It’s very simple.
You know exactly why this series is more than just a 2nd round matchup.
Sure, the players can say stuff like this:
Yeah, sure, I get it.
There’s their own path.
They don’t have the same sort of hate as the 90s.
But for anyone else not old enough, sit down.
It’s a little Sunday history lesson as to why the Heat can suck our asses.
The origin - Pat the Rat
This fucking guy
I don’t care he went to Kentucky.
Pat Riley is a fucking rat and deserves to be treated as such.
You see Pat had the Knicks rolling.
He had them consistently as a top team in the East, challenging Jordan and all that.
Not just doing that, but joining the Heat.
There was tampering, the Heat got docked a draft pick, but it didn’t matter.
Pat the Rat decided to ditch us for a heated rival.
We know he’s still there.
We know he’s still running it like a fake mob boss.
Every time they show his slicked back hair just know we fucking hate him.
They were teammates in Charlotte where it ended poorly.
Zo was pissed about LJ’s contract.
Zo was traded to Miami and a year later LJ became a Knick.
Sure it sucked we lost Anthony Mason in 1996, but LJ filled in just fine.
This BULLSHIT move by PJ Brown brought the rivalry to the top.
I believe all the rumors and stories that Pat Riley had PJ Brown do this to start a brawl.
The Knicks blew a 3-1 lead because of this.
This is the ultimate moment of the rivalry.
The moment they overtook the Pacers as the fucking assholes.
Rematch, Fight, JVG pt.
2 - 1998
Remember how I told you about the Zo-LJ animosity?
This is why this fight happened even more than just Heat/Knicks.
It was 1998, round 1, Knicks about to tie the series 2-2.
We know what happened.
JVG hanging from the leg.
No hold me back bullshit.
That man has wheels to get onto the court like that.
This is Allan Houston.
This is reminding everyone why the Heat suck.
I still remember the exact location I was at when Houston made this shot.
Everything about it is perfect.
The Knicks jerseys with the black stripes.
The deciding game in the 70s.
Allan Houston’s celebration.
The final battle - 2000
This is where the 4-year run ends.
2000 when they met the Eastern Conference semifinals again.
Just another Knicks win to run 3-1 over the Heat in the 4-year stretch.
Sure, the Heat won the Atlantic Division more … regular season doesn’t count for shit.
Just ask the Bucks.
Actually don’t, they’ll tell you there’s no failure in sports.
Ewing and Camby really making their last run together.
This ended the fun times for the Knicks.
Power Ranking the worst of the Heat
5.
Pat the Rat
Present Day
So here we are.
Hours from game 1 of another Eastern Conference semifinals.
Pat Riley is still hanging around.
He’s still ruining the Knicks lives from time to time.
I blame James Dolan for that.
The villains are plenty in this series.
Jimmy Butler is born to be hated in the Garden.
Kyle Lowry will flop and piss all of us off.
I need the guys to realize this is a rivalry.
Pick it back up.
We won’t ever get back to the 90s, but for us fans?
We’re still there.
