Knicks Drawing Comparisons to Championship Team

Former New York Knicks general manager Scott Perry offered a flattering comparison for the modern group.

Sep 25, 2017; Greenburgh, NY, USA; New York Knicks general manager Scott Perry speaks to the media on media day at MSG Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

A comparison to the Detroit Pistons is hardly flattering these days but, like so many other developments before it, the New York Knicks are making the best of it.

In the latest "Hoop Collective" podcast episode, former Knicks general manager Scott Perry likened the modern New Yorker to the dominant Detroit groups of the mid-to-late 2000s.

Perry recalled how those Pistons, who reached the Eastern Conference Finals on six consecutive occasions (2003-08) turned apparent veteran misfits into championship contributors, notably praising how players like Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle have followed in those footsteps to become mainstays on award shortlists and more.

June 15, 2004; Auburn Hills, MI; Detroit Pistons guard and NBA Finals MVP Chauncey Billups celebrates the 100-87 victory over the Lakers to win the NBA championship in Game 5 on June 15, 2004 at the Palace. Mandatory Credit: Julian H. Gonzalez/Detroit Free Press-USA TODAY NETWORK / Detroit Free Press-USA TODAY NETWORK

"(Detroit) was a very deep team," Perry recalled, particularly the 2003-04 group that won an NBA title. "But we were devoid of the 'known stars' or the huge names in the sport."

If anyone would be well-equipped to compared the new Knicks and those Pistons, it's Perry: the 60-year-old helped the Knicks partly assemble their current group as the team's general manager (2017-23) after serving in Detroit's front office under the watch of president Joe Dumars at the turn-of-the-century (2000-07).

"When we put that team together, Chauncey Billups, we were his sixth team when we signed him as a free agent," Perry recalled to co-host Mo Mooncey. "We traded for Rip Hamilton, we traded for Rasheed Wallace, we got Ben Wallace in the sign-and-trade for Grant Hill. When that happened, people barely even knew Ben Wallace."

"But all those guys came together and became All-Stars in their own right and developed into a legitimate championship team that went to six straight conference finals. So it doesn't always have to be done with these big names."

The modern Knicks were assembled in a similar way: Brunson and Randle had no All-Star appearances upon joining the Knicks on pricey deals but have since worked to change that narrative and then some.

While the Knicks have lingered in discussions for high-profile acquisitions, they have made the most of the current set-up that has afforded them mid-tier contributors like OG Anunoby, Donte DiVincenzo, and Josh Hart ... none of whom have reached an All-Star team.

Jan 3, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) brings the ball up court against the Chicago Bulls with forward Julius Randle (30) and center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) and forward OG Anunoby (8) and guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) during the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

All that and more guided the Knicks to their finest season in over a decade, which won 50 games and the second seed on the Eastern Conference playoff bracket. New York's big offseason splash to date was a June trade that obtained former Brooklyn Nets star Mikal Bridges.

Perry believes that the "cohesion" created, especially with the promise of keeping the band together for the long-term, sets his former employers up handsomely. Even though the Knicks' championship drought has reached a fifth decade, Perry says that a healthy Knicks group need not fear the Boston Celtics, fresh off their 18th NBA title.

"If this team stays healthy ... one thing I know enough about those guys in that locker room is that they're not going to be afraid of the Boston Celtics, I can tell you that much, or anybody else in the Eastern Conference," Perry said. "The Boston Celtics are going to have to beat them."

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