Allan Houston Backs Knicks’ Bid for First Finals Since ’99
Allan Houston knows better than anybody what it takes to lead the New York Knicks to the NBA Finals.
The former two-time All-Star guard was the star of the team’s surprising run to the 1999 NBA Finals. As an eighth seed, the Knicks made a shocking run to the NBA Finals, defeating their rivals and the No. 1-seeded Miami Heat.
Houston hit the game-winning jumper in Game 5 to eliminate the Heat, becoming just the second No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in the playoffs.
Fast forward 27 years, and the Knicks are seeing their first Finals appearance since then. Led by Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns, New York is one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference, currently ranked third in the standings. They’re coming off arguably their biggest win of the season, a 112-106 victory over the Boston Celtics.
The Knicks came within two games of an NBA Finals appearance last year. With the Brunson/Towns pairing in its second season, New York will seek to get through the likes of the Celtics, No. 1-seeded Detroit Pistons, and the James Harden-led Cleveland Cavaliers to get to the NBA Finals.
“I like that we’re healthy,” said Houston in a one-on-one interview with R.org. “It’s something you can’t control. Anytime you go into the playoffs, you want to be healthy. That’s the thing that we pray about. We’ve been continuing to pray about, ‘Hey, let’s stay healthy.’ I think they have a good mixture of leadership and experience. The guys have established a connectedness this year that I like.
“I think they’re continuing to just figure out how to, just because you’ve been playing together for years and you have a new coach doesn’t mean things are going to all of a sudden just click right and flow,” Houston continued.
“So when it gets a little clunky, they have bounced back and responded throughout this season. I think they’re in a good frame of mind to take it one game at a time.”
One Step at a Time
The Knicks have been an annual playoff contender since they acquired Brunson prior to the start of the 2022-23 season. New York has advanced to at least the semifinals every year since Brunson was acquired.
This season will represent a new challenge with the Pistons now being the team to beat in the East, the Celtics looking reloaded since the season debut of Jayson Tatum, and the Cavaliers looking like one of the best teams since acquiring Harden at the trade deadline.
When asked what the key is for the Knicks to make their first Finals run in 27 years, Houston said it’s a matter of taking it “one game at a time.”
“It’s taking it one game at a time,” said Houston.
“People don’t like that. It’s not a sexy answer. But when you’re doing this every day, that’s all you can think about. It makes no sense to think about — people outside want to do that because that’s natural. The people outside want to say, ‘Oh look, we’re going to face this team, we’re going to be here.’ That’s the last thing you’re thinking about when you’re inside the lines. Because that’s what kills you. If you’re walking down some steps, you’re not thinking about the third or fourth step down here, you’re thinking about the next one or you’re going to fall. So to me, that is the mentality.”
Praise for Brunson, KAT
Brunson and Towns have both been a part of multiple deep playoff runs during their careers, but the All-Star is seeking the first NBA Finals appearance of their careers. Houston gave them major praise, saying they’re both “hard workers.”
“They’re both extremely hard workers,” said Houston. “They have a multi-layered skill set. Karl has been an underrated passer throughout his career. That’s what makes the offense work. People are always going to say, ‘He needs to get down, he needs to do this.’ But you forget what a facilitator he is, that he can keep the ball moving. I think obviously Jalen, he can score with the ball, but he’s extremely effective off the ball, making plays, cutting. I think the things that you see that are dominant overrides the things that you don’t see which they’re really good at. That’s what I’ve learned to watch and appreciate.”
Houston said his best advice to them is staying “locked in on the moment.”
“I just have the same message for everybody,” said Houston.
“I don’t really go specifically and share individual conversations with them, but it’s really when they come to me, and it’s really on staying locked in on the moment. It’s really about that, staying connected with your teammates. I think that you gotta be able to tune out the noise and tune out distractions, but that’s something they already know. It’s really not a lot that I say that they don’t know. It’s just sometimes they hear different things from different people, but it’s really about staying in the moment, staying connected and tuning out a lot of the distractions and noise that really is neither here nor there.”
NY on Their Back
The 54-year-old spent nine of his 12 seasons with the Knicks and currently occupies a front office role for New York. He knows how special it would be for this current Knicks team to go on a similar Finals run to what he helped lead the franchise to back in 1999. Houston said it’s “fun” seeing the impact that it has on the city, which is the biggest media market in the country.
“It’s been fun, like the whole the whole time has been fun, kind of getting back seeing it from another side of it,” said Houston. “Seeing excitement when you’re in it, you don’t really appreciate the impact that it has on people outside of your close circle, until later on you hear it. So you don’t really see and hear in real time. People remind you of that back then. But getting to see how this has impacted the city and really energized a lot of people has really been fun. As a fan, and as someone who’s involved, it’s great.
“The league is fun,” Houston continued. “It’s great, basketball all across the board. You watch college, high school, when you watch this level of play when it’s played the right way. I will put that in there, when it’s played the right way. It’s really, really fun basketball to watch. Because these guys are super talented, they’re athletic, they’re skilled, and they’re more competitive than people give them credit for. I’m talking about across the board, not just our team. It’s fun to watch. It’s a fun, fun time for a basketball fan.”