LINK

Hollinger is a stats guy so he decides to use stats to rank each of the franchises based on these criteria:

1. Winning matters.
2. Winning in the playoffs matters more.
3. Winning a championship is far and away the best thing that can happen.
4. Watching superstars is amazing, even if the team around them isn't any good.
5. Intangibles matter: Fans want to like and admire the team they're cheering.

Anyhow, long story short: #1 - Lakers. #2 - Celtics.

Knicks? #16. Nothing here we don't already know...

16. NEW YORK KNICKS: 48.16 points POINTS PER SEASON (1946-2009)
Wins: 2,400
Playoff wins: 173
Series wins: 39
Titles: 2
All-Stars: 85
Best player: Patrick Ewing
Best coach: Red Holzman
Best team: 1969-70 (60-22, won NBA title)
Intangibles: -100. Riley-era teams set league back years

No franchise's history is more easily identified with a single moment than the Knicks: Willis Reed limping onto the court for Game 7 of the 1970 Finals against the Lakers, and leading New York to its first NBA championship. Never mind that Clyde Frazier had 36 points and 19 assists that day. It is Reed that everyone remembers.

Otherwise, Knicks fans remember mostly heartache. New York won another title in 1973, but since then, it's been one disappointment after another: Charles Smith missing four straight point-blank shots against the Bulls, Patrick Ewing blowing a bunny at the buzzer against Indiana, John Starks shooting 2-for-19 against the Rockets and suspensions costing them a playoff series against the Miami Heat.

Those teams in the '90s were the most successful since the '73 champs, but not aesthetically. The Knicks employed a physical, bruising style that gave them one of the best defenses of all time but also produced an undeniable decrease in the game's watchability as other teams began to emulate their muddying tactics. It took a decade to clean up the game in their wake.

Yet those teams were the high notes. In between Reed and Ewing were a series of middling teams, and following Ewing was the preposterous Isiah Thomas era, one that turned the team into a laughingstock. It's not as memorable, but the 'Bockers were also cellar dwellers for most of the two decades before Reed came, missing seven straight postseasons in the early '60s.

While New York's hallowed Madison Square Garden remains the game's mecca, surprisingly few stars have passed through its gates. Write down your choices for the 20 best players ever and your list is unlikely to contain a Knick. An impressive six players from the 1972-73 championship team reached the Hall of Fame (Frazier, Reed, Dave DeBusschere, Earl Monroe, Jerry Lucas and Bill Bradley), but that owes as much to their inflated status as denizens of the Big Apple as to their dominance on the court.

Here's his complete list. You can go to the link to see what he said about the others (11-30 are all Insider articles):


No. 1: Los Angeles Lakers
No. 2: Boston Celtics
No. 3: San Antonio Spurs
No. 4: Chicago Bulls
No. 5: Phoenix Suns
No. 6: Philadelphia 76ers
No. 7: Utah Jazz
No. 8: Portland Trail Blazers
No. 9: Indiana Pacers
No. 10: Houston Rockets
No. 11: Milwaukee Bucks
No. 12: Oklahoma City Thunder
No. 13: Detroit Pistons
No. 14: Miami Heat
No. 15: Orlando Magic
No. 16: New York Knicks
No. 17: Dallas Mavericks
No. 18: Denver Nuggets
No. 19: Cleveland Cavaliers
No. 20: Golden State Warriors
No. 21: New Jersey Nets
No. 22: Atlanta Hawks
No. 23: Washington Wizards
No. 24: New Orleans Hornets
No. 25: Sacramento Kings
No. 26: Minnesota Timberwolves
No. 27: Toronto Raptors
No. 28: Charlotte Bobcats
No. 29: Los Angeles Clippers
No. 30: Memphis Grizzlies

lol, nice. this is what i was saying. outside of 69, 72 and a deceiving blip in the 90s, this team is an average basketball club, making the 'everyone wants to be here' hype unwarranted and delusional.

WTF.. Thunder 12?

So are we all putting false hope into a bad franchise? I dont think so, the past decade has been bad but with Mike D here and Donnie I think the right moves are being made. It will still take time but we will see an NY championship in our lifetimes.

Posted by Knicksfan:

Posted by nyk4ever:

WTF.. Thunder 12?

Yeah, so freaking random.

Without looking at it, its gotta be the Sonics.

Should have been Thunder/Sonics so it doesnt look so damn goofy.

The stats lovers are probably having a wet dream thinking of this thread.