The New York Knicks are locked in a heated playoff battle with the Atlanta Hawks, in what most expect to be a close series.
But ask RJ Barrett and Knicks fans everywhere and they'll tell you that just getting to where they are now has already been special.
The gravity of New York's success throughout the 2020-21 season hasn't been lost on the Knicks sophomore, as he spoke via a report from Sportsnet's Michael Grange.
“Winning in New York City like a whole, a whole different level,” Barrett said in an interview earlier this week. “To see how, even with the limited amount of fans we have, how loud it gets in there and then after the game, just seeing videos on Twitter of people going crazy outside the arena, it’s been a lot of fun. It’s just been such an honour to be able to kind of help change things around.”
Despite the even loftier success of the rival franchise in New York in the Brooklyn Nets, there's just a different level of magic with the rise of this Knicks squad that nobody expected to amount to much this season. The emergence of Julius Randle has been the talk of New York despite having three superstars and two former MVP's on the other team.
RJ Barrett has also been stellar for the Knicks, especially with regard to his improved shooting. Barrett has upped his scoring average from 14.3 to 17.6, but it's the efficiency that's really been the key. After horrible shooting splits of 40.2%/32.0%/61.4% that would make any NBA Fantasy manager steer clear, Barrett now shoots at a respectable 44.1% from the field and an above average 40.1% from downtown.
“Just seeing the positive results is great, it feels good because you know there's just been so much work that's gone into it,” said Barrett. “And when teams were in the bubble last year fighting for a championship, I was in the gym, locked away in Florida, working hard on my shot every day; two to three workouts a day. And to see it pay off during the season, it has definitely been a great feeling for me.”
The Knicks will need Barrett to show up in a big way to overcome the Atlanta Hawks and make some noise this postseason.
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