A change of philosophy, an unlikely star, and a new coach: How the Knicks returned to the NBA Finals

In the heart of Manhattan, between Sixth Avenue and 50th Street, Prince’s song 1999 blared from the speakers of Radio City Music Hall. Hundreds of New York Knicks fans gathered amid the concrete jungle, the noise and neon lights, minutes after their team’s 11th straight playoffs win. Their 130-93 rout of the Cleveland Cavaliers to sweep the Eastern Conference final 4-0 was no ordinary victory. Twenty-seven years later, and for the first time in the 21st century, the Knicks are once again in an NBA Finals. The challenge ahead is enormous: to win the franchise’s first title in more than half a century, the only two championships in its history still frozen in black and white in 1970 and 1973.

While they wait to learn their opponent, with the Western series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs already guaranteed to go at least six games, the Knicks’ players and coaching staff allowed themselves to celebrate a milestone that restores hope to one of the league’s most prominent and ill-fated franchises. It is worth remembering last season’s huge disappointment, when they seemed poised for success and this same group of players fell short at the door of the title fight against the Indiana Pacers.

Two elements are key to summarizing this turnaround and the Knicks’ return to the top: first, the 2022 acquisition and subsequent rise of Jalen Brunson, a rare and unlikely star who turned down $113 million to join the team; second, the arrival of Mike Brown, a coach who freed the veteran roster from the constraints imposed by Tom Thibodeau, who was too rigid with his schemes and prone to overtaxing the starting five — a group that hasn’t changed at all from last year yet has gone much further.

The turning point for these Knicks, however, goes back to 2020. That was when the team owner, James Dolan, handed control of the project to Leon Rose, a former agent for players such as LeBron James. Although he had never worked for a team, the new president of the Knicks returned the franchise to the playoffs in his first season in charge. Over the past four years the growth has been steady and progressive: 47 wins in 2023, Brunson’s first season with the roster; 50 in 2024 and a loss in the conference semifinals; 51 in 2025 and a first trip to the conference finals since 1999; and, finally, 53 wins this year to finish third in the Eastern Conference and steamroll toward the title showdown.

A look at the Knicks’ record highlights the strong work done in the front office: in the two previous decades, despite paying the luxury tax for exceeding salary limits on 10 occasions with marquee signings such as Carmelo Anthony, the team had barely managed three winning seasons and a single playoff series victory.

With Brunson, in four seasons, they have already far exceeded that mark. The 29-year-old guard is averaging 27 points and nearly seven assists in these playoffs, always willing to share the spotlight with his teammates. Surrounded by Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges, with whom he won collegiate championships at Villanova, and OG Anunoby, an NBA champion with the Toronto Raptors in 2019, he has his defensive back covered. On offense, three-point–shooting center Karl-Anthony Towns brings three straight appearances in conference finals and serves as the team’s second scoring option, averaging 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in these dominant playoffs. On the bench, figures such as Landry Shamet, Mitchell Robinson, and Miles McBride stand out.

With the largest margins of victory ever recorded for any 11-game winning streak (a plus-262 point differential), the Knicks have gone a month without losing. Their only two losses in this postseason came in the first round against the Atlanta Hawks, both by a single point. They then thoroughly dismantled the Philadelphia 76ers and the Cavs. The two comparable runs in the 21st century, the 2001 Lakers and the 2017 Warriors, ended in championships, so there is plenty to celebrate in the Big Apple right now.

“It’s magical, historic, something New York has wanted for a long time. It’s good for the city, the fans, us and our families to enjoy this moment,” Towns said after the emphatic win in Cleveland. “But for us, as players, the work is not finished.”

Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAÍS USA Edition