The Knicks are about to add something to the Garden rafters that New York hasn’t seen in 53 years, and the big question now is how much company that banner gets.
On October 20, the Knicks will open the regular season against the Philadelphia 76ers, and the night is set to be a full-on celebration. The 2025-26 NBA championship banner will rise, and the players will receive their rings.
That much is certain. What isn’t settled is whether the team will stop there.
New York has not hung a banner since the 2012-13 season, when it celebrated an Atlantic Division title. Back in the days of the 1969-70 and 1972-73 championship seasons, the franchise only put up title banners. That history makes it possible the Knicks could keep things simple again, even though this group has more to commemorate than just the NBA crown.
The Knicks are also the reigning Eastern Conference champions, and they became only the third team ever to win the NBA Cup. The first two NBA Cup winners, the Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks, both hung banners for the achievement.
New York went a different direction. After the Knicks captured the NBA Cup, James Dolan said the team would instead hang an NBA championship banner, and that call turned out to be right after New York beat the San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals.
There’s still a chance the franchise could revisit that decision. The Knicks made history by becoming the first team to win both the NBA Cup and the NBA Finals in the same season, and the question is whether that earns a separate banner or just some form of recognition on the championship banner itself.
Personally, I think the Knicks should find a way to celebrate becoming the first team to win the NBA Cup and the NBA Finals with a banner. How they do that is above my pay grade, but the first two teams to win the NBA Cup didn't even get past the first round of the playoffs. Plus, the Knicks defeated the Spurs in the NBA Cup Finals, the same team they beat in the NBA Finals.
Either way, the night figures to be a special one in a building where the wait has dragged on for generations. Walt Frazier was 28 when he won his second title with the Knicks, and he had to wait until he was 81 to see them win another. That tells you everything about how long this has been coming.
No wonder get-in prices are already absurd. Fans have been waiting a long time for a moment like this, and now it’s finally here.
In Other News...
Andre Drummond Brings Knicks More Than A Typical Backup Center
Andre Drummond arrives in New York as more than a familiar big body off the bench. The Knicks signed a veteran center who has continued to refine his game late in his career, showing better efficiency and a more rounded offensive touch than the typical reserve rim protector. For a team that values toughness, rebounding and depth in the frontcourt, that kind of evolution gives Drummond a little extra appeal beyond the usual insurance-policy role.
Drummond also comes in with a place in NBA history still within reach, which adds another layer to his late-career chase. He sits 27th on the leagues all-time rebounding list with 11,513 boards, and the next name above him is Dennis Rodman, a standard-bearer for one of the leagues great rebounders. If Drummond keeps his place in a rotation and stays productive, the Knicks could end up watching a personal milestone race unfold in the background while they sort out their own season. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Just Added An Awkward Karl-Anthony Towns Tension Before Opening Night
With opening night getting closer, the Knicks have chosen to put extension talks on hold for now, a move aimed at keeping the focus on basketball and the clubs payroll situation rather than contract drama. The team has been working with an eye on staying under the second apron while still trying to sort out long-term deals, but no agreement has been reached yet for either Josh Hart or Karl-Anthony Towns.
For Towns, the delay landed as a real letdown. He made it clear he understood the business side of the decision and said the priority has to be the season, but the timing still created an awkward layer around a roster that is supposed to be settling in for a fresh start. The Knicks can revisit the talks later, though for now the unanswered question is how that contract picture will affect the mood around two important pieces of their rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Knicks Roster Battle Is Raising One Tough Question Early
The preseason has already started to sort out the Knicks roster picture, and the early minutes have not been distributed evenly. Veterans such as Ochai Agbaji, Drew Eubanks and Tony Bradley have been on the edge of the rotation look, while the staff has leaned more toward younger options as it evaluates who fits best around the groups core and what the team still needs before opening night.
James Wiseman and Jaden Akins have been among the more noticeable beneficiaries of that approach, with both getting extended chances to show they can help. Wiseman has flashed real efficiency in limited action, and Akins has been one of the quieter surprises so far, but the bigger question still lingers around whether the Knicks may eventually use a trade to create more room and make these preseason performances matter even more. [Read more 🡒]