THE FUCKING KNICKS

 The Fucking Knicks.

Forget the flashy dunks and miracle shots, the real 90s Knicks were all about raw, in-your-face toughness. The perfect example? Not Starks’ famous dunk, not LJ’s four-point play. Nope. The real deal went down on December 30, 1992, in Indianapolis.

So, Pacers’ Rik Smits is up top with the ball, passing to a cutting Reggie Miller. But before Miller can get there, Charles Oakley, as solid as a brick wall, plants himself and throws a shoulder that sends the beanpole guard flying. The crowd groans, Marv Albert just says "Whoa!" and the refs? They’re too stunned to call anything and somehow hand the ball back to the Pacers.

Donnie Walsh, the Pacers GM, sees that hit and thinks, "I need two guys like Oakley." The league, though? Not so impressed. They slap Oakley with a $10,000 fine. Knicks’ president Dave Checketts calls up commissioner David Stern, raising hell and threatening to bar the league disciplinarian from the Garden.

March 23, 1993, Knicks vs. Suns. Should've been a regular game, but it turned into an all-out brawl. Suns' Kevin Johnson decks Doc Rivers on the wing. Benches clear, fists fly, and Greg Anthony, rocking some ridiculous pajama-pattern shirt, sucker punches Johnson. Riley’s Armani pants get shredded in the chaos. The league fines 21 players almost $300,000 and suspends Anthony for five games.

The Knicks? They didn’t give a damn. Their motto: "We’re gonna win something tonight. Either the game or the fight." But that street-fight mentality? It came back to bite them.

Jump to 1997. The NBA’s new rules aimed to curb the Knicks’ roughness. No more hand-checking, flagrant fouls meant suspensions, and leaving the bench during a fight was a big no-no. The Knicks were ready for a title run. Then, Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semis, P.J. Brown flips Charlie Ward. Knicks’ players rush to back him up, and they get hit with suspensions.

The league’s ruling? Ewing, Starks, Houston, Johnson, and Ward all suspended, with punishments split over Game 6 and Game 7. Knicks’ lawyers tried to fight it, but no luck. They lose both games and their best shot at a title slips away.

Charles Oakley was the embodiment of Knicks' toughness. He racked up 9 flagrant fouls in the 1992-93 season, leading the league and doubling the total of the next closest player. Oakley was known for his rebounding prowess, averaging over 10 boards a game for five consecutive seasons with the Knicks. But his physicality often overshadowed his skill. This was a guy who'd knock you on your ass and then rip the ball out of your hands while you were still seeing stars.

Then there was John Starks, the emotional spark plug of the team. Starks could shoot the lights out on one night and then brick everything the next. His unpredictability was part of his charm. But don’t let the wild shooting fool you; Starks played with a chip on his shoulder, undrafted and fighting for every inch on the court. He averaged 19 points per game in the 1993-94 season and was an All-Star that year, but he was also known for his defense and tenacity.

And let's not forget Patrick Ewing, the cornerstone of the Knicks. Ewing was a beast, putting up 24 points and 11 rebounds a game in the early 90s. But his dominance wasn’t just in the stats; it was in the way he patrolled the paint, daring anyone to come near. Yet, even Ewing, with all his greatness, got caught in the league's crosshairs during the 1997 suspensions.

The Knicks felt the league was always gunning for them, watching every move. Whether true or not, one thing’s clear: the 90s Knicks were the NBA’s biggest bullies, and they reveled in it. They turned the Garden into a warzone every night, and damn if it wasn’t the most entertaining thing to watch.