Championships take sacrifice, and the New York Knicks may know that better than most.
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As the team began its winning playoff run, James Dolan made an unusual request of his players. Say what you want about it, but it likely gave the NBA team the "edge" Dolan was looking for.
James Dolan Asked the Knicks to Give Up What?
Yesterday, Knicks players Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart shared footage on social media of Dolan's impassioned plea from April 3, several days before they headed into the NBA Playoffs. They shared it for their podcast, The Roommates Show.
"I had this idea that maybe you should give up sex for the next 10 weeks," Dolan said.
He added, "You don't have to give up sex for the next 10 weeks, but the Spartans, they denied themselves, right, so that they could have an edge. Get the edge. Go home, talk to your wives... Don't tell them it was my idea. But let them know what this is going to be like, what your commitment is going to be like, and that they're going to have to sacrifice, too"
Dolan knew then that the Knicks could "go all the way." He added that he had "never felt closer to achieving that goal."
However, he said to get there, "the big word is sacrifice."
Did Jalen Brunson and the Knicks Do What They Were Asked?
Dolan continued to talk about the concept of sacrifice with the Knicks players.
He said, "You have to have a discussion with yourself about what these next 10 weeks are ... because it's only 10 weeks. It's not a long time. But if you can now focus yourselves, sacrifice everything around you for these next 10 weeks to win that championship, I believe you could do it ... I believe you know you could do it. But will you do it?"
Dolan said he would give the players' partners promise rings if they won the championship.
"I will buy a ring for each one of your significant others because their contribution is going to be very important to this team to win," he declared. "If you don't have a significant other, most of you do, find someone that is sharing this journey with you for the next 10 weeks and make that person come with you, right? And we'll give that person a ring."
He concluded with the mantra: "Do it, commit to it, go for it."
While we may never know for sure if Brunson, Hart, and the other players made the sacrifice Dolan asked them to make, a post by Hart's wife, Shannon, may offer a clue.
She posted a picture of Josh and her twin sons with the Larry O'Brien Trophy. The caption read: "An Unforgettable Night."
You can watch Dolan's speech below.
