"But cities endure. They endure because the people who are there are there for the other people...(Cities) know they will outlast so much of what surrounds them, because (cities) have what nations can only envy: people who do not need a flag or a song or a recited pledge to feel they have need for each other."
For Democracy to endure, we must resist the authoritarianism of the MAGA gangsters & grifters: Bring on a Blue Tsunami. #VoteBlue!
A wonderful essay, Anand! I am a long- suffering Knicks fan, back to the days even before the 1979 and 73 championships. Welcome. I had an idea last night that you may like as I thought back to the Miracle Mets of 1969:
“If the Mets can win the World Series, the United States can get out of Vietnam.”
Yes, and NYC is about the grit to never give up that the Knicks showed.
And, as one of the ESPN commentator said on Saturday night, NYC is a city of not enough space for a football field or a baseball field or a soccer field. I'd add, too, not enough room or money for the equipment heavy sports. All you need is a ball (borrowed, shared or yours) and a playground with a hoop and anyone can play. So, the Knicks' victory is a victory for anyone, for NYC, for New Yorkers and all the rest who made something out of nothing - - insisted on it, despite...
The celebration is a catharsis for a weary people in a wearing time. Whew, finally, something to release that pent up joy for - -to smile for, to root for, to scream for, to be happy for.
Thank you Knicks, for reminding us what it means to be a human -- not just in pursuit, but finding happiness.
I'm a native San Franciscan and found myself rooting for the Knicks like my life depended on it. Some of my family were pulling for the Spurs (after all we love Popovich who mentored Steve Kerr of our beloved Warriors, the Popovich who also loves San Francisco). Reflecting on why the Knicks, I concluded that it was the under doggedness of it all. Brunson's David to Wembenyama's Goliath (and there's no doubt Wembie is a GOAT in the making), and the coastal urban connection to NYC and what all that means. And of course, the Knicks, like the Dubs, were ripe for a championship after a decades long drought. Your essay nails it. What a glorious series. Congratulations, New York!
I am cheering for the Knicks' New York. I am visiting rural Virginia, where people don't talk to strangers. It made me go up to a scowling, young, white guy with a sunburn and an older Middle Eastern woman and shout "hi!" as I got into the public whirlpool.
I did it because that's what New Yorkers do: it's how we roll.
For me the Knicks win was a good omen, a sign that we shall defeat this Trump/MAGA attack on our Constitution and our Democracy. Your essay fired a lot of inspiration and motivation for the underdogs of the world to keep fighting for good causes, righteous reasons and humanitarian resolutions. Thank you.
I rooted for the Knicks in the 70's, and this essay brings back memories of how much the city loved that team of Reed, Debusschere, Bradley, Frazier and first Barnett and then Earl the Pearl Monroe. I also remember how the city embraced the Super Bowl winning Jets, the World Series winning Mets, and the multiple World Series winning Yankees, especially in 1977 when the Bronx was coming apart at the seams.
Thank you for this essay. Once a New Yorker, always a New Yorker, even if I can only dream about being able to afford to live there now. I liked it better when my aunt's rent for a studio on Patchin Place in the Village was all of $98 a month.
And what you are describing, Anand, I think is community. And community is one of the things that will get us past and over under and to the other side of this time.
Here in Los Angeles, my equally sports-impaired friends and I have been elated about the Knicks. Thank you for explaining why. Your joy has bounced clear over to this coast.
Thank you for that ray of sunshine! I am not a sports fan either, but I am so happy for New York and the Knicks. I can’t get enough of the videos of throngs of people laughing and cheering in the streets, people hanging on fire escapes, or leaning out of balconies just to be together regardless of any differences.
This is a beautiful essay. Perfectly encapsulates what it is to live here in NYC.
Absolutely beautiful. To me, New York has always been the home for anyone who doesn’t have a home elsewhere. Now more needed than ever
Superb essay. The thousands who booed Trump at game four in the Garden said it all.
"But cities endure. They endure because the people who are there are there for the other people...(Cities) know they will outlast so much of what surrounds them, because (cities) have what nations can only envy: people who do not need a flag or a song or a recited pledge to feel they have need for each other."
For Democracy to endure, we must resist the authoritarianism of the MAGA gangsters & grifters: Bring on a Blue Tsunami. #VoteBlue!
Thank you for this. Such beautiful writing, filled with truth and incandescence.
A wonderful essay, Anand! I am a long- suffering Knicks fan, back to the days even before the 1979 and 73 championships. Welcome. I had an idea last night that you may like as I thought back to the Miracle Mets of 1969:
“If the Mets can win the World Series, the United States can get out of Vietnam.”
— Tom Seaver, 1969
“If the Knicks can win the NBA
Championship, the American
People can defeat Trumpism.”
— Knicks Nation , 2026
I’ll send you the meme via email.
Yes, and NYC is about the grit to never give up that the Knicks showed.
And, as one of the ESPN commentator said on Saturday night, NYC is a city of not enough space for a football field or a baseball field or a soccer field. I'd add, too, not enough room or money for the equipment heavy sports. All you need is a ball (borrowed, shared or yours) and a playground with a hoop and anyone can play. So, the Knicks' victory is a victory for anyone, for NYC, for New Yorkers and all the rest who made something out of nothing - - insisted on it, despite...
The celebration is a catharsis for a weary people in a wearing time. Whew, finally, something to release that pent up joy for - -to smile for, to root for, to scream for, to be happy for.
Thank you Knicks, for reminding us what it means to be a human -- not just in pursuit, but finding happiness.
I'm a native San Franciscan and found myself rooting for the Knicks like my life depended on it. Some of my family were pulling for the Spurs (after all we love Popovich who mentored Steve Kerr of our beloved Warriors, the Popovich who also loves San Francisco). Reflecting on why the Knicks, I concluded that it was the under doggedness of it all. Brunson's David to Wembenyama's Goliath (and there's no doubt Wembie is a GOAT in the making), and the coastal urban connection to NYC and what all that means. And of course, the Knicks, like the Dubs, were ripe for a championship after a decades long drought. Your essay nails it. What a glorious series. Congratulations, New York!
I am cheering for the Knicks' New York. I am visiting rural Virginia, where people don't talk to strangers. It made me go up to a scowling, young, white guy with a sunburn and an older Middle Eastern woman and shout "hi!" as I got into the public whirlpool.
I did it because that's what New Yorkers do: it's how we roll.
For me the Knicks win was a good omen, a sign that we shall defeat this Trump/MAGA attack on our Constitution and our Democracy. Your essay fired a lot of inspiration and motivation for the underdogs of the world to keep fighting for good causes, righteous reasons and humanitarian resolutions. Thank you.
Brunson proved that there is still a place for old-fashioned grit and guts.
I rooted for the Knicks in the 70's, and this essay brings back memories of how much the city loved that team of Reed, Debusschere, Bradley, Frazier and first Barnett and then Earl the Pearl Monroe. I also remember how the city embraced the Super Bowl winning Jets, the World Series winning Mets, and the multiple World Series winning Yankees, especially in 1977 when the Bronx was coming apart at the seams.
Thank you for this essay. Once a New Yorker, always a New Yorker, even if I can only dream about being able to afford to live there now. I liked it better when my aunt's rent for a studio on Patchin Place in the Village was all of $98 a month.
A love letter to NYC.
And what you are describing, Anand, I think is community. And community is one of the things that will get us past and over under and to the other side of this time.
Here in Los Angeles, my equally sports-impaired friends and I have been elated about the Knicks. Thank you for explaining why. Your joy has bounced clear over to this coast.
**Big, happy sigh**
Thank you for that ray of sunshine! I am not a sports fan either, but I am so happy for New York and the Knicks. I can’t get enough of the videos of throngs of people laughing and cheering in the streets, people hanging on fire escapes, or leaning out of balconies just to be together regardless of any differences.
A beautiful tribute to a city that shines as exemplary of what all cities strive to be … a haven for all. Magic.