Former New York Knicks player Larry Johnson spoke about the team’s chances in this year’s playoffs.
According to the TMZ Sports portal, Johnson believes in the New York team’s ability to advance in the postseason, but rules out winning the NBA title.
“I am very happy with our team this year. I see the Knicks going far, winning the first playoff series, but I definitely don’t see the team winning the title,” Jhonson said.
The Knicks currently rank fifth in the Eastern Conference with 42 wins and 33 losses. Therefore, if the regular season ended today, the team would face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs.
In addition, Johnson praised Jalen Brunson, the main reinforcement of the New York team in the season, and heaped praise the determination of Josh Hart.
It is worth remembering that the former center forward played alongside Rick Brunson, the guard’s father, in the Knicks itself, between 1999 and 2001. Johnson, by the way, refers to his friend’s son as nephew.
“I believe that Jalen is the best player or definitely the most valuable player in the Knicks. After all, he commands the team on the court and puts his teammates in the right places.” Jhonson said.
“And I love Josh Hart. He’s a dog on defense, fights a lot. Anyway, that’s the mindset of New York.” he added.
For the Knicks, Larry Johnson played in the playoffs on four occasions. The best result was in the 1998/1999 season, when the team won the East, but was beaten in the finals by the San Antonio Spurs, in a five-game series.
At the time, the Knicks were coached by Jeff Van Gundy and had one of the best defenses in the league. The curious thing is that the current coach of the team, Tom Thibodeau, was one of Van Gundy’s assistants.
In addition to Johnson, the team had Patrick Ewing, Allan Houston and Latrell Sprewell as highlights. That, incidentally, was the last time the New York team reached the NBA finals.
