The Warriors’ season is long over, and Draymond Green, who has plenty of time to podcast during the playoffs, is not a Knicks believer.
“In the Eastern Conference, you can get to the conference finals by playing like a very ‘middle’ team, like the Atlanta Hawks. That’s what you guys are doing right now.” Warriors forward said on “The Draymond Green Show.” When talking about the Knicks.
“And I think what this is preparing you for is what happened three years ago when the Atlanta Hawks made it to the conference finals and then never went back.
“…Another team that did this to give you guys perspective was the Portland Trail Blazers a few years ago and they had Al-Farouq Aminu and Allen Crabbe. They got to the Finals and we pretty much beat them all without Stephen Curry.
“Then Portland ran away and paid them all. They thought they were a team with a chance, but it was a fluke and that’s what the Knicks are all about.” It’s probably going to be another 15 years of misery, and we’re all going to sit back and laugh at the delusions of Knicks fans, because that’s the reality. ”
The Warriors are coming off a disappointing season. They finished as the No. 10 seed in the Western Conference with a record of 46 wins and 36 losses, but lost to the Kings 118-94 in a play-in game on April 16.
Green was in the midst of the team’s downturn, having been suspended during the regular season for consistent cheap shots at opponents.
The Knicks don’t have much in common with the 2019 Trail Blazers, other than having ball-dominant, score-first point guards (Jalen Brunson/Damian Lillard).
But there’s more to like about the Knicks’ long-term prospects.
First, most of the Knicks except wing defender OG Anuboye are under contract for at least one more season, and Brunson is on a very team-friendly deal for two more years.
Brunson’s contract gives the Knicks cap flexibility in the future and they have significant draft capital that they can trade away if they see fit.
Portland traded a first-round pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, but they also didn’t have a first-round pick in 2021.
The Knicks defeated the 76ers in a dramatic six-game series in the first round, then defeated the Pacers 2-0 in the second round.
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They’ve come this far without Julius Randle, the team’s No. 2 scoring option, and will be without center Mitchell Robinson and sharpshooter Bojan Bogdanovic for the remainder of the postseason.
Friday’s Game 3 in Indiana will be the first postseason game without Anuboye, who suffered a hamstring strain late in the Knicks’ 130-121 win in Game 2.
