Can the Knicks repeat as NBA champs? Banner night at MSG and KAT contract drama

Tina, I don't know if I can hear you over my, over my championship aspirations. Your chain, your chain. Should I put this back on? The last time I wore this hat was at the parade. Look at it. I've kept it. I don't know what I'm looking like right now, but. Look at us being cheerleaders here for the Knicks. So they're the champions until they get this thrown. It's hard. Until June, they are the champions until they are not. So we have all year to do this. It's hard not to get caught up in the excitement. And today is an extremely exciting day because we're starting the season. Yes. And what's going to happen tonight at Madison Square Garden? Something that hasn't happened in 53 years. They are going to raise a banner, and it's going to say NBA champions, and it's going to have the Knicks logo for the 25-26 season. So that's something that happened, you know, half of a century. Right. And which I think will be very sentimental. You will have players from those teams, like Clyde Frazier will be there, of course. And you wonder if Earl Monroe. Yeah, the 90s Knicks who never had a chance to win. They were at the finals. But then Jalen Brunson and company. That's one of the beautiful things about how this championship run went when it did happen a couple months ago, was that all the generations of Knicks fans were sort of rallied together and all the generations of Knicks players were at the games, were there at the ceremony at City Hall. And it was just kind of like I wasn't necessarily expecting that sort of like family feel from within the organization. And that's what they do so well at the Garden. Once a Knick, always a Knick, they really do mean that. And to see Carmelo Anthony and Amari Stoudemire and John Starks now in Houston and Larry Johnson all get up on those floats as well, it was honoring them because they are part of the history. So I thought that was a really classy touch, and they appreciated it. Yes, it hurts. They wanted to win the championship because they're competitors. But they were proud of what they built to get to that moment. Let's talk about the actual team now for a second. I mean, we're pretty much healthy, bringing back the same starting five, Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh, Jalen, McHale, and OG. OG, and really, Mitchell Robinson was the big loss, so he went obviously to the Celtics, got the free agent money that he deserved, he was able to get. I like the Andre Drummond addition, Mount Vernon, New York, just north, Westchester County, just north of the Bronx. He played for the Sixers last year. He's been on a couple teams, 33 years old, good veteran to come in. They'll play big when they use him. Yeah. And this season, you know, I almost feel like the Knicks are, I don't want to say underrated, but maybe not as appreciated as some of the last champions. You know, they're not talked about as this elite team that is an odds-on favorite to win again. I feel like people thought that maybe they got super hot last year and they can't replicate it. Do you think they have a little bit of that underdog still in them right now? And that's such the Jalen Brunson mentality, right? That's how he came into the last couple of years. He was the underdog when he signed with the Knicks and signed that extension. He took a $113 million pay cut. I mean, unbelievable to sign with the Knicks so they would have the room to sign guys like Josh Hart and bring in Karl Anthony Towns. So they're both the hunted team in the NBA this year because the championship team always is. But they're also, like you said, the underdogs. Why? Because right in the East, starting tonight, they have to face a team with LeBron James again. I love it. So when I covered the Knicks, when I was at MSG, it was so much worse in the East. Great division right now, maybe better than the West, at least as overall, maybe the top teams in the West Coast, the Spurs and Oklahoma City still. Those are the two. Just just two two things very quickly. Jalen Brunson is as close to being the face of the NBA as you can be. I mean, there's very few guys who could host Saturday SNL like he did. And he's embraced that. And he's the king of New York and New York's the largest city in America and the biggest and the loudest and the proudest when it comes to basketball. What a great basketball city, no matter what. So, yeah, he is the face. But sometimes I feel like they'll run NBA commercials to start the NBA season. I'm like, where's the Knicks? I get a little. So it's still like that underdog. There's still the Knicks mentality. Well, guess what? They're the champs. They will be all season long until they're not. Maybe they repeat. It's very hard to. And they're the what's the in-season tournament champs, too. That's right. They're the NBA Cup champs. I'm not not reported. well we were waiting to see if they put up the NBA Cup banner as well yes last two things a little bit of serious business because they were talking about extending Karl-Anthony Towns but now that talk has been put on hold and i don't is it i don't feel like the vibes i don't like the vibe i don't like it either to me it's a distraction uh according to cat though he said that's news to me that the talks have stalled so allegedly and according to reports the talks are over for now. He is eligible for the max. I hope I don't get these numbers wrong. Like $270 million over four years. And they're offering him like $200 million. It's still a lot of money. So he has a player option for next year. So he could even still take the player option to stay with the Knicks or opt out, get his big money. But you hope they sign him. But the problem is the second apron, you want to re-sign Jalen Brunson. He's not taking a pay cut second time around. You want to re-sign Josh Hart as well. It's tough. because of the money situation, the cap and the second apron and all that stuff. So, yeah, tonight they tip off. Yes, for now, we'll just have to hope for the good things. I know the tickets are still pretty expensive. Yes, they still are. Oh, and by the way, I'm going to interview Brooklyn Nets head coach today, Jordi Fernandez. Yes, I'm wearing a Knicks hat. But Brooklyn, they're going to be fun to watch. They were 3-1 in their preseason. I am Michael Porter Jr. You know, Igor Joman. I love it. Just saying. Tina, thank you very much. Good luck with the interview today. Thanks. Well, I'm sure we'll see you tomorrow on Good Day. Let's take a look at the big board or go to a break. I'm not sure yet.