As front office and coaching staffs joined and departed the Knicks like sports’ most depressing carousel, each new iteration offered the same promise. Not just the return of winning basketball, but the establishment of a winning culture.
It makes sense why.
The teams that can sustain winning over prolonged periods do it on the backs of their foundations, a top-down joined mindset and approach. Think of the Miami Heat’s dedication to the work or the San Antonio Spurs led by Tim Duncan.
Unfortunately, the Knicks consistently failed to establish one of their own this millennium. If it looked like it was coming together one year, a shakeup to the roster, coaching staff, or front office would reset progress back to zero.
Until now.
We’re only entering year two of the Leon Rose -Tom Thibodeau era, but it already appears as if the Knicks have the beginnings of a culture in place -- one they could build off for more continued success than they’ve seen in decades.
The process began with hiring Thibodeau and retaining Julius Randle. Thibs is the most accomplished and established coach to head the Knicks since Mike D’Antoni, leading the way with a high-effort, defensive-minded attitude.
Randle immediately matched that work ethic, coming into training camp last season in the best shape of his career, along with a vastly improved game. He brought his shootaround habits adopted from Kobe Bryant to the team, and the team followed. This mindset carried down to the rest of the roster, helped by personnel ready to assume the culture.
RJ Barrett shook off an early-season shooting disaster through added reps. Immanuel Quickley wasn’t projected to be in the rotation, but earned his way there during the preseason.
Despite having two starter-worthy centers battle it out for minutes, there was no friction when Mitchell Robinson earned the spot over Nerlens Noel. The team came first.
Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson joined up to provide added depth and bring their experience playing under Thibodeau in the past to the locker room. The younger players took it upon themselves to get shots up after games and on off-days, even those with little to no shot of consistent minutes like Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina.
These small things seem insignificant individually, but collectively they’ve helped establish the culture Rose, Thibodeau, and Randle intended. And it’s already paying dividends.
The Knicks shocked the NBA world by securing the East’s fourth seed and finishing near the top of the defensive rankings last season. Though the playoffs didn’t go as hoped, this offseason validated the work put in.
Randle accepted a smaller max extension instead of waiting a season to potentially earn $80 million more over the life of his new contract. He cited the Knicks' culture as to why he decided to stay for less.
A New York organization that time and time again failed to attract free agent talent inked Evan Fournier to a deal. Then, Kemba Walker agreed to a buyout of his massive contract to accept a middling salary from the Knicks.
Also joining the roster are rookies picked especially because they’d fit in with this culture. Quentin Grimes spent his Houston college days under Kelvin Sampson, a Thibs-esque workhorse, as did Miles McBride under Bob Huggins. Both are defensive-minded athletes.
It’s still early, but the Knicks formed a real foundation in the last year-plus. Cultures are built from the top down, and for once it looks as if New York has the right pieces and motivation to establish theirs.
