The New York Knicks established themselves as early favorites to win the NBA title when they grabbed a thrilling 105-104 win against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center on Friday to take a 2-0 lead.
The series shifts to Madison Square Garden on Monday as the Knicks look to gain a 3-0 lead and strengthen their chances of clinching their first championship in 53 years.
Ahead of the crucial Game 3 clash, one former NBA champion had a surprising take about this Knicks roster.
Metta Sandiford-Artest Makes Huge Claim About the Knicks
Former NBA champion Metta Sandiford-Artest, formerly Ron Artest, made a major claim on X about the current Knicks’ standing among the league’s greatest teams.
“This @nyknicks team is top 5 greatest teams ever in the history of the @NBA,” Artest wrote.
Artest further compared Knicks guard Josh Hart to Dennis Rodman for his defensive nous, which has been evident throughout the Finals series.
Despite scoring just 3 combined points in the first two games of the series, Hart has managed 21 rebounds, equaling Spurs standout Victor Wembanyama.
“@joshhart is the modern-day Rodman and is on pace to be in the Hall of Fame. He is spectacular Great for the @nyknicks,” Artest posted.
The Knicks have been dominant during their playoff run, winning 13 consecutive games, which is the second-longest streak in the history of the NBA playoffs.
The Knicks overtook the 1999 Spurs, who held the second-longest playoff win streak (12) that year, and are now just behind the dominant Golden State Warriors, who won 15 consecutive games during their 2017 title run.
Coach Mike Brown’s team has outscored opponents by 273 points during its playoff run, which is the best 13-game streak in playoff history.
After the Knicks stole Game 2 on the road, Brown highlighted his team’s ability to handle adversity as the key to a title.
“There’s going to be a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “And I hope there’s adversity. I hope like hell there’s adversity. Because we have to see if we’re strong enough when it comes to being connected to see if we can get through it during the regular season.”
“So when we get here, anything we run into, we’ve already conquered during the regular season. We’ll know how to handle it.”
Ahead of the highly anticipated matchup on Monday, history is definitely on the Knicks’ side.
New York joined the 1993 Chicago Bulls and the 1995 Houston Rockets as the only teams to have won the first two games of the Finals on the road, and both Bulls and Rockets went on to win the championship.
