Pablo Torre Finds Out

Exclusive: We Found the Knicks' Top-Secret Tapes for Kawhi, Kyrie and KD

Date: December 19, 2025
Host: Pablo Torre
Guests: Frank Isola, Desus Nice
Produced by: The Athletic

Main Theme and Purpose

In this episode, Pablo Torre, alongside guests Frank Isola and Desus Nice, dives deep into the secretive and star-studded efforts the New York Knicks made to recruit NBA superstars Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, and Kyrie Irving in 2019. With unprecedented access, the episode reveals never-before-seen recruitment videos, elaborate personalized gifts, and the inside story of how these attempts ultimately failed—shedding light on the broader culture of NBA free agency, tampering, and New York's unique allure.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Knicks' History of Superstar Recruiting

• Background: The failed 2010 LeBron James pitch is revisited, including the infamous Knicks recruitment video featuring celebrities such as James Gandolfini, Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, Spike Lee, Chris Rock, and Harvey Weinstein.
• Tone: Warm, self-deprecating New York nostalgia, poking fun at the city's reputation for failing to land stars despite its natural advantages.
• (03:41) Pablo Torre: “The most New York conversation—just talking about parking strategy in and out of Yankee games!”

2. The 2019 Big Free Agency Summer

• Knicks prepared elaborate, high-budget, top-secret recruitment campaigns for Kawhi, KD, and Kyrie—collectively referred to as "the 3Ks" (15:10).
• The agency ‘Translation,’ led by Steve Stoute, was hired to produce intimate, personalized presentations.
• Frank Isola: “All of it matters. All of it matters. Look at, you know, during the game, they're going to show celebrities during timeouts. That's a big part of it.” (10:56)

3. The Kawhi Leonard Experience

• Recruitment Video: Featured Jay Pharoah impersonating Kawhi, cameos by Ben Stiller, Kenan Thompson, Michael Che, Jason Biggs, Tracy Morgan, and others.
• Delivery: Presented inside a custom Knicks pizza box with embedded monitor (16:26).
• Mix of classic New York cultural showcases (e.g., pizza, Rucker Park) and humor targeting Kawhi’s perceived persona.
  • (22:26) Desus Nice: “That part was good. That worked, that worked—like you could have just had that scene right there.”
• Reception: Self-awareness that Kawhi was an enigma; skepticism whether such pitches would resonate.
  • (15:13) Frank Isola: “If you think you’re gonna get through to Kawhi Leonard, come on now. Nobody knows what makes him tick.”
  • (23:06) Pablo Torre: “He’s like helpful to the kids.”

4. The Kyrie Irving Pitch

• Gift: A retro TV with VCR, decorated with Kyrie’s logo and street art by Eric Haze (30:20).
• Content: Focused on Kyrie’s New York roots and streetball culture with cameos from playground legends and nods to future legacy (Wheaties box, “Kyrie” as a popular baby name in NY).
• The narrative was designed to appeal to both nostalgia and the vision of future glory.

5. The Kevin Durant Approach

• Gift: Custom “Key to the City” containing a thumb drive (33:53).
• Video: Featured Wu-Tang Clan, Fat Joe, and New York hoops culture, highlighting KD’s impact and potential legacy.
• Production issues: Timing problems meant the video was likely never seen by KD or his agent Rich Kleiman.
  • (37:28) Pablo Torre: “I said, had you ever seen any of this stuff... He said, ‘Nah, he never saw it. I haven't even discussed with him. But as a native New Yorker, I just saw it yesterday. And Wu Tang can do anything and I'll like it.’"

6. Why the Knicks' Efforts Failed

• Tampering and Timing: NBA’s free agency rules, with legal contact only beginning June 30 at 6pm, but most deals being agreed upon much earlier (36:04).
• Knicks “played by the rules” and missed their window—their packages didn’t even reach the intended stars in time.
  • (38:13) Frank Isola: “The players, the players all know ... it's amazing how they all know.”
• Cynical Reality: NBA free agency is rife with unofficial agreements; attempts to “do it right” are, ironically, a competitive disadvantage.
  • (39:30) Desus Nice: “We need to tamper more. We need to tamper more.”

7. Does Celebrity Culture Matter?

• Debate on whether New York’s celebrity fanbase and city glamour genuinely appeal to modern superstars, or if winning, team situation, and relationships matter far more.
  • (42:45) Frank Isola: “Do you think professional athletes at that level, that much money really care about guys like actors and singers and rappers recruiting them? I don't think they do.”
• Candid admissions: Players, agents, and teams communicate for months/years in advance; marketing packages are often moot.

8. Humor, Irony, and Meta-Commentary

• The entire episode mixes genuine curiosity and admiration for these campaigns with biting humor, New York self-awareness, and the futility of such “Hail Mary” ploys.
• Memorable running joke: Every attempt somehow pivots into a New York-centric story—be it parking, pizza, or late-night TV hosts.
• Frequent call-backs to Robert Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken,” used both sincerely and ironically about the roads not taken by free agents and the Knicks.
  • (46:38) Pablo Torre: “A poet by the name of Robert Frost... two roads diverged in a wood and Kawhi took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On New York nostalgia and futility:
  (03:41) Pablo Torre: “The most New York conversation—just talking about parking strategy in and out of Yankee games!”

• On Knicks’ obsession with stars:
  (10:56) Frank Isola: “All of it matters. Look at, you know, during the game, they're going to show celebrities during timeouts. That's a big part of it.”

• On secrecy and celebrity cameos:
  (16:26) Desus Nice: “It’s a Knicks pizza box with Knicks gear, Knicks merch in it, little KITH on it…they said, hey, here’s some free swag...”

• On understanding Kawhi:
  (15:13) Frank Isola: “If you think you’re gonna get through to Kawhi Leonard, come on now. Nobody knows what makes him tick.”

• On tampering and timing:
  (36:09) Frank Isola: “So how could Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving go be going to the Nets having not even spoken to them? How is that even possible?”

• Meta on futility of Knicks’ efforts:
  (39:30) Desus Nice: “We need to tamper more.”

• Celebrity recruitment skepticism:
  (42:45) Frank Isola: “Do you think professional athletes at that level, that much money really care about guys like actors and singers and rappers recruiting them? I don't think they do.”

• Playful closure with poetry:
  (46:38) Pablo Torre: “Two roads diverged in a wood and Kauai took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference.”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:00-06:00: Nostalgia for old Knicks recruiting efforts, failed LeBron pitch
• 06:50-11:30: The New York celebrity factor and Madison Square Garden’s mystique
• 13:20-15:15: Introducing the secret 2019 “3Ks” pitch process
• 16:25-25:00: Unpacking/Previewing the Kawhi Leonard recruitment video
• 30:00-33:45: The Kyrie Irving “streetball” package
• 33:55-36:10: The Kevin Durant “Key to the City” pitch and thumb drive video
• 36:10-38:15: The timeline/tampering dilemma and why the packages went unopened
• 38:15-40:10: Agents, tampering realities, and star-to-star connections
• 42:45-43:03: Big picture: does any of this actually sway superstars?
• 46:38-47:00: Robert Frost, irony, and episode closure

Conclusion

This episode offers a rare and revealing behind-the-scenes look at the Knicks’ celebrity-driven, high-budget, but ultimately futile attempts to land superstar free agents. Through interviews, unseen footage, and irrepressible New York banter, it underscores the real mechanics of NBA recruiting: relationships, timing, and a reality that “playing by the rules” may leave you on the outside looking in. The show leaves listeners with a sense of both admiration for the city’s creative spirit and the recurring heartbreak of “the road not taken”—for both free agents and Knicks fans alike.