If history is any indication, the New York Knicks don't have much hope of winning a championship after blowing two home games to open the Eastern Conference Finals.
Less than a week ago, hope was at an all-time high for the New York Knicks. They had beaten the defending champion Boston Celtics to break through to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years. With the way the team was playing and with how perhaps the stars were aligning, it wasn't that far-fetched to think that the Knicks could possibly make a championship run.
However, after just two games into the Eastern Conference Finals, those hopes are now gone. Falling into a 2-0 series hole, history says that the Knicks' championship hopes all all but over. Historically, teams that go down 0-2 in the conference finals are 0-17. Even though the Knicks aren't mathematically eliminated just yet, it's hard to envision how they're going to be able to recover after losing Games 1 and 2 on their home floor.
As the series shifts to Indiana, the Knicks will not only have to overcome an Indiana Pacers team that is playing their best basketball of the year, but they'll also have to overcome history.
The Knicks may still be one piece away from title contention
Even though the Knicks are in the conference finals and are just four wins away from making the NBA Finals, it does still feel as if they're one piece away from true title contention. Even if the Knicks were to beat Indiana in the conference finals, they'd probably be huge underdogs against the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are heavy favorites to win the NBA Championship.
The Knicks beat up on a pesky Detroit Pistons team in the first round and knocked off a Celtics team that was already on the ropes before a nightmarish injury to Jayson Tatum completely knocked them out. The argument could be made that there was some luck in New York's path to the conference finals, but what team doesn't benefit from some en route to a championship?
Still, it's not like the Knicks have been overly dominant in their run to the conference finals. Being one piece away is not generally a bad thing, but it's exactly where the Knicks may find themselves, once again, heading into the NBA offseason.
The question is, where will that leave New York heading into the summer? How aggressively should - and will - the Knicks be to find that potential final piece of the championship puzzle? It's a fair question to ask, especially how close the Knicks were to completely breaking through this season. For a front office that has been aggressive before, you can't help but think that's where they could be headed again. Another aggressive move this offseason could be exactly what is needed to finally deliver this franchise a championship.