Hour 1: The Knicks are NBA Champions

Summary

Don, Hahn & Rosenberg – Hour 1: The Knicks are NBA Champions (June 15, 2026)

Overview

This celebratory episode dives deep into the emotion, meaning, and significance of the New York Knicks' first NBA championship in over half a century. Hosts Don La Greca, Alan Hahn, and Peter Rosenberg are joined by comedian and diehard Knicks fan Tracy Morgan and ESPN broadcaster Mike Greenberg, offering a blend of nostalgia, humor, and genuine sports insight. The episode is peppered with reflections on the journey, key player performances, the impact on the city, and on what this title means for New Yorkers of all ages.

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1. The Emotional Impact of the Knicks’ Championship

Key Points:

• The Knicks ended a 53-year championship drought, causing an outpouring of emotion throughout New York.
• Fans and broadcasters alike are still processing the reality of the win, describing the city as “on a high” days after the clinching game.
• The season and the title resonate deeply, recalling family generations, community struggles, and a sense of a curse finally being lifted.

Notable Quotes:

• “Gotta feel good. I know it was going on 48 hours ago, but city still on a high.” – Don La Greca (00:47)
• “Has this surreal feeling about it…Did this just happen? There's no more games to play.” – Alan Hahn (01:52)
• “53 years was longer than the Babe Ruth curse. 53 years is a long time for people to want and desire. It's finally here now.” – Tracy Morgan (18:53)

Memorable Moments:

• Tracy Morgan comparing the joy and disbelief of the moment to “the birth of his children” and surviving getting hit by a truck, saying, “I survived it to see this.” (23:34)

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2. Jalen Brunson: The Heart of the Championship

Key Discussion:

• Jalen Brunson’s leadership, character, and clutch performance earn unanimous praise and are seen as the embodiment of the Knicks’ new culture.
• Hosts describe how Brunson’s approach—turning down larger contracts, remaining humble, and quietly leading—sets a new standard for New York athletes.

Stat Highlights:

• Brunson ties Michael Jordan for Finals point output (45 points, with 15 in the 4th quarter, over 50% from the floor, many against Defensive Player of the Year Wembanyama). (05:20)
• Knicks were down double digits more in the series than leading, yet repeatedly rallied, showing “championship DNA.” (05:56)

Notable Quotes:

• “Jalen Brunson is who you tell your kids to emulate as an athlete. Hell, he'd be the kind of guy you tell your daughter to find as a boyfriend.” – Peter Rosenberg (03:42)
• “Calling for [Wembanyama] now. Get the switch. Let me get this guy … That’s one of the great performances now…Give me a bigger moment right now in New York sports history when it comes to winning a title than that one.” – Alan Hahn (04:33)
• “To me, Brunson right now becomes someone like Joe Namath…he will forever be beloved in this city.” – Mike Greenberg (35:14)

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3. A Different Kind of Knicks Team: Culture and Identity

Discussion Points:

• The Knicks’ route to the championship was through teamwork, humility, and eschewing “star chasing.”
• The team is characterized as anti-NBA in the best ways—no tanking, minimal load management, less ego, more collective purpose.
• The new front office (Leon Rose, World Wide West) and leadership approach drew comparisons to classic New York sports teams noted for chemistry rather than just celebrity.

Notable Quotes:

• “The Knicks are anti-NBA. For all the things I hate about the NBA, the Knicks are the complete opposite.” – Don La Greca (07:16)
• “How about building a team and having them mature into being the champions…the Knicks are right now. No ‘trust the process’ garbage.” – Don La Greca (08:24)
• “Instead of chasing a star, they chased championship DNA.” – Alan Hahn (10:33)

Memorable Moment:

• Discussion of locker room culture, selflessness, and how “three starters who trust each other…because they’ve known each other since they were kids,” changed the team’s dynamic. (12:20)

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4. The Meaning for New York: Generational, Cultural, and Civic Identity

Key Reflections:

• The win is deeply personal for fans, connecting to parents, grandparents, and memories of growing up with the team.
• Tracy Morgan and Mike Greenberg both express how the win resonates as a shared city experience, with Greenberg out walking the city and seeing “Knicks hats and shirts and a collective smile.”
• Comparisons are made to prior New York champions—the Giants, Jets, ‘86 Mets, and the legendary 1970 and 1973 Knicks.

Notable Quotes:

• “There’s sort of a collective smile on everyone's face. That's something that the Knicks do in this city.” – Mike Greenberg (27:01)
• “This is a metropolis. They brought the ring back to the Mecca. Come on, man, you gotta feel this.” – Tracy Morgan (22:07)

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5. Processing the Moment: Fan and Celebrity Reactions

Tracy Morgan Interview (17:22 – 24:33):

• Describes the Knicks as “a team of destiny” (17:41), and reflects on the hardships New York has faced, culminating in this unifying moment.
• Vividly paints the scene: “Nobody traveled like us. This fan base is only seen in soccer, not basketball.” (20:33)
• Adds classic Tracy humor: “This is where King Kong died. And we told Godzilla, you next.” (21:01)
• Emotional parallel: “Last time I felt this way, my kids were born. My children were born. I got hit by an 18-wheeler, man…But that's what I thought—I survived it to see this.” (23:34)

Mike Greenberg Interview (27:01 – 39:06):

• Riffs on the generational importance: “We spoke of these people like they were gods…there's something that feels very, very personal about this one.”
• Considers the “threat of commonality” with the ‘70/’73 Knicks, emphasizing team over individuals, and hopes the old legends are also honored. (28:46)
• On Brunson’s uniqueness: “I can’t really think of a good [comparison]...the fact that he was willing to take so much less money…reminds me of Brady…there’s a certain Rocky Balboa element to him.” (33:37–34:53)

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6. Humor and Locker Room Lore

Memorable Banter:

• Hosts hilariously discuss rumors of a “10-week relations ban” during the playoff run (14:17–15:17), riffing about sacrifices and “self championships.”
• Jokes about the parade: “At the parade, the statue of liberty gonna be pregnant.” – Tracy Morgan (21:02)
• Playful worry about the next drought: “If you went another 53 years for the next one, it'd be 2079…will we be living on other planets at that point?” (47:12)

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7. What’s Next? Outlook and Perspective

Looking Forward:

• Greenberg asserts: “Winning a championship means never having to say you’re sorry” (36:58), but expects fans will be just as invested next year.
• Discussion of potential Knicks dominance vs. reloads by teams like Boston or San Antonio.
• Alan and Don urge listeners to savor the moment: “Can we just enjoy what’s going on right now?...This is going to be the best summer for Knick fans that they've ever had in their lifetime…this is forever.” (48:45)

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8. Notable Listener Calls & Fan Community

• Spike from St. Pete calls in, expressing gratitude, referencing connections to the Knicks organization, and reflecting on watching the hug between Jalen Brunson and his father. (45:04)
• Importance of shared suffering and celebration in fandom across generations.

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Key Segment Timestamps

• Championship Reaction & Setup: 00:47–03:28
• Brunson’s Greatness & Game Analysis: 03:28–06:45
• Knicks’ Team-Building & Culture: 07:16–14:04
• Locker Room Banter: 14:17–15:36
• Tracy Morgan Interview: 17:22–24:33
• Mike Greenberg Interview: 27:01–39:06
• Listener Calls (Spike): 45:04–46:26
• Reflecting on Future and Celebrating the Present: 46:54–50:53

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Final Thoughts

This episode captures both the historic significance and overwhelming emotion of the Knicks' victory. Anchored by lived experience and love for the game, Don, Hahn & Rosenberg offer a cathartic, humorous, and communal celebration for every Knicks fan, from lifelong diehards to newcomers sharing the moment with family. The Knicks’ 2026 title is not just a victory—it’s a citywide, generational affirmation.

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Notable Quote to Encapsulate the Episode:

“This will never be taken away. This is always something that will put a smile on your face, no matter what's happening with the team.”
– Don La Greca (49:35)

Transcript

[Alan Hahn]

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[Tracy Morgan]

Don.

[Alan Hahn]

Sometimes fraud gives you movement. It sounded like it moved. Han, you heard a squish.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And Rosenberg shake gently to assure complete activation.

[Don La Greca]

Hello, this isn't North Dakota, this is New York.

[Alan Hahn]

This is Don, Han and Rosenberg.

[Mike Greenberg]

The best threesome I've ever heard on

[Alan Hahn]

ESPN New York and streaming live on

[Don La Greca]

YouTube 302 in the championship city. Don Hahn and Rosenberg here and we'll take you up until 6:30, then it's Mets baseball right here on ESPN New York. What a day, what a feeling, what a weekend, as the Knicks are champions of the world. And so many people never thought that they would see this day. And I'm just so happy for people that grew up Nick, fans that never thought it was going to happen, including the guy to my right here, Alan Hahn, who did a terrific job not just this weekend, but all year covering this team through the trials and tribulations of the regular season to actually seeing a championship. Gotta feel good. I know it was going on 48 hours ago, but city still on a high.

[Alan Hahn]

Absolutely.

[Don La Greca]

And some people feeling things they've never felt before. Just Congratulations to the 2526 NBA Champion New York Knicks.

[Alan Hahn]

Right? No, no, no. Bing Bong's over. Bring me.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

Has this surreal feeling about it. That's the amazing thing about it is you still, every time you see a picture, every time you see it, every time you see it talked about, it keeps hitting you a different way. And it's almost like, you know, talk to so many Nick fans, friends of mine or complete strangers and we all have sort of that same feeling like did that really just happen? Did this just happen? There's no more games to play. Are you sure they're not going to surprise us and say wait a second. Analytically, this series is actually three to one, so we're going to have to replay this analytically. The spurs are actually winning this series. You waiting for the reality to hit. And the reality is the Knicks are NBA champions and the drought is over. And it's really amazing. And New York's drought is over. First championship since the Giants Super Bowl. That's over with. Now, the team that nobody ever expected would be the standard setter in New York has become that, and Jalen Brunson has become that as well. As an athlete in New York, how he carries himself, the killer instinct he has in moments, how he handles any type of adversity, how he handled Wembanyama, mocking him and mushing his head like this. Now, for me, if you're Aaron Judge, if you're Lynn Dore, if you're. If you're Jackson Dart, who's there? Cam Scatterboo has been watching his team closely. If you're all those guys, this is what you're looking at. And this is how you do it in New York. This is how you win in every.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And by the way, in every way. Not just do you have to be captain Clutch. Not just do you have to physically do the things he did, the way he carried himself at every single juncture, including going back to leaving $100 million on the table.

[Alan Hahn]

Start there.

[Peter Rosenberg]

To the way that he treats his teammates and talks about everyone and everything, to not taking the bait from either the media, who has. There's. There's blood in the water, and the media wants something or an opposing player who's trying to draw you into something. He is literally, Jalen Brunson is who you tell your kids to emulate as an athlete. Hell, he'd be the kind of guy you tell your daughter to find as a boyfriend. I mean, he is literally that guy in everything that we've seen of how he comports himself, he's been perfect on and off the court. And now, as I. As I said on Friday, if he wins Monday, he's king of New York. He's king of New York. It's never. And honestly, it's never going away. And even whoever else comes along and becomes big also, they can join him.

[Alan Hahn]

But.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But this spot that he's got, not

[Alan Hahn]

his kingdom, it ain't going anywhere. And that performance on Saturday, 45 on the road, 15 in the fourth quarter, taking WEMBY to the bucket and scoring on him, like, calling for him now. Get the switch. Let me get this guy. Let me get the defensive player of the year. This is for Mushumi in the back of the head. Who's getting the last laugh now, like, that's. That's a lesson right there, son. You ain't ready for this. Like, that's special. That's one of the great performances now because we were always doing the whole, like, you know, Eli in the super bowl, that catch by Tyree, that's one of the great moments. There's the, you know, there's always something else you're trying to find. But I'm sorry, give me a bigger moment. Give me a bigger moment right now in New York sports history when it comes to winning a title than that one.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, I mean, the proof is in the, in the statistics. We. He ties Michael Jordan for finals point output, right?

[Alan Hahn]

He. On the road.

[Peter Rosenberg]

On the road. And a 45 point effort, shoots over 50% from the floor. As you mentioned, clutch in the fourth quarter. This team is so clutch, in fact, that there was no discussion. I've heard, I haven't heard everything, but from what I've heard, there's almost no discussion of the fact that Saturday was a great comeback because you don't even think of it as a comeback. They just came back. The game before it was the greatest comeback in playoff history. Every single game they're down 15 and come back.

[Alan Hahn]

Right.

[Peter Rosenberg]

In fact, the stat is they were down double digits in this series for more time than they were ever leading in this series. Double digits. So you don't even think of Allen. You don't think of Saturday night for the comeback. Even though they chipped away, they hung in San Antonio, started strong, awful in that first half. No, the offense had no judge to it whatsoever. You don't think of it as a comeback, guys, because that's literally what their championship DNA is. It's astounding. I listen, the only fan base I can find that's able to hate on this team, and God bless them, it's what they're supposed to do, is the Sixers. Everybody else, I think, sort of Celtics, man. No, not, not my, not my family. My family was just like, hey, man, fans there, Net fans could be angry. No, if you're a real Celtics fan, I'm not trying to be that guy. I'm not going to be the way the Yankee fans treat the Mets.

[Don La Greca]

Portnoy would disagree, by the way.

[Peter Rosenberg]

He doesn't count either. But real Celtics fans who, like, have been through all the championships, you're just going, It's 53 years, man. Let this team have their moment of absolute glory.

[Don La Greca]

There are certain times in certain teams that you're not going to be happy with them winning a championship, right? If you're a net fan, this is not a great moment for you. I ran into one over at Citi Field the other day and I thought he was going to cry on my shoulders.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Like, this has really been a tough couple of weeks.

[Don La Greca]

I said, I Hear you, man. I get it, all right? I understand that.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Because there's no way to hate on this. But the hate.

[Don La Greca]

Full disclosure, anybody that's listening to me for the 25 years I've been in this radio station, the NBA is not number one for me, all right? It's my fourth sport. I follow it because it's my job to follow it and I know it, but it's not. It's not my favorite sport. And one of the reasons. Basket. The NBA is a problem for me. The Knicks are anti NBA. For all the things I hate about the NBA, the Knicks are the complete opposite. I hate the tanking. Knicks don't tank. I hate the load management for the most part. The Knicks don't load manage. It's egomaniacs in the NBA. It's all about the stars. It's all about me, not the Knicks. That's a team every general manager in New York right now should be calling. Leon Rose. Tell me the secret. Tell me how you do it. Because they did it in an amazing way. They didn't go star hunt. They didn't try to build a super team. All right? Yeah. They signed Brunson as a free agent. They didn't think they were going to get this right. They didn't have to tank to get here. They didn't have to compromise their integrity to get here. They didn't have to sell it, even, God bless them. Even Mark Messier, who was the messiah before Brunson was a guy that came with five rings. He was brought here to win this team a championship.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah. He came with the weight of expectations on him.

[Don La Greca]

And I'm going to bring my experience. That's not what Brunson was when he came here. They were talking about having to try to get another star to play with Brunson, all right? And they matured. This is the thing. This is the secret sauce that you have to learn. And Carolina did the same thing in the NHL. Let's get players play our system. Let's develop guys, okay? Let's draft guys. Let's sign free agents and make them into what we want them to be instead. Oh, let's go get Durant, let's go get Curry, let's go get LeBron. Let's go get some superstar and have him lead the way. How about building a team and having them mature into being the champions of the Knicks are right now. No trust. The process garbage. None of that. And we thought it was the biggest ego move by a player possible or players possible. When Tibbs got Let go.

[Tracy Morgan]

Oh, no.

[Don La Greca]

The inmates are running the asylum now. They don't want the coach. They want to bring in their guy because collectively, they knew it wasn't working. Let's bring in somebody that's gonna make it work because they wanted to win a championship, guys, and that's what they were built to do. And. And when they didn't get the break against the Pacers, it was their mission from day one, and they were humble about it. Every time I hear some star athlete like Jazz Chisholm, not to pick on him, but, oh, I'm going to hit 50 home runs, we're going to win the championship, what else is he supposed to say? You know what else he's supposed to say, or what is he supposed to say? What every Knick has said for the last, what, six months. Keep it humble, stick with the mission. And then at the end of the day, you don't have to say anything. You don't have to say jack, just lift up the trophy. And that's what they did.

[Alan Hahn]

Yep. Then that's exactly what you do. And that's why I just. What you love and what you're talking about, by the way, is, look, in 2019, Kevin Durant said he's going to the Brooklyn Nets, and that felt like, at the moment, the biggest loss in franchise history. Right. Because the star player that you were trying to chase said no to you and said no. With the reasoning of this, the Knicks aren't cool, and that's your lowest of low, right?

[Don La Greca]

Yep.

[Alan Hahn]

And after that, James Dolan had to find somebody new to run the organization, because when a star player says you're not cool and you have a hard time finding star players or getting anybody to want to come play for you, you've got to rethink everything you're doing. So what does he do now? He brings in Leon Rose, but he didn't bring Leon Rose in. In a vacuum, he brought in William Wesley World Wide West. You've heard him in a Jay Z lyric. That's how. That's how famous this guy is. As far as among stars. He's known to be that kind of guy, a connector of superstars, knows a lot of people, and the sense was, we got to make the Knicks cool. And so in comes World Wide west, in comes Leon Rose, and then they just slowly build, methodically, they bring in a coach who's got blood in the ground. I think that's an important part, too. I need to bring in people here who understand the environment they're in and aren't going to come in here and say all this crazy stuff about how it's not going to be me. I'm going to do it different. And then when the lights turn bright, they realize, oh, no, it's different here. It's harder here. And that's, to me, it starts there. You start there and you build. And the most important thing that they decided to do was instead of chasing a star, they chased championship DNA. And they started with Brunson. And Brunson right away said, I need my right hand man. And they went and got Josh Hart, the consigliere. And now all of a sudden, the locker room became his. Wasn't Julius Randall's anymore, it was his. And that's where it begins. And now that really is the beginning story. It permeates the room because now I can lead. He wasn't named captain yet, but I could start setting the example of this is how we're going to be.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And now I have another guy and he plays the same way as me. He's giving you 48 minutes every night.

[Alan Hahn]

And then they have DiVincenzo another part of that. But, you know, you bring in bridges. But I know DiVincenzo left, but you still had three guys who had that DNA and understood it, trusted each other. When you have three starters who trust each other because they've known each other since they were kids, they had won together, that they could hold each other accountable. And then everybody else sees that it changes. Now. It wasn't perfect. You ran through still potholes. It happened. You had to go through the scars. You always talk about Don in the playoffs, the losses that kill you, that they, you just, they eat you alive. But it motivates them. And then they had this year, which was. It all came together with still potholes to a nine run that was not great. They had a couple other issues during the season, even late into the season, with style of play, who's happy, who's not got to make everybody happy. A new head coach who's trying to figure it out along the way. But they hit their nirvana at the perfect time in the office. Once you get to April, they were figuring it out. And then once they went to 2 and 1, the down 21 in the Atlanta series, that was the moment of truth for all of them. What are we going to do? This is our window. We know our potential. Why don't we give it a shot? Everybody just play to your potential, have selflessness. And it started with the captain and that's, that's how you put this thing together, it wasn't overnight. There were painful losses, there were frustrating losses. But when you hit that nirvana, it's the most beautiful thing to watch. That's why this is one of the great runs in NBA Finals history. A veteran team that knows each other well and committed together to making something special happen. That's the only way you overcome a 50 plus year curse.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah, this was all about one thing, and that's a championship. And that means you got to shelve a lot of egos. I'm sure those guys wanted to explode at times about how happy they were, how proud they were of each other or their own performance.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, they wanted to explode for other reasons too. Because apparently for 10 weeks they weren't allowed to do any type of relations.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, that's what they're saying. That's what they're saying.

[Don La Greca]

They should have just all gotten married, right, Peter?

[Peter Rosenberg]

Well, have a child. I'm curious.

[Don La Greca]

That's, you know, if all you get married and have a young kid. 10 weeks.

[Alan Hahn]

10 weeks is nothing.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Don La Greca]

For 10 years.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Bridges is probably upset about it. Bronson's probably like, it is what it is.

[Alan Hahn]

I don't know. Ten weeks, a long time. Fellas, they, they. How bad do you really want a championship? You're gonna go 10 weeks.

[Don La Greca]

Wow, that mattress man, right? There's, well, there's, there's self championships. Right. Was that not allowed either?

[Alan Hahn]

That's a great question. What I don't see off the table

[Peter Rosenberg]

too, I have to imagine it's the

[Don La Greca]

same concept you would imagine. But you know who's policing that?

[Alan Hahn]

None whatsoever.

[Don La Greca]

Follow him to the bathroom.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And by the way, I wonder why

[Alan Hahn]

they played so angry.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I want to know who actually said like, are they saying Dolan actually came out and said this?

[Alan Hahn]

The report is that and that. And then Mikhail Bridges kind of made that clear earlier today when he was on Instagram live. Had some 808 going and he was, he was a. That was truth serum. He was a fountain of truth.

[Peter Rosenberg]

He is, he was something.

[Alan Hahn]

And he revealed that he was on one thing.

[Peter Rosenberg]

OG appeared to be off something else.

[Alan Hahn]

He was tremendous. He doesn't drink, but once he did.

[Peter Rosenberg]

OG looked completely fried today on tv. He was just staring off into space like having the time of his life.

[Don La Greca]

There's so many people to feel good for this such so much to discuss. I mean we're gonna need a week just to go through everything that we saw on Saturday from yet another comeback to just how money Brunson was, you know, all the Celebrities that found a way to still get into San Antonio, even though the spurs were trying to

[Alan Hahn]

keep him out half the building. I was told it was incredible.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

It was really 10 to 11,000 people that were New Yorkers. Yeah.

[Don La Greca]

And you understood. You can understood why. And also too, that Wemby just came off so bad. I mean, this was the worst final for him in his play and how he's been perceived. I think many people are just thought he was the face of the NBA, how good he was, but. But whether it's the perceived dirty play, how he handled himself on the court, I can't wait to handle himself after the game.

[Alan Hahn]

I really have been dying to talk. I knew we were gonna do a segment and I hope we can just wait and do a segment on this because I. I couldn't wait to get your take on all that stuff with just him alone.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

Because to me, you know, that's one that there's. I'm seeing varying opinions about this, and I'm surprised, but there are varying opinions about it. But I'm dying to get used to it.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah, I want to get into all of it. I mean, all of it. And we've got tons of guests. Tracy Morgan's going to be joining us momentarily. We're going to hear from Mike Greenberg. You know, you hear so much about Mike Greenberg being a Jet fan, and he is, but he's also a huge Knick fan and how he felt about it. We're going to move Monica McNutt from Wednesday to today. Other surprises as well, but the great Tracy Morgan is going to join us here on Donjon Rosenberg. Tracy, congratulations on the Knicks winning a championship. Man, it must have felt pretty good.

[Tracy Morgan]

Yeah, felt wonderful. And thank you to the team for what they've given to the city. Thank you.

[Peter Rosenberg]

What has this season been like for you, Tracy? We've seen your fanship over the years, man. I know what it means to you. What has this whole season felt like?

[Tracy Morgan]

Well, it's a team of destiny. This was our destiny. And I was really happy for the real fans that have been here, like Spike and all the old timers sitting all the way up in the bleachers that have been here since 73 and saw the first one. And there's been 53 years of pain. And it's over. It's over and it's here and we are champions now. And the first feels really great after what all that this town has been through. 9, 11 and Covid and after all the hardships and now we finally have A champion. Champions.

[Alan Hahn]

Tracy, there's so many Nick fans that have seen everything that we've seen that there's, like, I keep saying, surreal. Was there a moment at all that you're like, all right, this is real. I can really believe this because it took me about. It wasn't until probably some point Sunday, I was floating in the pool, probably third glass of tequila, and I finally was like, damn, this is a real thing. I'm looking at the tv, seeing it. I'm like, no, no. That really happened last night. Register for you right away.

[Tracy Morgan]

No, you're just like me. You haven't really processed it yet. It hasn't really hit you yet. It hits you maybe a week or two weeks from now. Parade that we we number one. It hits you because it's been so long, you understand? 53 years was longer than the Babe Ruth curse. 53 years is a long time for people to want and desire. We. It's finally here now. And you know, a lot of people like battle wives. You promise you wouldn't hit me anymore,

[Peter Rosenberg]

but you keep going back.

[Alan Hahn]

But, yeah, I don't know. I thought it was. I thought it was the Casamigos talking. Tracy. I thought it was the Casamigos talking. I did not believe it.

[Tracy Morgan]

But, no, this team played hard. They love each other. It was a team of destiny. They love playing together. Mike Brown, our coach, he did a wonderful job coaching, and I'm happy. We have to accept that we won. Accept that.

[Alan Hahn]

Oh, I want to.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Tracy. Can you believe the last time this Knicks team won? It was right before they first plugged in the first stereo system in the park to do this thing we call hip hop. That's how long ago. It's hip hop years old. That's how long it's been since this team won a championship.

[Tracy Morgan]

You know that. You know that. And we go sabotage. You gotta understand, man was the time but anyone popped involved, it may obvious Iverson Dick put the dress code in right surpass all of that. And now we back. Now we back. Did you see that Nike commercial?

[Mike Greenberg]

Oh, yes.

[Don La Greca]

Oh, yeah.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah.

[Tracy Morgan]

I'm in the New York State of mind. You like me, man, you're in the New York State of mind right now. And nobody traveled like us. Nobody. This fan base is only seen in soccer, not basketball. Nobody got a fan base like us.

[Don La Greca]

Talking to Tracy Morgan here on Don Han and Rose.

[Tracy Morgan]

This is where King Kong died. This is where King Kong died. And we told Godzilla, you next. We told Godzilla, you next. You understand me?

[Alan Hahn]

Yes.

[Tracy Morgan]

At the parade, the statue of liberty gonna be pregnant.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's.

[Don La Greca]

I never heard you say that before.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Did you? Did you

[Tracy Morgan]

had the alien, but we had the Ghostbuster. There's something strange in your neighborhood. Who are you going to call?

[Peter Rosenberg]

What are the chances that you bring out some. What are the chances you bring out some cardboard boxes to the parade, Tracy, and just start old school, popping and breaking.

[Tracy Morgan]

All that's going to happen, I'm telling you. They're going to play Chuckle Up. The boaty squad's going to start dancing. I'm telling you, man.

[Alan Hahn]

Do you love

[Tracy Morgan]

crazy?

[Alan Hahn]

But that's what you love about this team, right? Like, it has so many New York connotations about it. Whether it's the. The lunch pail kind of understated Brunson, or you've got the Dominican and the Puerto Rican having to work together and get along and make things happen. Like you have all these different stories.

[Tracy Morgan]

Let me tell you something, everybody. The Knicks was everybody. The Knicks from the Empire, OKC only got. Okay, see, we got everybody in the city. In the city. This is a metropolis. They brought the ring back to the Mecca. Come on, man, you gotta feel this. Are you the team of destiny?

[Alan Hahn]

Are you on a float yet? Do you know? Are you gonna be on a float?

[Tracy Morgan]

Man, I don't even care, man. I just glad we won. I don't care about stuff like that. I'm glad we won't.

[Don La Greca]

When you.

[Tracy Morgan]

You think that matters to me?

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's right.

[Tracy Morgan]

No, we just want to know that we won.

[Don La Greca]

But you're going to the parade, right?

[Alan Hahn]

Good.

[Tracy Morgan]

I don't care if I had tickets or not. If I would have watched the game on tv, I would have been just as happy. Just as happy.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, but you. It was good to be in the building.

[Tracy Morgan]

I don't care about that stuff.

[Alan Hahn]

Come on. What were you.

[Tracy Morgan]

It was great to be in the building, but I'm. But I'm glad that we won. I'm about to team, man.

[Alan Hahn]

Give me game four. Thoughts?

[Mike Greenberg]

How.

[Alan Hahn]

How are your comeback? How were your emotions through that whole thing? Because that was one of the wildest nights I've ever experienced in sports, man.

[Tracy Morgan]

I just sat there in shock, crying. I sat there and shot crying. Yeah, Shot crying.

[Don La Greca]

I had people.

[Tracy Morgan]

Last time I felt this way, my kids were born. The last time I felt this way, my kids were born, my children were born.

[Don La Greca]

That is amazing. We're so happy for you. So happy for all the people.

[Tracy Morgan]

Come on, man. I got hit by. I got hit by 18 Wheeler, man. A truck. And I survived it. But that's what I thought. I survived it to see this.

[Don La Greca]

Yes, that's a good point, man.

[Tracy Morgan]

The Lord took me around just to see this. I got hit by 18 Wheeler, man, and I got to see this. Do you know how I feel in my heart?

[Don La Greca]

It's everything to you.

[Tracy Morgan]

Do you know how I feel in my heart? I got hit by a truck and I survived to see this destiny.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah, well, I'm happy for you, man.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Tracy.

[Tracy Morgan]

That's real.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Tracy, listen, on the way out, on the way out, I'm gonna play something for you that I know we'll both appreciate. I know how you and I both feel about the God MC, the 18th letter. Rakim. Have you heard Rakim's New York Nick

[Tracy Morgan]

Anthony, have you heard this yet? Not hear it. Please play it for me.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I got you.

[Tracy Morgan]

No, thank you.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Tracy Morgan, ladies and gentlemen.

[Don La Greca]

Thank you, buddy. Congratulations. Have a great summer.

[Tracy Morgan]

I love you all, man. Thank you.

[Don La Greca]

Thank you.

[Tracy Morgan]

Thank you.

[Don La Greca]

Let's go, Nicks. Mike Greenberg, fan and professional, will join us next. Don on a Rosenberg ESPN New York as you know, managing maintenance, repair and operations is never easy. But for the ones who always rise

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[Peter Rosenberg]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

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

[Don La Greca]

There's so many people you think of when you see a championship. You know, I think of Spike and St. Pete and how much he's been through to finally win a championship. We'll hear from him in just a little bit. Another guy I thought of because I know he works and he's a professional and you think of him as a Jet fan, but I've known this guy for so long, I know he loves the Knicks, and that had to be a moment for him over the weekend is the great Mike Greenberg, and he joins us here on Don Juan and Rosenberg. Mike, you got to be feeling pretty good today.

[Mike Greenberg]

Hi, guys. Yeah, you know, it's really strange because my entire life, I don't know exactly what this was supposed to feel like. So I'm actually out for a walk right now. I'm walking the streets of this wonderful city, and there are people everywhere I look wearing Knicks hats and Knicks shirts, and there's sort of a collective smile on everyone's face. And that's something that the Knicks do in this city. And this has been covered ad nauseam differently, and then in more unanimity than any of the other teams because of the dynamics of the jets and Giants and Yankees and Mets, et cetera, et cetera. So, yes, I feel great, and I really wish I had gone Saturday night, because it just looks like it was one of the. I mean, the Knick fans took over that building, and I think partying, celebrating this thing communally would have been a great deal of fun. I really regret that my brother flew in from. He lives in Southern California. He flew in with his two sons, and they went to the game. And I've seen a million pictures and videos, and I wish I had been there, but I feel great, and I'm so happy for them, and I'm so happy for all the Knick fans everywhere.

[Alan Hahn]

Granny. I had terrible FOMO myself. Being in the studio Saturday night, feeling like I just need to be there and feel the energy of it. Fortunately, though, we did get treated to a Game of the Ages in Game four at Madison Square Garden, so there still was sort of that signature kind of game, anyway, to witness. But with all of that, this series had a lot of history, and this run has had a lot of history talked about in it, because of all the things that this current Knicks team did. But something that you and I were talking about this morning off camera about this team had to do with the fact that the history still with this franchise shouldn't be forgotten, should it?

[Mike Greenberg]

That's right. That's something that's important to me. The threat of commonality of this championship team with the two previous Knicks championship teams. Is the word team underlying the word team. There have been greater teams in the history of New York sports, without question, than the 1970 Knicks. But I don't think there has ever been a team that is as beloved, certainly by a generation older than mine and even by the outskirts of my generation because specifically because Willis Reed wasn't Will Chamberlain and Walt Frazier wasn't Jerry West. And yet they found ways to, to beat these teams that in theory had players who had more, had more notoriety and more hardware. And they did it by playing as a team. And that's what this team did so extraordinarily well. Most Knicks fans listening to this conversation think of the good old days as Ewing and Starks and Oakley. But there were great days before that. And that's the one part of it that I hope gets celebrated in this. The way Walt Frazier has been there for every moment of this and Bill Bradley at all the home games has been great. I hope that everyone remembers that. I don't, I don't want to answer the question, is this the greatest Knick team of all time? I put them right there with the other Knick championship teams. There's nothing that tops that. Nothing can eclipse that. And I hope that this becomes a time not just to celebrate what this group did, but to remember that group because there are fewer and fewer of us who remember them. And that's, that's what the Knicks franchise is about. We're a founding franchise in NBA history. Up until this weekend, we'd only ever won two championships. The same basic core group was responsible for 100% of all of their titles. And I hope that they are celebrated in this as much as anyone along the way because they richly deserve it.

[Tracy Morgan]

Now.

[Don La Greca]

The only two championships that you live through, even though you were alive in 73, I'm sure at 5 or 6, you weren't able to appreciate, are the Mets in 86. And this championship, how does it hit for young 18 year old Mike Greenberg as a fan when the Mets won? As opposed to late 50s professional Mike Greenberg seeing the Knicks win?

[Mike Greenberg]

It's very different. So my, my emotional attachment to baseball growing up just wasn't as Strong as my emotional attachment to basketball and football. We grew up in my family, the jets and the Knicks were a religion. They were greater than religion. We spoke of these people like they were gods. Walt Frazier and Willis Reed and Dave debusscher and Bill Bradley and Joe Namath. These were gods. When the Mets won the World Series in 1986, I was in college. I was living far away. Everything was just sort of different. It was obviously one of the great and legendary series in the history of sports for a million different reasons. But this one I got to celebrate with my kids, both of whom are big Knick fans. I was able to take Nikki to win, my daughter to one game and my son to another game. And so it feels more meaningful in this way now. And I don't know, Don, if you felt this way, because I've heard you talk about your dad and your shared love of the Giants. But when the plot was ticking down on Saturday night, that was who I thought of. I thought of my dad and all the nights that we spent together at the Garden and all the nights he let me stay up later than my mother wanted me to so I could watch the Knicks play on Channel nine. If they were at Portland or at Phoenix or Seattle. And the game was late and Marv Albert and Butch Beard were doing the game. There's something that feels very, very personal about this one. And so I would say this one means more to me for that reason.

[Don La Greca]

So, in essence, that it's kind of your first championship, right, because you had that emotional attachment more to the Knicks and to the jets. And when I cried when Eli beat the Patriots the first time, I remember being on with Brandon Tierney walking out of the arena, the stadium in Arizona, and talking to Brandon and talking about how it's the first super bowl that my, you know, my dad had passed and we weren't together. That's what made me cry.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Right.

[Don La Greca]

Was the connection that I had with my dad.

[Tracy Morgan]

Not.

[Don La Greca]

Not so much the championship that I had seen two previous, but it was the first one without him. And I wouldn't have been a fan without him, so I understand that.

[Peter Rosenberg]

And Greeny, at the core of this whole thing and this beautiful moment, obviously, is this beautiful guy, Jalen Brunson, who, like everyone is just sort of marveling at. And I think the hype is all very real. Who does Brunson remind you of, if anyone? To me, he's such a unique athlete with a combination of. Not the typical physique you think of for an NBA player or pro athlete undersized the clutch gene of the greatest players of all time. He's just so fascinating. You're such a. You're such a historian. Does he bring anybody to mind for you?

[Mike Greenberg]

An excellent question. Like the great. So in that sport where size is probably more important than it is in any other, at least height is more important than it is in any other. I mean, the only comparisons that you can make, and his game is so totally different from theirs is. Would be that one Championships, I think, would be Isaiah Thomas. I think Steph Curry is a little taller. Steph is actually taller than you think he is.

[Tracy Morgan]

Right.

[Mike Greenberg]

I've stood next to him. He's markedly taller than Jalen Brunson is. That's a very good question. Jalen Brunson has. I don't want to pass on the question, but I can't really think of a good one because there are so many things about him that I think make him unique. The fact that he was. The fact that he was willing to take so much less money than he otherwise could have gotten in order to put a championship team around him, honestly, reminds me of Brady. The guy who has most famously done that in recent years is Tom Brady. And obviously Tom Brady is now the most decorated football player that ever lived, and Jalen Brunson is a long way from that. But that's something that jumps to mind. There's a certain Rocky Balboa who I know I'm now naming a fictitious character.

[Peter Rosenberg]

You moved on to fictitious already?

[Mike Greenberg]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah.

[Mike Greenberg]

There's a certain Rocky Balboa element to him as well, too, because he just keeps getting knocked down. And there was something very Drago like about slaying Wembanyama in this series. And I think, Alan, you were the one who said this morning that the line from Rocky 3, he's not getting beat, he's getting mad. Brunson getting his revenge.

[Tracy Morgan]

I don't know.

[Mike Greenberg]

To me, Brunson. Here's what I was thinking about. Brunson right now, I think, becomes someone like Joe Namath. I think he becomes someone who will forever be beloved in this city, and someday he'll go in the hall of Fame and richly deserve it. And people who didn't love him and people didn't love his career will question his greatness and will ask questions about him. Oh, he was only 6 foot 1 or whatever it is. Will ask questions about him. And you will say, if you were there, you know, and that's what Namath is. That's why Namath is in the hall of Fame. Despite all of the nonsense that these ridiculous detractors want to say. And 50 years after that super bowl, you walk down the street of New York with Joe Namath, and it is like you are walking with, you know, with an extraterrestrial being. And that's who I think Jalen Brunson will be for the next 50 years in New York.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah, that's a perfect comparison. And with that in mind, using that. Because Joe won that one in 68. And then, you know, the jets have really, even with him, just never got back to it. What, like, what is next? What comes next now, Greeny, because we've never been here. It really is that. I, you know, I was just. We were just talking to Tracy Morgan. I know we're name dropping, but we just had him on and. And I let him know. I mean, the Casamigos was talking to me Sunday when I was trying to process all this, and I just said, you know, like. Like it's real. I have to understand it's real. And as a Nick fan, as anybody, somebody who's followed this franchise my whole life, covered it for half my life, is that I'm like, okay, now what? So do they have to win another? Is there some thought of this has to be a run or whatever, or can one be enough? Like, how do you act now as a. How do the fans act now? What are they supposed to expect next?

[Mike Greenberg]

Well, I mean, I think so. There's two different ways of looking at that. Our friend Brian Winhorst said one time on the show, winning a championship means never having to say you're sorry. They'll always have this, and this will be something that Knicks fans will love and celebrate forever. That said, next year when the playoffs start, you'll be just as nervous and just as into it and just as rooting and just as angry when things go sideways and all the rest of that. I think they have a real chance of winning another one in this. Look, The Knicks in 1970 and 73, they made the finals three out of four years and 12 of those championships. I don't see any reason why the Knicks couldn't do that. Whether it's back to back, I don't see any reason why they're not right in the discussion. I don't know what Boston's about to do. The sense I'm getting from everyone we talk to is that the Celtics are about to trade Jalen Brown in a deal that will bring them Giannis onetokounmpo. I don't know. Doubt me as one person who thinks that's an absolutely terrible idea, Me too. I think. I think the Knicks go into next year is the team to beat in the east, assuming everything stays relatively the same. And Alan, you're so much closer to it than I am. What's going to wind up happening with Towns and his contract and everything else. But assuming they go into next year relative in relatively the same, with relatively the same roster and everything else that they have right now, in my opinion, they go in as the favorite in the east, and then we'll see what happens. San Antonio might get unstoppable with those young guys, but I thought that was going to be the case with Oklahoma City last year. And I think the Knicks would have beat them in this series, too. The Knicks were the better team. They didn't win because they didn't win because they got lucky. You don't get lucky. You might get lucky by coming from behind to win one game. You don't get lucky to come from behind in four games. The Knicks won this series because of the better team. I'm not convinced they won't be the better team again next year. So they have to win another one. I guess it depends on how you look at it. But would they win another one? I would say they absolutely could.

[Don La Greca]

Greeny, enjoy it, man. And it's always a pleasure to have you on.

[Mike Greenberg]

Yeah, fellas, thanks for having me on. Congratulations to all the Knick fans who've waited all their lives for this.

[Don La Greca]

That is the great Mike Greenberg. You see him, of course, on Get Up. And next up, a Jet championship for him. He might have to wait a little longer. He's had to wait even longer for that. But it sounds like that's the only one that would hit a little bit sweeter for him than the Knicks. But still, you feel tremendous for him. I also feel tremendous for the work that Anthony Pusick has done on and off the air.

[Alan Hahn]

Well, this is important. And thank you, Don Allen. Peter, New York, you've got to hear this one. Champ Sports has you covered if you're looking to get your hands on some Knicks championship gear. And that is very, very hard to come by right now. Get in line. Head over to Champs Sports Fan Central Station at 125 W. 33rd St. Or your local Champs Sports store. The city's celebrating, the parade's coming up, and there's no better time to gear up and rep. New York Knicks championship gear is available now at Champs Sports Fan Central Station. I just saw it on their Instagram. They got tons. They got a lot. And your local champs sports stores. And while you're there, Fan Central Station still home to soccer jerseys for every national team, usa, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and more. All under one roof.

[Don La Greca]

Great job, Anthony.

[Alan Hahn]

Thank you. All right, great job this weekend too.

[Don La Greca]

By the way, Monica McNutt's gonna join us coming up at 4:00'. Clock. You bet. Because we did a lot of extra programming over the weekend. So thanks to everybody that participated on and off the air for that as well.

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Separate subscriptions required.

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Blackouts and other terms apply. Visit stream.espn.commlbtv for more information. Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I didn't listen to anything you just said.

[Alan Hahn]

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

[Peter Rosenberg]

All right guys, on the biggest stage imaginable. Fanduels changing the game because sometimes your player gets subbed off. In fact, on Friday you might have had Pulisic and if Pulisic gets subbed off, you think you're out of the game. Guess what? You're not. You're back in business with fanduel because fanduel Super Sub if your player is subbed out, your Bet stays in. That's right. If your player leaves the match, your bet continues on with that substitute. So you're still until the final whistle. Visit FanDuel.com find out what I'm talking about. FanDuel.com local to get started now. Let there be goals this summer on FanDuel21 physically present New York. For help with a gambling problem, call 877-8-HOPE NY or Tex Hopeny at 467-369. And while I mentioned the World Cup, I'd be remiss to not say that I'm having a party on this Friday, June 19, aka Juneteenth, aka Alan Han's birthday.

[Tracy Morgan]

Mm.

[Peter Rosenberg]

We are gonna be celebrating. It's a day off of school for the kids and a lot of people at work. And the USA is playing Australia at 3 o'. Clock. I'm taking over Calandras, all right. Or Calandras to you and me. Calandra's Italian Village in Caldwell, New Jersey. Such incredible food, plus a special themed menu. And it's a special Happy hour from 3 to 6:30. Wall to wall action. All the TVs with all that US Soccer on it. It's gonna be a great time. So come hang out at Calandro's Italian Village in Caldwell, New Jersey on Friday. This is, of course, coming off of literally the greatest U.S. men's World cup game in history last Friday. I have never don. I can only. I can only give you this comp. You randomly turn on a Jets game in the middle of a season in which they're the jets. Like, like it's a Zach Wilson season and you turn on the jets and like every play is like just hitting people in stride. 40, 40 yards here, 50 yards, Hannah, everything. You're like, what happened? Were they replaced by other players? Was our brain switched with. That's literally how different it looks. So come on out on Friday. It's going to be a great time coming. It's rare, you could say coming off of a great U.S. win, but that's what we're doing on Friday.

[Don La Greca]

All right. I'll answer Greeny Allen's question to Greeny in just a moment, but I wanted to get to these calls. A lot of people wanting to get into it. And we've got Monica McNutt coming up at 4:00'. Clock. Patrick Ewing is going to join us at 4:30. And how happy was he for the way that the Knicks played on Saturday, winning that championship? But let's start the show off with, of course, who better than spike in St. Pete. You're on ESPN New York. Congratulations, buddy. I'm happy for you.

[Tracy Morgan]

Happy. Alan, I gotta tell you, when you embraced Novak and showed your emotion, I was just felt so much relief and love for all you guys and what you meant to me, to what I've been going through. And this was beautiful. And I came on and said, Nixon 5. So blind squirrel gets a nut. But here's the difference in how this thing all worked out. Two sentences. The poise team out played the Utes. As Joe Pesci said, they spit it out because they went full boss from the beginning of the game right up until about the third quarter. They ran out of gas. They were. We were out. Well, they were out coached. And God bless Jalen Brunson. This is class personified. He did everything right. Didn't want to touch the money. If you guys didn't feel what I felt with the hug with his father and his godfather with Leon Rose and. And the relationship between Leon Rose and Worldwide West. And I told you before, my father's attorney was Zev Rose, Leon's father. So happy. And I'm going to be around for another chance at it next year, I promise you that. And Don, I hope to see you at the Sasso game.

[Don La Greca]

Yeah, it looks like I don't want to throw out a date. Looks like late August may be when we finally get that done. But that's who I'm happy for. I know, Spike, and good luck with everything you're going through, buddy. I know he's had some things and it's. And he was around for 73. But obviously when you're able to understand it better and be able to embrace the moment, especially the way you're doing it now with all the pre and post game coverage and all that. Look where the NBA was set 53 years ago. Oh, compared to what it is now.

[Alan Hahn]

Tape delay, you know, so one in la, nobody saw it.

[Don La Greca]

He, Kenny Smith said this after the game. You. You obviously were already on the air. I don't know if you noticed it, Peter, but he said 53 years without a championship. He goes, if you went another 53 years for the next one, it'd be 2079.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Oh, my God. Think about that. Think. No, think about that. It's a simple thing to say.

[Alan Hahn]

If you said it, think about it. If you said in 94, right? Like, like it's the same thing. It was 1940. If you said in 1940, your next one will be in 1994, you would think we had flying cars. By then. Right, right. 2079 feels like. Will we even.

[Don La Greca]

Will we.

[Alan Hahn]

Will we, like, Will be there be communities, other countries on Mars? Like, we'll be living in other planets

[Peter Rosenberg]

at that point, I don't have to

[Don La Greca]

be a team on Mars.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Could there be a. Could we not be even be here at all? We don't know.

[Alan Hahn]

We don't know.

[Don La Greca]

We don't. We don't.

[Alan Hahn]

We don't know.

[Don La Greca]

And unfortunately, all of us in 2079 will not know unless we're looking down or up at what's happening.

[Alan Hahn]

So there you are. I'm going to be here.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Hold on, 2079?

[Don La Greca]

Yeah.

[Peter Rosenberg]

That's a mere 53 years to you and me.

[Alan Hahn]

53 years.

[Peter Rosenberg]

So I'm how old? No, I got a. I got a chance.

[Alan Hahn]

Yeah. Donnie, I have no. I have a fighting Donnie, and I have no shot.

[Don La Greca]

I'd have to be 111.

[Peter Rosenberg]

No, no, you're. No, you're none shot.

[Mike Greenberg]

You're dead.

[Alan Hahn]

That literally, if we were alive, we would have no idea.

[Peter Rosenberg]

Yeah, so. But I've got a grandpa.

[Alan Hahn]

Great grandpa. The Knicks won the championship again.

[Peter Rosenberg]

But by the way, Anthony and Jacob both still here. I'm fighting. I'm fighting for 99. 99, baby.

[Alan Hahn]

You want 99? If I want to make it to that, yeah. Well, anyway, I. I had said, like, I really was worried if they didn't do it this year, I might never see it. It floored me that Greeny thinks, you know. Oh, yeah, this group, they could. Well, I could get another.

[Don La Greca]

Listen. I think we're too much in the celebratory mood. We've got all week to kind of break down where. Where they sit in NBA history, Nick.

[Alan Hahn]

History.

[Don La Greca]

I don't want to ruin it, but I always hate those. You know the second question you think you can repeat? Can we just enjoy what's going on right now?

[Alan Hahn]

Right.

[Don La Greca]

This is going to be the best summer for Knick fans that they've ever had in their lifetime, where you're not worried about the upcoming game. You can just revel in all the highlights and all the stories. And I'm sure there's going to be a couple of books that are going to come out in time for the start of the season on everything that happened. And then you'll tip off. And I guess I'll say it quickly now, is that as somebody who has seen some championships in my lifetime, is that you spend the summer loving it. The next season, pretty quickly you'll turn back on and suffering losses and kind of living in the moment. But the one thing is, you'll always have 2026 to fall back on. No matter how bad things get. If it ends up being a long time before they win again, this is forever. This will never be taken away. This is always something that will put a smile on your face. No matter what's happening with the team. And all that is that I'll no matter how bad and embarrassing the Giants have been, that 2011 Super bowl is still on the DVR. Well, you know, so there's something about that that will live forever.

[Alan Hahn]

Later on we'll get deeper into calls. It is something interesting that I keep wondering because I said to Greeny, like, what's next? And in my mind, because, look, you're so uptight game after game, because you just know that that drought, that championship, just that dogged pursuit every year, like, God, when are we going to get one? Now that you got it, is there going to feel like it's not the same? Like you're not going to have that same feel? Like next year might be the easiest season as a Knick fan you've ever had?

[Peter Rosenberg]

It's going to be unlike any other, that's for sure.

[Alan Hahn]

You know, it doesn't mean that it goes away, but there might be like this sense of like, you know, like they lose three in a row in January. Like, man, whatever.

[Don La Greca]

No, you'll snap back into it again because you want to buck the trend, right? It's been eight straight years with a different champion. You're going to want to buck that trend. You're going to want to win it again. You know, you'll get back into the day in, day out greediness of it all, okay? But no matter how bad it might get, you can always look back at 2026. It's always going to be there. It's the feel good button that will be there for the rest of your life.

[Alan Hahn]

Thanks for listening to the Don Hahn and Rosenberg podcast.

[Peter Rosenberg]

I don't want to know how the

[Alan Hahn]

sausage is made, but I just want to know. It's good. Here. More of Don Allen and Peter Weekday afternoon starting at 3 on 8 80, ESPN, the ESPN New York app, and your smart speakers.