Hour 1: Knicks Do It Again

Summary

Don, Hahn & Rosenberg: Hour 1 - "Knicks Do It Again"

Release Date: May 8, 2025

In the inaugural episode of "Knicks Do It Again," hosts Don La Greca, Alan Hahn, and Peter Rosenberg delve deep into the Boston Celtics vs. New York Knicks playoff series. With the Knicks leading the series 2-0, the trio provides comprehensive analysis, heated debates, and insightful commentary on the strategies, performances, and underlying factors influencing the outcome of the games.

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1. Series Overview

The episode kicks off with Peter Rosenberg expressing his astonishment over the Knicks' resurgence against the Celtics:

Peter Rosenberg [00:51]: "App 2O next to Celtics 0. Carbon copy of what we saw from game one in game two, coming back from 20 points down. What is going on?"

Don Hahn labels the situation as "mass hysteria," setting the stage for an in-depth discussion on the unexpected turn of events in the series.

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2. Celtics' Strategy and Arrogance vs. Stubbornness

A significant portion of the conversation centers around the Celtics' gameplay, which the hosts attribute to either arrogance or stubbornness. Peter Rosenberg vehemently criticizes the Celtics' refusal to adjust their strategy:

Peter Rosenberg [02:01]: "Sheer unadulterated arrogance. The Celtics are an arrogant team that thinks they don't have to play hard."

Alan Hahn counters by suggesting that the issue lies more in stubbornness and laziness rather than outright arrogance:

Alan Hahn [03:30]: "I think it's stubbornness of this is what we do."

Don Hahn agrees, highlighting specific instances where the Celtics failed to adapt, such as their overreliance on three-point shots despite missed opportunities:

Don Hahn [04:29]: "They just stop and chuck all day long."

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3. Knicks' Mental Toughness and Resilience

The hosts commend the Knicks for their unwavering determination and mental fortitude. Don Hahn emphasizes the Knicks' ability to maintain energy levels and fight back from significant deficits:

Don Hahn [06:35]: "The Knicks have shown you the toughness that no one said they had. Because mental toughness is a toughness, fellas."

Alan Hahn adds that the Knicks' consistency in bringing full effort every night sets them apart from other teams that engage in load management:

Alan Hahn [06:43]: "They bring it every single night."

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4. Key Game Moments and Tactical Analysis

Analyzing pivotal moments from the games, the hosts dissect the Celtics' critical errors and the Knicks' opportunistic plays. Don Hahn breaks down a crucial play involving Jayson Tatum:

Don Hahn [05:59]: "On the last play, he was like, it was in his head, I cannot take the step back three."

Peter Rosenberg points out the Celtics' inability to execute under pressure, citing missed shots and forced plays:

Peter Rosenberg [07:05]: "They kept taking him. Go ahead, take him."

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5. Historical Context and Implications for Future Playoffs

Drawing parallels to past playoff performances, Don Hahn provides historical context to the Celtics' current struggles:

Don Hahn [05:58]: "And since 2019, no defending championship has gotten beyond the second round every single year."

This historical perspective underscores the significance of the Knicks' current performance and raises questions about the Celtics' ability to defend their title.

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6. Impact of Home Crowd Pressure

A recurring theme is the influence of the home crowd on the Celtics' performance. Tim Legler, joining later in the episode, corroborates the idea that the intense environment of venues like Madison Square Garden amplifies pressure:

Tim Legler [32:31]: "The crowd is projecting their anxiety onto the floor. So to think that that's not a factor, I think would be crazy and absolutely affected them."

Don Hahn adds personal anecdotes, noting that both teams experience heightened emotions during critical moments:

Don Hahn [32:57]: "Every time they miss an open three, there was like this groan that everybody could hear."

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7. Predictions and Future Outlook

As the series progresses, the hosts speculate on potential outcomes and strategies. Alan Hahn expresses cautious optimism about the Knicks maintaining their momentum:

Alan Hahn [17:05]: "This is a dangerous team."

Meanwhile, Tim Legler highlights the unpredictability of the NBA playoffs and the importance of upcoming games:

Tim Legler [39:22]: "I think the Pacers are in a great spot because of how banged up the Cavs are."

Don Hahn reinforces the need for the Celtics to capitalize on their opportunities and avoid complacency:

Don Hahn [18:19]: "We gotta start from the start and finish the game that way. 48 minutes."

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8. Closing Thoughts

In the final segments, the hosts reflect on the broader implications of the series and the potential for both teams moving forward. Peter Rosenberg emphasizes the significance of the Knicks' determination:

Peter Rosenberg [28:38]: "This is about the Knicks and what they've accomplished."

Don Hahn and Alan Hahn conclude by encouraging fans to stay engaged and anticipate the upcoming games:

Don Hahn [43:35]: "Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts."

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Peter Rosenberg [00:51]: "App 2O next to Celtics 0. Carbon copy of what we saw from game one in game two, coming back from 20 points down. What is going on?"

• Don Hahn [06:35]: "The Knicks have shown you the toughness that no one said they had. Because mental toughness is a toughness, fellas."

• Peter Rosenberg [02:01]: "Sheer unadulterated arrogance. The Celtics are an arrogant team that thinks they don't have to play hard."

• Tim Legler [32:31]: "The crowd is projecting their anxiety onto the floor. So to think that that's not a factor, I think would be crazy and absolutely affected them."

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Conclusion

"Knicks Do It Again" offers a thorough and passionate examination of one of the NBA's most intriguing playoff matchups. Through expert analysis and candid discussions, Don La Greca, Alan Hahn, and Peter Rosenberg provide listeners with a nuanced understanding of the dynamics at play, the strengths and weaknesses of both teams, and the potential trajectories as the series unfolds. Whether you're a die-hard Knicks fan or simply a basketball enthusiast, this episode delivers valuable insights and engaging commentary that encapsulate the excitement and unpredictability of the NBA playoffs.

Transcript

[Don Hahn]

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[Peter Rosenberg]

Don, where do we stand on Sus Han?

[Don Hahn]

It's lame. It needs Viagra. And Rosenberg?

[Alan Hahn]

I'm gonna lift my shirt up, take my pants down and shake it all around.

[Peter Rosenberg]

This isn't North Dakota. This is New York.

[Don Hahn]

This is Don Hahn and Rosenberg on 880 ESPN and the ESPN New York.

[Peter Rosenberg]

App 2O next to Celtics 0. Carbon copy of what we saw from game one in game two, coming back from 20 points down. What is going on? What in the world is going on? Dogs and cats living together.

[Don Hahn]

Mass hysteria.

[Alan Hahn]

I mean, Dom, when we went up there yesterday, Allen had left for the. For the Garden. And I feel like it was in our last segment that you said to me, so how are you feeling?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, right.

[Alan Hahn]

Wasn't the last segment.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That was the last segment. You were like.

[Alan Hahn]

It was moments before the show ended.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Alan, I picked the Knicks again.

[Alan Hahn]

He said, I'm picking the Knicks. How do you feel?

[Don Hahn]

Ten and a half, by the way. Ten and a half.

[Alan Hahn]

The number was crazy. And I said, I gotta be honest, I'm not liking the feeling right now.

[Peter Rosenberg]

With the Celtics, but it's not even that. It's just so odd. And I was listening to Michael driving in, listen to Bart and Carlin and just everything. People just flabbergasted. Like, why? And I think I know the reason. You want to hear it?

[Don Hahn]

Please tell me. Because nobody else seems to know.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Sheer unadulterated arrogance. The Celtics are an arrogant team that thinks they don't have to play hard. It's only the Knicks. We're the world champions. We're just going to do what we do. No adjustments. You know, you can't milk the clock a little BIT with a 16 point lead and 8 and a half to go. Still chucking up threes. Oh, that's what we do. Okay, well, you lost two games almost identical. You took what, 20 less threes but shot the same percentage. You know, you walk out of there, Peter, that's the play. Why? Because it works so well. The play before. I don't have to make an adjustment. I Don't have to call a timeout to try. Oh, we'll just do what we do. It doesn't matter because it's the Knicks and we're the big bad Celtics.

[Don Hahn]

And.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And you know what? You're misreading your opponent, people, because you are a better team than the Knicks. But the difference is, unlike every other team in the NBA with their load management and not trying, this is a Knick team that brings it every single night. And if you're going to bat the bunny, the bunny's going to bite you right in the crotch. And that's happened twice now. And you know what's going to happen? Like a squirrel. They're not going to let go.

[Alan Hahn]

Wait, who's the squirrel?

[Peter Rosenberg]

The Knicks are the squirrel.

[Alan Hahn]

Okay? And they're not letting go of one.

[Don Hahn]

And they're.

[Alan Hahn]

They're biting the bunny.

[Don Hahn]

No, they're not biting the bunny.

[Alan Hahn]

They're biting the crotch.

[Don Hahn]

What do squirrels like to bite on?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Crotch? Nuts.

[Don Hahn]

Nuts.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Got them right by the short hairs. And they're not letting go.

[Don Hahn]

They're holding on.

[Alan Hahn]

The only thing I would phrasing, I said it right.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

By the way, I'm killing the phrasing draw. We're coming up with something better.

[Don Hahn]

Oh, wow.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, it's dead. Big changes, but the only thing I'm going to push back on in terms of it being pure arrogance. Like, Don sort of described it as like, the Celtics think they're better than the Knicks arrogance. I don't think it's that.

[Don Hahn]

Can I. Can I take.

[Alan Hahn]

I think just hear me out first. I think it's pure plain stubbornness and laziness. I don't think it's, oh, they suck. We don't have to change.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But it is.

[Alan Hahn]

I think it's stubbornness of this is what we do. And specifically Missoula, because I don't know, guys. Correct me if I'm wrong. The play where the Celtics took the lead late, I was like. And there was. That wasn't the only play. It sure seems like when Tatum and Brown get the ball at the top, they can get to the racket times. They really don't do it.

[Don Hahn]

All right.

[Alan Hahn]

They just stop and chuck all day long.

[Don Hahn]

Can I jump in, please? All right. You both are right in what you're saying about arrogance. I diagrammed that play about a million times.

[Alan Hahn]

Which one?

[Don Hahn]

He did it this morning. The game winning defensive stop. And also the one you're talking.

[Alan Hahn]

The Tatum dunk.

[Don Hahn]

The Tatum dunk. They're not the same play. Like Missoula Post game was full of crap. With everything he was saying, all of it, he had no answers. He was making it up as he went and he got out of the building as fast as he could. I'm telling you guys something. The arrogance thing is true, but it's not just an arrogance of we don't need to try hard against this team. Their arrogance is, this is how we play and it's going to work. Give it time. I told you. This is like when the Yankees just keep trying to hit home runs. It's the same maddening thing. I'm recognizing it as Yankee fan, watching them as the Celtics saying, oh, my God, I don't think they know how to do anything else. That's a real thing. So what happens here is they. When you take away the threes, there's only one statistic that matters. There's a million of them. I have three pages from our signals. Right, right. None of it matters. Throw it in the garbage. There's one stat and only one stat that matters through the first two games. You know what it is? 3 point percentage, 25 for 175 missed threes in two games. When you take that away from them, they don't know what to do. They just keep reverting back to it. And the Knicks are kind of like laughing because it's like, look at him. They keep taking him. Go ahead, take him.

[Alan Hahn]

And by the way, and then Tatum.

[Don Hahn]

On the last play, he was like, it was in his head, I cannot take the step back three. He was almost telling himself, I have Mitchell Robinson on me. I could just take a step back three. No, no, I can't do that because if I miss it, they're going to be. And then he forced himself to his left hand, which he's not strong on.

[Alan Hahn]

Same plan.

[Don Hahn]

He lost his dribble. And then he went into the crucible of bridges and Anunobi. It was all like mapped out perfectly. And the Knicks right off the gut, laughing like, oh, my God, we did it again. Like, that's what this series has been about. The Knicks have shown you the toughness that no one said they had. Because mental toughness is a toughness, fellas.

[Alan Hahn]

Right?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, yeah, yeah.

[Don Hahn]

So they showed a toughness that people didn't think they had by not letting go of the rope, by not getting down, by not breaking a 20 point lead. It's like, all right, we'll just keep fighting. Let's see what happens. And for a second time, they were in the game for a second time. Brunson made Big plays down the stretch when it needed to. And then for a second time, they made a defensive stop because the Celtics couldn't execute. The defending champions couldn't execute. Hey, can I give you one more factoid? And then I'll shut the hell up. This is another very interesting thing to watch now with the Knicks up 2. 0. Since 2019, no defending championship has gotten beyond the second round every single year. The defending champ either didn't make the playoffs or out in the first round or the second round.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Since 2019, it's a different NBA now.

[Don Hahn]

So it is like these. These. The idea of these repeat champs or a team that's always like. That's out the window.

[Alan Hahn]

How do people keep thinking 20 points means anything? By the way, I was out last night.

[Don Hahn]

Well, 20 points with three. Three minutes to go in the third quarter, in your building, that should mean something.

[Alan Hahn]

But it doesn't. But in 2025, what year is it? It doesn't matter. It's 20 points. Don is about. I'm not kidding. It's about eight. When we were kids, it's not.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I get.

[Alan Hahn]

It was never over. But now when you're shooting threes every possession.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I'm sorry, but 16 with eight and a half to go.

[Don Hahn]

99 point.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Own building.

[Don Hahn]

99 point.

[Alan Hahn]

Stop with your own building. You miss threes, whatever building. If you miss threes.

[Don Hahn]

Well, that's the other part. But what Don said. No, no, no, no. Don's right. No, here's why. Everybody there, everybody in that building on either side, Knicks or Celtics, I talked to all of them, said that when they started missing threes, when they started missing shots, that place gets tight and the players feel it. You know how I know that that's a real thing? Because it happens at the Garden with the Knicks.

[Alan Hahn]

True, true, true.

[Don Hahn]

So what Don saying is right. You're in your building, and you should be able to take it home. But why do they get tight?

[Alan Hahn]

That's a good point.

[Don Hahn]

Because that building gets tight when. When you miss a couple, it's like, oh, here we go.

[Alan Hahn]

Because that's all they do.

[Don Hahn]

You got to stop shooting the threes.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But this is the arrogance. And I'm sorry. When arrogance comes from. You could say, well, they're not disrespecting your opponent. When you're arrogant, you think everybody sucks. Every. Everybody's not you. So maybe they're not disrespectful solely to the Knicks. It's probably just disrespectful to everybody. Oh, because we're the Celtics, we're the defending championship. Done. But 16 with eight. Eight and a half to go, Peter. All right, you're not hitting your threes, but it's what they do. I'm not asking them to adjust to now changing the game plan. Can you slow the game down a little bit? Like, can. Can. Can you find a way to maybe just milk the clock? Try not to reduce the number.

[Don Hahn]

How, Don?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, no, they get enough.

[Don Hahn]

It's a rebound. They kick it out for three instead of going up for a layup.

[Peter Rosenberg]

You're not very well, but they do. Let's go back to last year's championship. I mean, take a closer look at that Celtic championship. All right, Heat in the first round. Cavs that were nowhere close to what they were this year last year. In the second round, they caught the break of not having to face the Knicks. They faced the Pacers in the conference final and then got to break in the wall, taking on Dallas. Dallas wasn't the best team in the west, but they came out of it. So I don't want to take any championship away. They earn their championship, but they're not the bulls of the 90s. They're not the Cavaliers with LeBron James.

[Alan Hahn]

They're not the warriors, but they are better than this.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, they're better than this, but they're not so good that they think just showing up is going to make the other team will.

[Don Hahn]

Is this who they really are, though, Peter? Because their DNA really was more about blowing leads and not holding leads. Batting the bunny. Last year was the operation, it feels like, because the years before, remember two years ago, they lost the first three games of a series against Miami in the conference finals.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, no, they're. They're.

[Don Hahn]

And they lost the first two games at home.

[Alan Hahn]

They're a weird. They're a weird streaky team, but they are generally. Listen, there is a chance, guys, that the. The Knicks win this series for one, at this point. Whatever. There is also a chance that come Saturday afternoon, the Celtics win by 35 in the Garden. That can still happen with this team. I would say that is who. They have that DNA.

[Don Hahn]

So which one do you. Which one do you buy more now, though? Start of the series, we all would have bought the 35, but I don't know if I'm buying that. Well, because of what the Knicks have.

[Alan Hahn]

Showed me, they're going. The thing is, now, we talked a lot yesterday, and, man, it really played out just as we talked about. We said if this game gets close late, the Celtics are going to get tight. The Knicks are going to get comfortable. That is exactly what happened. I texted the group Allen with, What was it, 30 seconds left. And I went, well, this is it. We got exactly what we wanted. They're right there. Within a possession. Celtics are tight. You can see on that last possession, Tatum had no idea what they were doing. Now they come back to New York, there's no. The building's never going to get tight. You're up 2.0 MSG will not get tight in game 3. It doesn't matter what happens. Like you telling me, the fan base can get nervous and the air is going to come out. If it's close.

[Don Hahn]

You know what'll be funny? If it's a 20 point deficit, the place will go crazy. That's what we want them. Got to write what we want. I don't think anybody will get too upset.

[Alan Hahn]

No. Nor will they leave.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's the thing that just bothers me if I'm a Celtic fan is the exact same scenario happened and you still didn't do anything about it, man. So now they got an extra.

[Alan Hahn]

That's a coaching indictment, by the way.

[Peter Rosenberg]

To work on a big coaching indictment and see. Listen, I think you can make the odds of the Knicks winning this series could be the same as the Celtics turning around and winning the next four games. I mean, if all of a sudden they start hitting their threes, it's a different world. And because I. But I will say this more so than Game 2 than in Game 1, the Knicks did a better job defending those three. It's like I didn't think there wasn't nearly as many uncontested.

[Don Hahn]

It took 40.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

Instead of 60.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Right. But I just felt like it was a little bit more defensive responsibility by the Knicks than it would just sheer not getting it done by the Celtics. Ultimately, the Celtics didn't get it done. But I thought the Knicks, they missed shots. It's that it's really.

[Don Hahn]

And when you watch them, they're just shots where you're like, what the hell was that? What the hell was that like? A lot of the shots and then there was a wide open Tatum that he just completely clanked.

[Peter Rosenberg]

This, this is.

[Don Hahn]

Can I also ask you this? That the arrogance is this too, though. It goes beyond like only shooting threes and all that stuff. You know what else bothers me? It's their offenses. You know, the majority of their offense is so hyper focused on on hunting. Where's Brunson? Get him. We got to go get him. Where's Towns? Let's go get Towns, it's all hunting the matchup, because that's what they did. That was a big thing that Missoula talked about last year on their run.

[Peter Rosenberg]

They.

[Don Hahn]

The killer whale thing and how they want to hunt for the match. They made a mockery of Luka Doncic that way in the finals, and so that's become their thing. After a while, everybody starts to realize, oh, we know what you're doing. And you find a way to blow it up, which is. And then they bring in Mitchell Robinson, and then Missoula thinks he's really smart. Well, we're just going to keep fouling him because he sucks at free throws. But you know what happens when you keep fouling him? You get into the bonus.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

So, like, the Knicks in game one were like, all right, we got to get him off the floor. And then they thought about it between games, and in game two, they're like, go ahead. Go ahead, waste your fouls on this guy. We're not worried now, but early in the quarter, you're going to do this early in the quarter. And then now we're in the bonus, and we got guys that can draw fouls. All right, that's on you. There was just a lot of. There's some arrogance to how they're playing.

[Peter Rosenberg]

This, but I also think it's because.

[Don Hahn]

They really don't know what else to do.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, then you got to have to figure it out. And the Knicks are the worst matchup for them, because this is a team that's not going to go away. Just like I said in game one, it's easy to just say, we're down by 20. We'll go get them last night, hey, we're down by 20. We're not going to do it again. Nobody's ever done that. But we got our split. We'll go home happy. No, they hung around and then just kept hitting shot after shot after shot. Because no matter what, Bridges got hot. Tatum is the best player on the court between the two teams. But Brunson, so money in the fourth and all of this, the silence, the Tibbs guys. First of all, he's obviously saved his job. Now, no matter what happens, he's won two games. But this is why you love Thibodeau, because he works them hard. You know who he reminds me of? This is going to be over a lot of people's heads, but I gotta get it. It's like Herb Brooks, like, He worked the USA team in 1980. 61 games before the Olympics started killing them, whipping them, destroying Them. Why? Because he wanted them conditioned and ready when it mattered. And you wonder if a lot of these NBA teams are ready for the postseason with all your load management not giving a crap all year because the Knicks bring it every single. They're mentally and physically prepared for the postseason and they, and they look like they're going up against the team that's not ready for the post.

[Don Hahn]

That's such a great take. It's so good that I use it on get up this morning. It's a coach that had all they talked about were minutes all season long. You're playing them too much, they're going to break down. Or are they going to get tough and tougher, sharpening steel right to a point that now you're in the postseason and it's pressure and only the stars are playing. Everybody's playing 40 minutes night now and their guys are a little like slower to the ball. They're. Horford's exhausted. Porzingis can't play because he's sick. More on that later. Now, Tatum, you know Brown, like Brown's got the knee thing. The more he plays, you know that's not going away. The hamstring with Holiday and the Knick players, did they look tired in the fourth quarter or did they dial it up in the fourth quarter? This was almost like Rocky 3 when he trained for Clubber language second time around. He trained for speed.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Right?

[Don Hahn]

Right. It changed everything. Now all of a sudden it's like, whoa, you're not slow footed anymore. No, you're different now. And I do think that there's something to that. Tibbs built up all these calluses and built them up to a point where they won't break when fatigue hits. They learn how to fight through it, play through it. And now in the most important times, maybe you're seeing it.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, the biggest, the biggest criticism of Tibbs is he players aren't available when you get to the playoffs. And I kept saying as we were trying to judge and I'll be honest, I was bored the last month of the regular season because we kept speculating on what the Knicks are without any idea of what they really were. Let's see when we get to the playoffs. Well, now we know what they are. They are a team that can get down 20 points and never stops playing at the same energy level.

[Don Hahn]

Honey badgers.

[Alan Hahn]

Now, if the Celtics had gotten it, I know this sounds ridiculous. If the Celtics had gotten it to 30 yesterday, I think they win that game and I feel pretty good about it. 20 is not enough. On this team it's just not, not if you're going to keep shooting and that. And Don, you're right. They never slowed down. They kept shooting eight seconds into the shot clock. And the Knicks are just a really good team right now. This is, this is a dangerous team.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And you look at, you know, with Mitchell Robinson in the lineup with Towns. With Towns different now. They played three games with the Celtics with that, with that, with healthy and they're two and one and, and the one loss was in overtime.

[Don Hahn]

That's that regular season, you know, now being up to a winning two on the road. I, I got, I gotta think it's like 26 and five. I think when the road team wins the first two games of the best of seven, 80, 85%. Yeah, it's, it's two. I think 26 and five is the number. But Cathany Towns gave a warning in the, in the locker room after the game about where they are right now because he experienced it last season.

[Tim Legler]

It means we, we up two.

[Don Hahn]

Zip. I mean but it doesn't really mean anything.

[Tim Legler]

You know, if anything has taught me.

[Don Hahn]

Experience from last year, we were up 2, 0 the same way in both.

[Tim Legler]

Away games in Denver and we came home and we left our, our home two games.

[Don Hahn]

Two, two. So can't take anything for granted. We got to find ourselves executing at a higher level. We can keep doing these 20 point leads for Boston and hope to come back and win the, the game. We gotta, we gotta play better, we.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Gotta shoot better, we gotta execute better.

[Don Hahn]

We can't start having that kind of Knicks basketball being played down 20.

[Alan Hahn]

We gotta start from the, start the.

[Don Hahn]

Game that way and finish the game that way. 48 minutes.

[Alan Hahn]

Beautifully said.

[Don Hahn]

He had 21 points and 17 rebounds in this game. A pretty good bounce back game for him. He had a huge tip in and one late in the game as well. But he speaks from the experience of last year. Second round, Minnesota versus Denver. And what he said is true. Like Minnesota went to Denver, won both games in Denver and everybody thought oh my God, like they're, they're going to the conference finals, go back to Minnesota. And Denver put a absolute walloping on him in game three. And that place, Minnesota, the place was going crazy.

[Alan Hahn]

I remember that was.

[Don Hahn]

And then they lost game four. And that series was so weird that it went back and forth the road, the road team kept winning.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

Then in game seven, the Nuggets had a 20 point lead in the third quarter. Looked like they were on their way. Towns had a huge game against Jokic and they came back from the 20 point deficit to win game seven on the road to advance to the conference finals. So he has lived through this. And I think that voice of reason and experience is very important right now because you're going to have two days of hype and how great you are.

[Alan Hahn]

And even when they get to the building, it's going to feel. When they get there, it's going to be a welping. They're going to be welcomed as if they already won the series.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I mean I'm starting to see it because again, Nick fans are really positive and why wouldn't you be positive? You're up to nothing winning two games on the road.

[Don Hahn]

And the new Pope is from Villanova.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, there you go. They finding stuff that's a problem.

[Alan Hahn]

You know, Leo John, give him the chip right now.

[Don Hahn]

Isn't that amazing?

[Peter Rosenberg]

But they can't do whatever you want as a fan. Okay, but in that room, you know that's not happening. You've worked too hard and done too much to sit there and think that the series is over. You can't do it. So I'd be a little worried because we had the same conversation. We were at Stout. Oh, they learned from Philadelphia last year they're not going to lose game five and go have to go on the road for Game 6. And they did, you know, so don't let up, man. This Celtics team is going to be heard from as much as I, you know, question last year, like exactly how good they were because of the matchups and everything. They do have rings. They have gone to what, two finals in the last three years.

[Don Hahn]

Right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

So they've got the pelts. So they're going to. They still did get those 20 point leads. So as ineffective as they've been in this series, they still had huge leads. They're not going to go away, of course. And the Knicks aren't going to go away.

[Don Hahn]

No.

[Peter Rosenberg]

So you know, that's what you love about it. We're going to be out there on Monday and God forbid if they're up 3 0. I mean that's going to be.

[Don Hahn]

That's why we should tell everybody this. Right? Again. So, so you know where they have the Knicks watch party right on 33rd street, right next to Madison Square Garden. It's, it's that plaza now that they have closed off. It's no longer a road it used to be back in the day. But we are going to be doing our show on Monday right there on the plaza. So it's the Easiest thing for everybody to do is just come through. It's right by Penn Station, right by Madison Square Garden. And come hang out with us on Monday during our show.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, no, it's, it is really cool. 1-800-919-3776 is the number of the call. Tim Legler is going to be joining us in just a little bit as well.

[Don Hahn]

And he's fired up about the Celtics offense, by the way.

[Peter Rosenberg]

He definitely should be. But again, we can sit there and criticize the Celtics all we want and there is a lot to be critical of. But right now, you got to be thrilled with the Knicks have brought. Let's hear from you. 1-800-919-3776. Let's go to Ricky in Brooklyn. You're on ESPN New York.

[Ricky]

First of all, in the words of Stephen A. Smith, I love everybody. I've never felt so good. Alan, real quick, right. Last night, I don't know if it's anxiety. My wife always says I can't watch the game with you because she already suffers from it. Well, not literally suffers, but she has anxiety.

[Don Hahn]

Right.

[Ricky]

But she sees when I, whenever I'm calm in the last five seconds of these last two games, she sees the anxiety building up on me. Right. So I don't know if you guys are familiar with this thing called the Whoop. It's a fitness tracker that you wear around your wrist.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, well.

[Ricky]

And it tells your heart exactly. And it sees what your heart rate is. Right. I don't think I've ever seen my heart rate get up to 120 beats per minute if I'm not running. The only time that's ever happened to me is when I watched the Nick game with these last five seconds left. And it's literally like I'm in a zone to run. And when, when I was shooting show my wife that, she looked at me, said, I can't watch, I can't watch, I can't watch. She went upstairs, you know, she did her thing and getting herself ready for bed because she goes to bed pretty early. And next thing you know, Steve screams the next one. And usually that's my reaction. I run upstairs and now we all screaming. We're hugging with a kumai. Then all of a sudden my kids get up and my deepest is like, daddy, what happened? I'm like, and now I'm looking at my woot watch and now my heart rate is up to like. And I'm like, I'm about to, I'm about to have an annual. I'm like my blood vessel's about to pop. My. I've never felt so excited. Excited. Listen, I'm not. I'm not gonna say Nixon 6, Nixon 7. I just like where we're going right now. Let's keep building on some momentum. Just like what Carl Anthony Town said. Let's. Let's keep penetrating, man. Keep going, keep going, keep going.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah.

[Ricky]

Always put it fight after fight, bucket after bucket. Like, let's not get over ourselves game after game. Let's not think about game five, game six, game after game, bucket after bucket. Yo, have fun, you know.

[Alan Hahn]

You know, that's a good call, man. And I gotta tell you, you know who's coming off like the stuff, Smartest person in sports right now? Me. Me. Who. Who could have had a better attitude coming into the series than me? Imagine what I'd be eating right now had I not been completely reasonable from the start of this series. Imagine what the calls would be today. Every line would just be dunking in my face. Except that if you'd really paid attention, the Celtics team could kind of be had.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, it looks like it not over yet, but you know what, what's up with Kristaps?

[Alan Hahn]

Kristaps? All right.

[Don Hahn]

No, what's going on?

[Peter Rosenberg]

He's had this since March, right?

[Don Hahn]

His autoimmune, that issue that he's got going on, that knocked him out for a bunch of games. He said all of a sudden his body just crashed. No energy. It's not like he's sick. He's not like he's not sick. He's not coughing. It's not like like as the flu where it's very noticeable. It's none of that. He just, he. Something hit him and his energy is shot. And they, they could only play him like 12 minutes.

[Alan Hahn]

Crazy. Something to watch, you know, I want to talk to you guys about something. It's called Amazon pickup, all right? And here's what I love about it. Because first and foremost, you're already down with Amazon, alright? You're ordering packages, you're watching prime video. It's a daily part of your life. So what's Amazon pickup? Well, Amazon pickup allows you to send your choice to a secure pickup location that you can choose when delivery to your home or apartment isn't ideal. Packages can go directly to a convenient pickup location like an Amazon locker accounter. Now, between work and Maya at home, my schedule is crazy. And Amazon pickup gives me peace of mind and lets me pick up packages on my own time. So order online and at checkout. Simply select the pickup location that works best for you. When your package arrives, you get a delivery confirmation email that notifies you that your package is ready with pickup instructions. Great for when you're out and about. Amazon Pickup's a secure and convenient delivery solution to pick up your Amazon packages at no additional cost. Head to Amazon.com pickup MVP to learn more.

[Don Hahn]

Abercrombie's Shorts and Swim Sale is live and they're giving Spotify listeners an extra 15% off with code SWIMAF. Abercrombie shorts and swim trunks come in so many fits and fabrics it's easy to find your go to pair prep for summer during Abercrombie's Shorts and Swim Sale Excludes clearance Online price reflects discount. Use code SWIM AF to get an additional 15% off almost everything at checkout from May 8, 2025 through May 12, 2025. Offer valid in US and Canada. Exclusions apply. See details online. Lowe's knows to bring your vision to life, it's important to find the right color. That's why Milo's Rewards members get a free paint or ext exterior stain sample to test your look and find the perfect color to confidently refresh your space. Lowes we help you save Offer Valid in store only 58 through 5 14. Limit one per customer while supplies last. Discount taken at time of purchase. See Associate for details. Programs subject to terms and conditions. [e-mail] Terms subject to change.

[Peter Rosenberg]

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[Don Hahn]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Alan Hahn]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Don Hahn]

Catch the show on demand whenever you want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Knicks up 2o world shock Nick fans excited. We're going to be on 33rd outside the garden on Monday so swing by. Can you imagine if they're up 30 but even if it's 21 still just unbelievable.

[Don Hahn]

We love the worst it'll be is.

[Peter Rosenberg]

To the worst it's going to be is you're going to be up two games.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, they won't give the Celtics two games on Saturday.

[Don Hahn]

You never know with the NBA. You never know.

[Alan Hahn]

Silver Mike, NBA, they love the Celtics.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Get a split at home and you're up three. Have three cracks to move on to the conference final for the first time since 2000.

[Alan Hahn]

I'll present the other side for a second, though. For the Celtics, you're just thinking, go get one right. You go get this first one. You win one game against this team, you know you can do it. You beat this team a lot, right? You've been up 20 in both games. Don't choke away another game. Get it to two one. And then. Allen, the thing I said about the Garden wouldn't be tight if the Celtics win the first one. Of course, in game four, it will get right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Because now.

[Alan Hahn]

Because then you start getting scared you're going to lose the whole thing.

[Don Hahn]

Of course.

[Alan Hahn]

So they just got. Celtics got to win one.

[Don Hahn]

See, here's the problem. Remember when we said, like, oh, would you take a six game? Like, like, you know, like it's better than a sweep and all that stuff?

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, now it's dead right. Gotta win.

[Don Hahn]

And now, now it's like, now losing in six has a whole different field.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

It's so bizarre how fast, especially if.

[Peter Rosenberg]

You end up going two, two. Now you're talking about losing four straights.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, now losing in seven.

[Don Hahn]

That would be the fan. The fans have such a hard time.

[Peter Rosenberg]

What's not brutal is breaking down the NBA with Tim Legler and he. Don Hana, Rosenberg. What's up, buddy?

[Tim Legler]

What's up, gents?

[Don Hahn]

We're just trying to feel the feeling, man.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I do not want to take anything away from the Knicks. This is about the Knicks and what they've accomplished. But still there is room for conversation on what is going on with this Boston Celtics team. And the arrogance. That's what I'm looking at, Tim. I'm looking at an arrogant team that thinks they don't have to make adjustments. They think they can just go out there and run out on the court and beat whoever. Well, they're getting their comeuppance here because the Knicks aren't having it.

[Tim Legler]

Yeah, look like the word arrogance that's thrown around a lot with this team. I think I used the word the other day insulting to the game of basketball. That's how I describe their game one loss, because. And you know, people that they just can't get their head around the fact that, you know, you're not criticizing the fact that they Take a lot of threes on a nightly basis, you know, because that's. People just jump down your throat that want to defend it. Well, that's what they do every night. No, they don't do that every night. They don't take 60 every night. They don't take 37 threes after halftime every night. They don't take 19 threes out of 20 field goal attempts in a quarter every night. It was so extreme in game one it deserved to be called out for the absurdity and whether it's arrogance. I also use the word lazy. I thought it was lazy that night, the way they were playing with a big lead to just continue to come down, take quick shots, and basically extend the game for the Knicks. That's what they did in game one. They just. Because they made it so many more possessions than there needed to be. And the Knicks needed all of those and the Celtics helped.

[Peter Rosenberg]

So they.

[Tim Legler]

Look, they got beat up for that, justifiably so. Last night I felt like they came out more determined to get to the paint. Jalen Brown in particular, very much playing physically, using his strength, athleticism. He was in the lane a lot. Tatum turned down a couple he would normally take. He was going off the dribble more. Derrick White kind of looked the same. He was trying to get any daylight and let it fly like he normally does. But in general, they end up taking 40, which is like a little below their normal season average. I felt like it was a concerted effort. Now, I don't know if it's because of like, you know, they heard media criticism. I just think internally, even watching that film, it was probably, yeah, you know what, we got kind of out of control with this the other night. They tried to rein it in a little bit. I actually thought they had pretty good balance in their offense, even though they weren't shooting well from the three. And they built another big lead. So this time it wasn't the three point shooting in the fourth quarter. It was their overall collective paralysis that that was weird to me. I'm watching a team get so tight that they were literally terrified of losing a game rather than just go play. It takes probably two buckets in the last six minutes of the game if they're timed properly to win the game. They couldn't get it done, man. They missed some open threes, they missed some mid range, they missed a couple shots at the rim. The Knicks continue to get that confidence again going in the fourth quarter. So the script was different, the outcome the same, but I think the reasoning behind both totally different. And that's what is now concerning about this Celtics team. What I watched last night was a team that was gripped in the throes of anxiety. That's what it looked like. And that's just very strange for me. For a championship team to exhibit that on their home court, only being down a game and letting another lead go because of it. It was very bizarre to watch that last night.

[Don Hahn]

Legs, you played in the league a long time. Have you ever experienced playing at home and the crowd being as anxious and reacting? Because everybody I talked to last night in that building said that the Boston crowd almost had an impatience about them when it came to what the Celtics were doing. And every time they missed an open three, there was like this groan that everybody could hear. And by the end of the game, you could feel it. And do you. I know this stuff kind of feels a little silly, but do you think that there is some type of impact there when it comes to Boston and maybe they come to the guard, to New York and they might actually not feel the same amount of pressure even though they got to win this game. But because that crowd seemed to be really uptight about. About what they were doing. Do you think that had any effect on their offense late in the game?

[Tim Legler]

There's no question. I don't even think it's up for debate. I know it and I've experienced it as a player in teams I've played on. And it's particularly bad in these northeast type cities. You know, Philly, New York, Boston. And I was in D.C. for four years. It was a little bit there too. It is different. It's a different vibe. And I think more than anything I've experienced it going to games in Philadelphia or playing against the Sixers in Philly. And what happens is, and particularly some of the playoff failures they've had during the Embiid years in those big games, you know that this, the series swinging type games, you can feel it before the game. You feel it on every miss. Turnovers, like everything that you do. And it's what the crowd is doing is projecting their anxiety onto the floor. And now the players do sense that. So to think that that's not a factor, I think would be crazy and absolutely affected them. And as a result, the best thing that can happen to a team sometimes when you're experiencing it is to get on the road. Now, look, that's going to be a wild environment on Saturday, but it's going to be different. It's not like you're feeling the Crowd murmur if you miss a wide open shot, it's good. Different. They're going to be cheering like crazy. That doesn't affect athletes as much as the pressure of the home crowd and performing in a big spot. So I think getting out of Boston right now could be the best thing for them. Like, I don't know what's going to happen Saturday. I don't know if they're going to play well under pressure in the fourth, if it's a tight game or not. To be honest with you, I think it's a critical game for the Knicks to get, though. I don't think you give that back right away. Give one of those back. Boston is. Especially if Boston plays well in, like, a close game and guys make shots and they win that game in that style in the fourth quarter in the Garden with that crowd and they get one back, Boston is going to feel a lot different about themselves going into game four, and then the Knicks will feel all that pressure. So, just like you guys were saying before I came on, it's a real thing. And that's why I think it's very important the Knicks take advantage of this opportunity and get game three.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The other thing you hear is, I can't believe the defending champions are playing like this. And I'm never going to be critical of any path to a championship. A championship is a championship. But you look at last year, Tim, they never played into game six, obviously never faced elimination, lost only three games, and let's face it, they caught some breaks in the conference final. In the final, who they played, you know, the Pacers and the Mavericks, were they truly tested enough to where you know for a fact they can handle this kind of adversity?

[Tim Legler]

Yeah, no. That's kind of how I described when it was over with for them last year and they won it. And I'm kind of feeling that way all season. They're a great team, but I said they didn't take the league's best punch last year for a variety of reasons. The Knicks, decimated by injuries, you end up with the Pacers, you know, a team that's still alive for. For a conference final run that no one expected. I do think they're an underrated team the last two years, but nobody expected that. And just look at their talent base, top to bottom. That shouldn't have been something that they should have been too worried about. They didn't have to play a Joel Embiid or Sixers team. They didn't get the bucks with Giannis. Like, they didn't get some tested teams with some, some dominant players. So the path is different. And you end up with the Mavericks in the finals who were not nearly complete enough team to deal with them. So, yeah, I do think there's something to that, but there's something bigger with like just what I've just watched with these two games. It's especially last night, it was the look in their eyes. And you know, Missoula not taking that time out was strange to me because on a night when your offense is that bad, you're just going to say, you know what, I'm just going to trust these guys to figure it out. Why would you think that way with 12 seconds left in the game and you got a timeout in your pocket? One point game. There's so many options in a one point game. If you're down three, sometimes you want to just play because somebody can make a miscommunication and you get an open look as opposed to a team coming out of a timeout knowing you need a three. You only need, you know, one point to tie the game. You have options. You could, you could draw something. You have to get the switch you want. You could maybe get a quick hit or getting somebody downhill trying to get a foul, whatever. But to just let them play on. I wonder if even some part of that was that Joe Missoula was feeling a little bit of that tightness and pressure. Like, I'm not sure that I'm going to give him something here that's going to be effective and then it's more on his plate because people are like, what the hell did you run out of that timeout? So this way it was almost like, no, I'm going to trust these guys. They got great coverage. On the last one, we got a dunk. I thought they'd do that again. I couldn't believe he said that at the postgame presser because why would you think the Knicks would allow that to happen twice in a row, particularly when the second one is going to be a game winner? The first one, there was 24 seconds left after he dunked the ball. He was weird that he, he was.

[Don Hahn]

Running up the floor. The second one he walked.

[Tim Legler]

No doubt, no doubt. And that's what I, that's what I did. You and I were talking Tecton last night, Alan. That's the touchscreen I did on that pelt. Last night was the first one. Anunoby's 75ft. You know, he's into the back court. Backpedaling allowed Horford to run up, get that great screen on him. And now you got a full head of steam going at Mitchell Robinson, who's 40ft from the back.

[Alan Hahn]

It.

[Tim Legler]

And, and it was just weird. You don't see guys go 94ft and dunk the ball uncontested down one with 24 seconds left. So it kind of shocked everybody. The Knicks even had a weird look on their face like when the timeout was called. Like, what the hell did we just allow to happen? There's no way they're letting that happen again. So, so the coverage was different. You know, Antiw's way back, Mitchell Robinson, they're back at the three point line. And I froze it, what I did last night, I froze it to look at five Knicks kind of this outer shell of a defense as Tatum's coming across half court. I stopped at 9.8 seconds. He write that Missoula's up by half court. Ben. Yeah, okay. I thought we'd get this coverage. We're not getting that coverage. Timeout. I don't. I want to risk this timeout. Let's, let's, let's give them something that is going to give them a better opportunity to get a clean shot to, to trust Tatum on a night when he looked like that, to just go figure it out. I just thought you get home, you reach in your pocket, you put your car keys on the nightstand and you reach in, there's a timeout in there. Like, I don't know.

[Alan Hahn]

That's a great idea. Which also. Although, although the other night legs when, even when they had the inbounds, what a weird look it was to a fading Jalen Brown across the court. They didn't get a good look there either. When you look at these at this NBA playoff bracket and obviously now the Thunder have even their series, so we don't even have to. Of all these other series where the road teams keep winning. How do you like the Knicks odds to close this thing out versus these other series with teams at home who are down?

[Tim Legler]

I think it's going to be. I think it's a much more difficult for Denver. Oklahoma City is the best team in the NBA and you know, they let a lead get away in game one. They had some bad clock management late let that slip through. They had a resounding answer for that last night, you know, 87 points at halftime. So that's going to be very difficult. I think the Pacers are in great spot because of how banged up the Cavs are. They got three guys that are just kind of making Their way back. Indiana is going to win that series. I think Cleveland's going home. You look at the other two, Golden State, now without Curry, you know, who knows how long they're talking about three or four games. What if it's the whole series? You really think they're going to be able to win three more times without Steph Curry against a really good defense, a team that's hot at the end of the year? Probably not the Knicks. I think for me, I still think the Knicks have a great chance to win this year. I think it's impossible to predict either way. I do think if they lose game three, this is going to all feel completely different. Even though the Knicks are still firmly in the driver's seat right at that point. Basically at that point, what it will have been is, okay, we got a split on the road, and we want our Game three at home. You're in the same spot, we're up to one, and we got game four at home. But it's not going to feel like that because. Because the momentum is going to be different because the next, I mean, the Celtics will have won a game on their court and most likely a close game in which they had to operate under pressure successfully in the fourth quarter. If they pull that off, this is going to feel a lot different, I.

[Don Hahn]

Think, to everybody covering it now, Legs, everybody can see him on Scott Van Pelt show after games a lot. And he does the Telestrator. Breaks it all down. I was texting him last night. I'm away home from the game because I had to do SportsCenter this morning, and I was telling him I want to diagram the play. And I was telling him, he's like, that's exactly what I just did on svp. And so, like, it's. Again, this is the influence that Legs has had on me, is I'm thinking like him now. But you also, you're. You've got two games this weekend, right? What series are you calling this weekend?

[Tim Legler]

Yeah, I'm headed out. I'm flying out tomorrow from home to San Francisco. I got Games 3 and 4, Golden State, Minnesota, which. Which you. Look, I still think it's going to be great. Obviously, you know, just from an analytical standpoint, man, it's always fun to cover Curry, and he's not going to be there. I think, you know, fortunately, the warriors are at home, so it lends itself to a better game. As an analyst calling a game all you care about, give me drama late, because this makes everything about the day better. So we'll see if the warriors defensively they'll be fine. They're going to hang because of their defense out concerned about the role players getting their own offense without Curry on the floor because he just creates so many opportunities for the Pajemskis and the Heels and the Moses Moody's of the world. You don't have him. The defense is totally different in how you react and it's a lot more straight up coverage on these guys and doing things off the dribble and stuff they're not comfortable doing. That's my question for the word, but either way I'm hoping We get two really entertaining close games and Saturday nights ABC primetime game at 8:30. So I know it's going to be coming out of the Knicks so I think there's going to be a big, there's going to be a big audience for that and we'll see what we get. It's a shame Curry's not going to be there.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Legs. Enjoy it man. We'll talk to you soon.

[Alan Hahn]

Thanks dude.

[Tim Legler]

All right, sounds good guys.

[Peter Rosenberg]

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[Alan Hahn]

With us for complete details Copyright 2025.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Bank of America Corporation. McCrispy strips are now at McDonald's. I hope you're ready for the most dippable chicken in McDonald's history. Dip it in all the sauces. Dip it in that hot sauce in your bag. Dip it in your McFlurry. Your dip is your business. McCrispy strips at McDonald's thanks for listening.

[Don Hahn]

To the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Alan Hahn]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Don Hahn]

Catch the show on demand whenever you Want. Just subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Calling all baseball fans. Join ESPN New York and the Michael K Show live at Stout Bryant park ahead of the first Subway Series matchup on Friday, May 16th. Starting at 1pm Michael will look ahead to what should be one of the best crosstown rivalries in recent memory. The Michael K Show live at Stout Bryant park on Friday, May 16 from 1 to 3.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Brought to you by Sun Cruiser Vodka Iced Tea. Let the good times cruise. Twisted tea. Keep it twisted. New York and Corona, the official cerveza of Major League Baseball.

[Don Hahn]

Seems like Soto is heating up for this. He's right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah. A couple more home runs.

[Don Hahn]

Yes. Getting himself ready. It's so weird.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Like, we're gonna have Jeff pass it on tomorrow.

[Don Hahn]

That's a good get.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And it's a good get because I called it out yesterday. Like, you know what? I wouldn't be surprised if Michael told Jeff, don't go on with those guys.

[Alan Hahn]

Because he's a bad guy.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But somebody heard it. Let Jeff know. Jeff's like, I'll go on anytime. So we're gonna have mine tomorrow. Three. Yeah, you're right.

[Alan Hahn]

I said there was no three, like.

[Don Hahn]

Right out of the gate.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And basically the reason why it's a good is because quite literally, if you've been, you know, paying attention to the draft and the Knicks, you might need a little, you know, refresher on what's happened with all the baseball.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, wait, there's still.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The diehards are going to be following. But I mean, I'm sure there's a lot of baseball being missed by Nick fans and football fans.

[Alan Hahn]

Good for baseball. Keep playing these games as if people care. Play right on through the NBA.

[Don Hahn]

Listen, man, listen. Last night at Yankee Stadium when the Knicks won the game and that traveled around the the stadium and the crowd reacted to it like, I love stuff like that. The synergy of, you know, one sporting event happening and in the meantime, there's a playoff game happening. We get it in October. Same thing happens when the Yankees or the Mets are in the playoffs and the hockey and basketball is playing or football is playing. So that, that just makes it fun. They update on the scoreboard and the whole crowd reacts. And that's what we got yesterday, Yankees day.

[Alan Hahn]

But you can, you can admit it. If the Knicks were to go on a finals run, okay, obviously I know the hardcores. The old case show. Yes. Viewer listeners are never. They're what they watch nothing but Yankee baseball. It's what they. It's what they pleasure themselves with at night, this is what they. This is what they think about 24, 7. But I'm saying for the normal, average sports fan, if the Knicks go on a championship run, the Yankees and Mets could start. They could go play their games in Florida in June. This town is going to be.

[Peter Rosenberg]

If that were to happen, that's on, you know. You know what that is? That's. That's somebody that's not in New York.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, that's.

[Peter Rosenberg]

No, no, no, no, no.

[Alan Hahn]

The old dog.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The old will do it.

[Alan Hahn]

The. The city will be electric for basketball.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I know it's not your best take.

[Don Hahn]

I got to be honest with you.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And yet, I don't care what you say. I'm just saying. Still informed.

[Alan Hahn]

Ill informed how?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Because Yankee Stadium will still have 35,000 people in.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, well, sure, people.

[Peter Rosenberg]

You get some towns where they're moving the start times of games because it's going up again. They don't usually do that unless it's like a game seven or something. They might make adjustments.

[Alan Hahn]

You're right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

There are people. Now, will there be multitask? Like, I'm not saying they're not into the Knicks, but if they're a Yankee fan or Met fan, they'll still go to the Met and Yankee games and follow the Knicks.

[Alan Hahn]

No, no. We are not in a Podunk town where you're right. Literally won't sell the game. And now I'm saying the conversation will be dead.

[Don Hahn]

Will it be, like, be conversation, you know, seventh, eighth inning, and you're wondering why the sections are completely empty. Yes, because everybody's in the concourse or in the suites watching on the TV because there's, you know, three minutes left in the fourth quarter. Well, you'll get that.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, now what would happen?

[Don Hahn]

And then you'll get the roar. While there's nothing happening on the field, you'll get this loud roar and everybody will be like, what happened? Oh, something must happen in the game. Like, that's fun.

[Alan Hahn]

Now, do you think that you get to the NBA finals, The Knicks are in the finals. They're playing game one on a Wednesday night.

[Don Hahn]

I can't even pick.

[Alan Hahn]

They don't, though. They play game.

[Don Hahn]

It'll be Sunday. It'll be a Sunday.

[Alan Hahn]

So game two is on a Wednesday night or whatever. It's Thursday. God only knows. The NBA final, and it's a random weeknight game at Yankee Stadium. Do you think they have a decreased crowd?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, it'd probably be decreased, but it's not going to be, like, who they're.

[Don Hahn]

Playing who they play.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, why don't you tell me who they'd be playing that people would care about besides the Mets?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Remember a lot of these. All I'll tell you is this because I want to get to the calls.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, please do.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Is there. You would say, like, I always wondered, like, like the Rangers will be playing a Sunday game in October. It's. It's literally game six on the schedule. And the jets and Giants are playing. And I would say. I would say to myself, God, I'm going to be calling this game. It's like going up against the football and I walk into Madison Square. Gardeners18006.

[Alan Hahn]

No, you're right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

It just. It's crazy. It just. There's so many people in New York and there's a lot of people that don't care about the Knicks or they care about the Knicks, but they still care more about their other teams. There's just so many people.

[Don Hahn]

So you could have Yankees, I think the NBA Finals, I think June. June 15th sounds about right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay.

[Alan Hahn]

To start. It's that late? It used to be. It used to always start around June 1st. Game one would be June one, June 2nd. Right there.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, usually right around.

[Alan Hahn]

Right around the. Cause Summer Jam I'm going to give sounds like it should be over by 15. Unless they. Unless we're all.

[Don Hahn]

June. I'm sorry, June 5th.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay.

[Don Hahn]

Yeah, June 5th is game one.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Okay.

[Don Hahn]

So. But the 15th is in the middle of the. Of that run. All right, so June 5th. Where are we? Brewers Pirate. No.

[Peter Rosenberg]

The Grape Roo.

[Don Hahn]

No, no, no. It's. It's Guardians at Yankees. That's a Thursday night.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah. That might not be packed. The Guardians at Yankees Thursday night. Game 1 of the NBA Finals. In a fantasy land where it's game.

[Don Hahn]

Seven of the NBA finals.

[Alan Hahn]

All right.

[Don Hahn]

Is on June 22nd.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Wow.

[Alan Hahn]

Can you imagine?

[Don Hahn]

Oh, by the way, we get a. We get a game six on my birthday.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Oh, Happy birthday.

[Don Hahn]

Well, that's significant.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, it could be that.

[Don Hahn]

It's very significant because it's the last time the. The Knicks were.

[Peter Rosenberg]

If there is a game.

[Don Hahn]

So this is. All right, so if there's a game seven, Orioles at Yankees. But this is an 11:35am Sunday vehicle.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, it's probably one of those.

[Don Hahn]

Right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Is it still peak.

[Don Hahn]

So Orioles, Yankees in the afternoon. You know, the NBA Finals are at night, so.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

What a wonderful day.

[Peter Rosenberg]

What a wonderful.

[Don Hahn]

Watch the Yankees smack the O's around. But I can come home and watch.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Let's just say for some reason, the Yankees were on Sunday Night Baseball. That would. That would be a problem, right.

[Don Hahn]

If Yankee Campbell. ESPN's got the final, right?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, ESPN.

[Don Hahn]

But the ABC would have. ESPN's not putting anything on you.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, no, they wouldn't go.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I could see an adjustment to a schedule if there's like a clinching game going against each other, but there's just something different about New York.

[Don Hahn]

But you got the Angels in town and the Orioles in town during the bulk of the NBA Finals, the Yankees will be home.

[Peter Rosenberg]

You know, the Yankees met Yankees, Mets are playing. Because Michael's going to be at Bryant park on the 16th. And this, this series. Where would we be on the 16th? Could be. It could be towards the end of this series.

[Alan Hahn]

That's next week. It would be game six. The 16th is Friday, right?

[Don Hahn]

Or not.

[Alan Hahn]

It would be potentially. It would be Potentially a game 6. Hold on back here. It would be Monday at the Garden, Wednesday in Boston. Game 6, Friday night at MSG is what I think you'd be looking at.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I mean, it just. That's what's so great about New York. There's always something going on.

[Don Hahn]

What's the date again?

[Peter Rosenberg]

16Th.

[Alan Hahn]

16Th.

[Don Hahn]

That is game six.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Don Hahn]

At MSG.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, yeah, baby.

[Don Hahn]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast. I don't want to to know how the sausage is made, man. I just want to know. It's good. Hear more of Don Allen and Peter weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 8 80, ESPN, the ESPN New York app, and your smart speakers.