Despite being recognized around the world as the “Mecca of Basketball”, New York and its NBA team the Knicks have experienced a string of bad luck in recent years — specifically during last summer when numerous superstar free-agents spurned the franchise. Another free-agent, but of the mid to lower-tier category, Nick Young, recently chimed in regarding the negativity surrounding the franchise. The 34-year-old argues that representation and portrayal plays a crucial role when it comes to public perception, especially in the case of the disenchanted Knicks.

Having been out of the playoffs since 2013, the current Knicks ensemble once again appears to be bound for the lottery, toiling near the bottom of the standings with a 7-23 slate.  The franchise's sorry state has often become the butt of the joke around the internet, while their failures have also been well-covered by the media.

Losers of seven of their last 10 games, the Knicks are currently dead last in points per game (103.1) and field goal percentage (42.8). The team is getting good production from Marcus Morris (18.4 points) and Julius Randle (17.3), while rookie RJ Barett and sophomore Mitchell Robinson have been steady as well.

Still, the Knicks look nothing like a cohesive unit and have already gone through one head coach when they fired David Fizdale earlier this month.

Young, on the other hand, is still without an NBA team. It won't make sense for the Knicks to sign him right now, but they certainly need all the help they can get to salvage some pride this season.