Knicks are built to win now, and we are about to see if this year is their year
The Knicks holds the trophy as the team poses for photos after defeating the Spurs to win the NBA Cup on Dec. 16, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Credit: Getty Images/Ethan Miller
SAN ANTONIO — When Mike Brown took over as Knicks coach he tried to avoid going through a history lesson about what had come before, how far the franchise had gone last season. And he didn’t need anyone to tell him the expectations.
The reality was on display in the NBA Cup when the Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs and celebrated the first championship of any time for the organization since 1973. But after the confetti had settled the Knicks knew that this wasn’t the championship they are chasing, opting to not even hang a banner to commemorate it. They're also aware there may be no better time than right now to achieve the ultimate goal.
The Knicks are a team built to win now, steps that they made clear when they swung major moves for three straight years now. They first traded away RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to land OG Anunoby, dealing five first-round picks for Mikal Bridges, swapping All-NBA talent in Julius Randle and the heartbeat of the franchise in Donte DiVincenzo to get Karl-Anthony Towns. And then they fired the architect of the franchise turnaround, Tom Thibodeau, when last season ended.
San Antonio boasts three of their premier players all 21 years old with Victor Wembanyama already establishing himself as the next big thing in the league. The Knicks five regular starters are all at least 28 years old and of the rotation pieces only Deuce McBride (25) and Tyler Kolek (24) are 25 or younger. The Spurs use only D’Aaron Fox, Harrison Barnes and Luke Kornet as players older than 25.
It’s not even the Spurs who seem to be the roadblock right now — and for years to come. The Oklahoma City Thunder are the defending champs and are young and loaded with assets to add to their roster. But San Antonio has beaten them three times in the last two weeks.
But Brown tries not to think about any timeline or window.
“No. Shoot, even when I was in Sacramento I wanted to win,” Brown said before the Knicks took on the Spurs in a New Year’s Eve contest at the Frost Center. “You come here you want to win. You look at a team on paper, you’re around the team a little bit. You’re like, ‘OK man, we legitimately have a chance to like win this whole thing.’
“But in terms of my preparation with the team and all that, I mean, it’s all the same. We’re trying to friggin’ win and win at a high level. We have a chance here because of the roster, the guys on the roster, and the coaches I have on my staff and [team president] Leon [Rose] and Jim Dolan. We’ve got a chance.”
It’s hard to imagine that the ceiling for Jalen Brunson is any higher than his play today. Although maybe we’ve thought that for years and he seems to somehow find another level, rise another tier, every season. Towns is 30 years old now. Bridges, Anunoby and Josh Hart are all veterans in their prime.
But one thing that Brown has learned from his long career coaching in the NBA is that there are no sure things, no inheriting the crown without taking it with both hands and ripping it from the opposition. Just look at the injuries that have rippled through the NBA in 2025 with Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton and Nikola Jokic all out of action. Giannis Antetokounmpo was sidelined for a long stretch.
And beyond injuries, just things happen that break up the continuity, reverse a path that seemed bound for a title. It's a risk the Knicks have taken but avoided the downfall. That's a credit to the decision-making of the front office.
“I’m more of a . . . what’s going on today or present,” Brown said. “We’ll figure out next year when next year comes or three years from now, because who knows?
"This team, when I say this team, San Antonio, shoot, two years from now they may trade a guy. They may trade the wrong guy. I don’t know. Who knows?
"So you just try to go get it every year that you step on the floor, enjoy your summer and while you’re in the summer time figure out next year.”
The Knicks used their experience to get through the NBA Cup. Now, as the calendar turns, we’ll find out if they can win the one they really want now.
Notes & quotes: Mitchell Robinson sat out a second straight game with left ankle load management. Brown said he would play in one of the back-to-back set when the Knicks return home, but had not determined which game yet . . . Landry Shamet updated his rehab process from the separated right shoulder suffered on Nov. 22. This is the second straight year he’s suffered the same injury and that helped him start his rehab process sooner and opt to avoid surgery. “Going well. Taking things a day at a time and getting better. Staying engaged here . . . as much as I can while still being out. And yeah, in a good spot, getting better. My intention was to rehab and get this thing right. And you make that decision and there’s not a gray area or back-and-forth considerations beyond whatever you decide to do. So that was it, that’s where we’re at.”
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
