Phil Jackson regimes, you've earned this.
For fans who died a little inside when the Warriors took Steph Curry at seven, and the Knicks settled for Jordan Hill at 8, you deserve this!
For fans who tried to talk themselves into the Antonio McDyess, Eddy Curry, and Andrea Bargnani trades…
For fans who attempted to convince themselves, guys like Maciej Lampe and Ron Baker, Jerian Grant, Andy Rautins, Mardy Collins and Cleanthony Early would develop into studs…
For fans that survived their favorite team signing Jerome James and Jared Jeffries and Joakim Noah to gargantuan contracts…
For those fans: Enjoy today!