The New York Knicks are a storied franchise dating back to the 40's. They have had great clashes with some of the best teams in the NBA. Rivalries is what makes sports great. Players show up even more hungry to beat the team they can't stomach. The NBA has produced some great rivalries, and the Knicks were part of many of them.
- Chicago Bulls
- Miami Heat
- Indiana Pacers
The Bulls-Knicks is a rivalry between the Chicago Bulls and the New York Knicks. The two basketball teams have played each other every year since the Bulls first joined the NBA in 1966. However, the rivalry began to grow in intensity during the late 1980s and early 90s. Both teams became huge playoff contenders during that era of exciting NBA basketball. This was due to many factors: the great frequency in which the teams competed against each other in high-stakes contests and playoff series; well-known players such as Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Patrick Ewing, and John Starks; the reputations of the team's respective cities; and personnel changes and conflicts between the teams. The two teams met in the playoffs seven times between 1981 and 1996, with the Bulls winning six of those series. They have not met in the playoffs since 1996.
The two teams met in the postseason four years in a row from 1997-2000, with the Knicks winning three of those series and the Heat winning one. The Heat-Knicks rivalry is known as one of the fiercest in the NBA, and Sports Illustrated considers it the third-best rivalry in the NBA. Prior to the 1997 NBA Playoffs, no two NBA teams had ever met in the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, with each series going to the maximum possible number of games. The aggressive nature of those four series, defensive struggles marked by numerous foul calls, and intensely physical play, can be traced to the highly defensive style of Pat Riley, former coach of both teams and the rivalries' central figure.
The Knicks-Pacers rivalry started in 1993 and quickly became one of the most bitter in NBA history. They met in the playoffs 6 times from 1993-2000, fueling a rivalry epitomized by the enmity between Reggie Miller and prominent Knick fan Spike Lee. Miller likened it to the Hatfield-McCoy feud, and The New York Times said in 1998 that it was "as combustible as any in the league". The rivalry gave Miller the nickname "The Knick-Killer." His clutch performances were frequently followed by jabs at Lee like the choke sign, adding fuel to the rivalry.
Proximity makes this rivalry intense. It stems from the rivalry between New York City and Boston, as well as the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry. The fact that Boston and New York City are only 190 miles apart contributes greatly to it. Knick killer and Celtic great, Paul Pierce, has taken great pride in beating the Knicks and taunting the fans on their home court. With New York having a revamped team with many stars, this rivarly has continued to grow. Recently in 2011, Boston swept New York in the first round of the playoffs 4-0.
The New York City area has a new team in town. The Brooklyn Nets. They moved from New Jersery, with a low fan base and losing ways. With all the hype this team has brought, fans are jumping ship and some are even switching from Knicks to Nets fans. Now that there is a team in Brooklyn, both teams want to show each other who really owns this city. This has become a crosstown rivalry. This rivalry will only heat up with time. The two teams have met in the playoffs three times, all while the Nets were playing in New Jersey, with the Knicks winning in 1983 and 1994, and the Nets winning in 2004.