BREAKING: The Athletic has made a trade.
New York Knicks beat writer Fred Katz is stepping into a new role this season as a senior writer focusing on national NBA stories. Filling the New York vacancy is longtime Detroit Pistons beat writer James Edwards III, who will move east to cover one of the league’s most interesting teams.
Katz and Edwards recently connected about the transition, the Knicks, how they plan to cover the team together at times and what they’re watching this upcoming season.
Katz: Beat writing is about passion. I always searched around the Knicks, digging into the tiniest crannies to find the most granular info I could unearth. This is life as a beat writer. You have to become obsessed with whatever you cover. In my case, that was a basketball team, but that passion doesn’t dissipate just because you no longer have the title.
In that sense, even as a national writer, I remain locked in on the Knicks, their upcoming season and what could become the best squad this city has seen in three decades. I have a list of story ideas in a Google doc, some of which will go untouched. My experience leaving the Washington Wizards beat for New York three years ago was no different.
I always felt like you covered the Pistons in a similar way. Your articles, James, are out there. No one else finds the anecdotes you do. At any given moment, I could see a James Edwards III story about how Langston Galloway’s pastry chef has become famous in niche areas of Michigan for a renowned Rodney Dangerfield impression … or something. Whatever barriers existed, you slid by them and found some of the most interesting stories in the NBA, even while covering a team that didn’t win many games.
So I will ask you now: What interests you about the Knicks? What are you obsessing over heading into this new job?
Edwards: Before I answer your question, I want to share this anecdote: Last summer, my mom moved to Florida. I was going through old boxes in her garage and found something I did in third grade – it was one of those “My name is…”, “I’m in (insert grade)…,” and “I want to be *this* when I grow up…” Well, I wanted to be a New York taxi driver who had spinning rims. I’m not kidding.
This isn’t that, but it’s damn close.
In all seriousness, the case could be made that there has never been a better time to cover the Knicks. They’ve had the most success they’ve had in a long time, the fans are beyond passionate and hungry for something stable, and they’re even set up for continued success in the future thanks to Jalen Brunson’s generosity. I was only ever going to leave Detroit if it were to cover a team with a fan base as dedicated as the one in the Motor City is, and the Knicks fans are in that same class. The opportunity to cover, potentially, the most exciting time in recent New York basketball history, for these fans, was something that enticed me to make the move.
I probably won’t write my first story about the Knicks until media day, but what I continue to think about over and over — and this is very specific to our profession — is relationship-building. I’m leaving the Pistons, where I covered all those guys the second they got into the NBA. They all knew me and I knew them.
Now in New York, somehow, despite being a beat reporter for seven seasons, I haven’t covered a single player on this Knicks roster despite covering a team that rostered 30-plus players this past season. I’ve probably covered close to 200 players during my time as a beat writer — but no one on this roster. Relationship-building is a huge part of the job because it leads to the type of interesting stories you mentioned above. I’m sure the relationships will come sooner rather than later, but that certainly has been something near the front of my mind since taking the job.
Katz: You’ll do fine on the relationships. You covered Taj Gibson last season in Detroit. That’s a gateway to Knicks beat writing.
Now, let’s talk hoops.
There is much to discuss about this team. How does Mikal Bridges fit? Can the defense be the best in the league? What happens with Julius Randle? Does he find a way to fit in beautifully? Or just somewhat? Does he extend? Does Donte DiVincenzo become the NBA’s best bench player? Could Josh Hart wear that crown? Does Mitchell Robinson stay healthy? And if so, how does he affect the offense? Does Jalen Brunson continue to get better, as he’s done every season?
I still plan to weigh in on the Knicks throughout the season. I’m not gone completely, just drifting back into the shadows … in a not-creepy way. When big moments occur, I’ll be there. But this is your territory now.
Tell me a storyline you are interested in tracking once training camp starts in a couple of weeks.
Edwards: Yeah, there is a lot to monitor this season. You even forgot to mention this one: Does Isaiah Hartenstein get the biggest cheer of the night when he returns to Madison Square Garden?
Of all the ones you brought up, there are a few that stand out. However, I think the Brunson one is the most fascinating. Whether you believe he’s a superstar, there’s no question that he’s a star in this league. What he did last season was otherworldly and, as you said, everything he’s done thus far in his career suggests there is another level to get to. But it’s fair to wonder if all the minutes he’s played the last few years will eventually catch up to him. It’s also fair to wonder if he has enough playmaking help next to him to lower his usage a little bit to preserve him — getting Randle back could help with that and even the addition of Bridges, too.
I like to bet on guys who have gotten better every season. Brunson is playing as confidently as any player in the NBA and has been for quite some time. Being in that mental space coupled with his skill set is usually a recipe for success.
Katz: It’s your first day on the job, which makes you veteran enough for me to put you on the spot.
The Boston Celtics are the reigning champs. The Philadelphia 76ers added Paul George to create a synergetic big three. The Indiana Pacers were conference finalists only a few months ago, which people seem to forget. The Milwaukee Bucks still have Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. The Miami Heat have a habit of surprising everyone. The Cleveland Cavaliers have talent and continuity. The Orlando Magic are young, feisty and thrive after taking fists to the mouth.
Where do you place the Knicks in the Eastern Conference mix?
Edwards: I have a theory that unless a team is dynasty-like they don’t come back the next year with the same hunger in the regular season. So, while Boston is talented and deep, just like the Knicks, I think they’ll be lacking that fire to go get it again. I get the sense the Celtics are just happy to remove the monkey from their back. Therefore, I do believe the Knicks finish the regular season with the best record in the East. And I’m not just saying that to pander to my new audience.
Depth and lineup versatility are so important to success because they diminish risk — an injury to a starter isn’t as bad for a team that has a guy on the bench who could start for a handful of other teams. The Knicks have a few of those guys. And as we’ve seen, especially in recent years, elite role players are the unsung heroes of championships.
Let’s use Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as an example. The case could be made that he was the Lakers’ third-best player during the 2020 NBA bubble title run and was great for Denver during its 2023 championship journey. New York has close to a handful of KCPs! It’s able to throw a bunch of 6-foot-6 to 6-foot-9 players at the likes of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, George, Giannis and so on. Oh, and all those guys can hit a shot at the other end of the floor, too.
Backup center aside, it’s hard to find a real flaw with this Knicks roster. Tom Thibodeau is a great coach, too, and these players appear to love playing for him. And as you know, Fred, getting players to play for a coach, at this level, is hard to do. It feels like a collective that is all in it together. That means something to me when trying to determine how far a team can go.
Can I ask you something before we get out of here? What is one tip you’d give to someone covering the Knicks for the first time?
Katz: Their cap sheet is a game of “Where’s Waldo?” Make sure to play it.
This is not the same experience as covering other organizations, because the front office is not as open as others, as has been chronicled ever since Leon Rose took over in 2020. Rose, the team president, has not done a solo news conference since assuming the top job in the franchise. But the beauty of covering the Knicks is that they operate with a purpose. They may not tell you what their priorities are, but sometimes, because they are so particular with their cap strategizing, their actions do the talking for them.
There were times when I was able to figure out that a certain type of move would go down just because of the way they structured a contract or a trade. Once you notice the detail in their transactions, it narrows down where to look. Now, instead of canvassing the whole league to figure out who they might sign, you have to make only a few calls, and you’re handling those with more information than most other people because you noticed the messaging that tied to their decision-making.
The Knicks move with a purpose. It’s the first time in decades we’ve been able to say that. So go find the purpose and you can find the story.
(Top photo of Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby: Stephen Gosling / NBAE via Getty Images)
