Smash Goldman's Computer Before He Writes About the Knicks Again

The New York Knickerbockers are 8-1 and playing great basketball.

I know it's way early, but they look to be strong contenders in the NBA's Eastern Conference.

Everything seems to be clicking for this year's team. They're playing great defense. Melo looks willing to take on any role each night to help his Knicks, our Knicks dammit, thrive.

I don't know about you, but I can't wait to watch the team roll the Brooklyn Nets next week. I mean it was great watching them beat Miami on opening night, but…

Wait!

Could I have possibly just jinxed the Knicks by lackadaisically predicting they would "roll the Brooklyn Nets" next week?

Nah. I don't believe in jinxes.

But you know what?

I got awfully close to believing in some kind of weird, wacky voodoo force yesterday when I was strolling through the library where I work and, just by chance, picked up a large blue book containing a collection of several "New York" magazines from 1994.

I flipped through the pages and saw a photo of Patrick Ewing with his arms raised toward the Madison Square Garden roof with a headline that read: Can the Knicks Repeat? (After They Win This Year, That Is).

Now, I'm not a New Yorker – I just happen to be a Knicks fan living in Virginia – so I had never seen this article. I have to say, yeah, I was a bit stunned. (I could hardly work the rest of the day.)

We Knicks fans all remember that season. We, I mean the Knickerbockers, got so close to winning the title. Mark Messier had already seemingly willed the Rangers to a Stanley Cup title, and we were sure Ewing could and would do the same for us orange and blue faithful.

But a strange thing happened on the road to the title.

Several John Starks jumpers clanged off the rim in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, and the Houston Rockets – good lord, the Houston Rockets – were world champs.

Sorry, John, we can't really blame it all on you, but you were a pretty reasonable scapegoat back then. After all, you did kill it in Game 6.

After I saw the "Can the Knicks Repeat?" article, I was right then ready to go back 18 years and blame its author William Goldman – yeah, the guy who wrote The Princess Bride – for the jinxing the team. You know, Freakonomist Stephen Dubner edited the article, so I was ready to blame him, too.

But as I said earlier, I don't believe in jinxes. However, this, my friends, nearly made me a believer.

Now as the Knicks roll along – they crushed New Orleans Tuesday night like a good team should squish a bad team – let's hope the team can stay healthy and continue to improve.

They're not the most dominant team in the NBA or even the East – that's still the defending champions Miami Heat – but they certainly look to be building a championship-contending squad.

Now, let's just somehow find a way to keep Goldman from writing a sequel to his '94 article. 

You play… to win… the Big Mac

McDonald's

Ok, that's not exactly what Herm Edwards said 10 years ago, but it's what Joakim Noah was shooting for Tuesday night.

Here's the deal: each game the Chicago Bulls score 100 points at home in the United Center, McDonald's hands out a coupon for a free Big Mac to everyone in attendance. On Tuesday, with the Bulls leading the Orlando Magic 99-93, Noah heaved up a three-pointer with 3.8 seconds to play in hopes of scoring two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun for everyone.

“I got caught up in the moment,” Noah said after the game. “I regret it a little bit. It wasn’t a good shot."

The Bulls got to 99 points when Noah made one of two free throws with 23 seconds to play. Maybe missing that one free throw, leaving the crowd 1-point shy of free burgers, put a little pressure on Noah at the end of the game.

Bulls Head Coach Tom Thibodeau was on Jim Rome's radio show today and didn't sound pleased with Noah's late-game shot selection, saying only that he had talked with Noah about the shot.

Lighten up, fellas. 

There were less than four seconds left to play and the Bulls had a six point lead when Noah's shot clanked.

The game was over. Times are tough, and dammit, people gotta eat.