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| Do you have what it takes to push through, when the cards are stacked against you? |
"They will be forever remembered as the team that proved no lead is too big, and no guard is too small." - Tyler Murray, Knicks Radio during Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals
I'm not much of a Basketball guy.
I'm not much of a Sports guy in general.
But there's something about this year's Finals that really stuck out to me... And it's not just that the ultimate Underdogs in the fight: The New York Knicks, came out on top. It's the encapsulation of the entire season coming down to the final seconds of the game.
Yes, after 53 years, a team from my birth home won their Championship, ending a drought that even I joked would never be relinquished.
The crazy thing is, I have a tendency to be in places when the home team wins a Championship.
When the Yankees won the World Series in 2000 playing the Mets in the Final, I was there.
When Miami won their first NBA championship in the early 2000s, I was there.
When San Antonio last went on a tear to win their NBA championship back in the mid 2000s, I was there.
And now here I am, freshly moved back to San Antonio to see the home town boys play them boys from NYC... And the Knicks actually pulled off!
As Papoose said in his reaction video, they did it for the Town!
Funny enough I was never a die hard Knickerbocker. But what amazed me about this experience is how the team rallied together to win!
The Deal was Sealed in Game 4
I heard that this game was the true make or break for the series. The Knicks were down as much as 29 points and bounced all the way back to win by ONE! Seeing the Garden go from disbelief to holy shit in a matter of minutes behind a team that rose like a phoenix was GODLY. The Knicks were able to rally behind Jalen Brunson, pulling off the biggest turnaround victory in NBA history.
Even more amazing is the fact that the Knicks trailed and bounced back in every single Finals playoff game. Granted they lost Game 3, but even the games they won, they were trailing and bounced back. Nothing short of amazing and about damn divine timing!
Magic for a City in Need
Seeing these highlights reminded me that this was an injection of Life back into a City that refuses to rest with its flashing lights and larger than life ambitions, my birthplace. But New York City has seen and been through many hardships. It's been burned and built itself back up from the pebbles physically (the Bronx in the 80s) and figuratively (9/11). So many other cities got their turn also, but NYC carried the essence of a nation's pain within them. The grind and the hustle to survive or die trying.
It's no secret things have been getting harder just to be an American... Hell even to be a human being amongst the powers that be wanting to flex their muscle to acquire power and limitless funding that always seems to evade their mindsets and fingertips, their policies poison tipped arrows to the people that voted them in or they manipulated through the chaos of their long history do chaos.
I can go on, but I won't.
My point here is... The boroughs needed this win. The nation needed to witness this win. The world needed to see this win unfold as a display of much needed hope. Hope for the underdogs out there in every unique walk of life.
This Victory Taught Us the Power of Resilience
WE are all underdogs in our own right. Whether you are a Knick fan or not. Whether you watch sports or you don't, everyone loves an underdog story. Where the ones with egos and sway take a black eye or a two piece to the chin. We live for it. We thrive on it.
But you know what else? It reminds us that we too have that resilient spirit if we're willing to remain steady and embrace it.
As a man that has had an active struggle with battling back against inner fears and adversity about love, family, and using my creative voice to enlighten and uplift myself and others, it was so damn humbling to see how this victory unfolded.
When the Knicks were trailing by 29 in the 4th Quarter, the Garden was gasping for air but NO ONE LEFT!!! The fans stayed to watch their team play.
That's resilience in the midst of adversity.
That fighting spirit made its way to the team... And they put on a clinic second by second to come all the way back down to 1.2 seconds and leading by one point. Each point scored regenerated life into every single Knick there. Every single Knick in NYC, so around the country and around the world. Sure the Knicks played but the crowd didn't leave and they made sure the team never left them hanging! The true miracle on 34th was THAT game.
Seeing this unfold....listening to the crowd... Feeling the emotion as the announcers and commentators called every moment on YouTube, I was inspired by this.
I thought about my writing and what I'm in the midst of doing and something wanted to shift within me. This was a reminder to step up. To be bold. To not fold in the face of what I want for myself... And I want to be the best vernacular assassin and sorcerer I can be, with all my truth behind every bar.
I know I can do it. Especially because I witnessed a dragon of a team be slayed in one of the greatest playoff series I've ever seen glimpses of.
All hail the Knicks, they got that shit done in 5!
The Moral of the Story Is...
If you believe in something, no matter how many bumps you take, go after it.
It doesn't matter the pace.
It doesn't matter how many times you fail or fall short.
It doesn't matter how long it takes or how messy it is.
If you want it, it's yours. Just gotta stay in it. Adapt. Overcome. Accept. Be humble. Be Grateful. Repeat.
Understand we all have to go through adversity, maybe some kind of suffering or seemingly impossible odds or hurdles, but we
can get through these trying trials and times.
It starts with us acknowledging the reality of what we face, and the resources we have within to make it happen.
That's what the Knicks did.
Like the opening quite eluded to, not hurdle is too great, no effort is too Small.
So post up, and live with everything you've got.
Congrats to the 2026 New York Knicks. Game Over... For now.
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