Kevin Durant Refuses Credit for Knicks' Success in 2025 Playoffs
The New York Knicks have made it to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2000 after dispatching the Boston Celtics in six games.
The Knicks had been somewhat of a laughing stock for much of the last two decades or so, but have turned things around in recent years.
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You might not have expected that to be the case, though, following the events of the 2019 offseason.
The Knicks were heavily linked to Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving back then, but both of them would end up going to the Brooklyn Nets.
The Knicks would land Julius Randle as the consolation prize, and the two franchises seemed headed in opposite directions.
Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant in action against the Dallas Mavericks at Footprint Center.Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The Nets never ended up achieving anything of note during the Durant-Irving era, though, and are now in rebuild mode.
The Knicks, meanwhile, stayed competitive and held on to their assets during that time, which enabled them to later make moves and put together the team they have today.
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This group's success led to a fan on X claiming that the best thing that ever happened to the Knicks was Durant and Irving choosing to go to the Nets.
Durant wasn't buying that, though, stating that the Knicks' success has nothing to do with him or Irving.
Was the rejection in 2019 actually a blessing in disguise? We'll never quite know for sure.
What we do know is that the Knicks are now just four wins away from getting to the NBA Finals.
The Indiana Pacers are standing in their way, and Game 1 will be at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET.
Related: Kevin Durant Called Out After Post During Chicago Sky, Indiana Fever Game
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