Historic Win Isn't Moving Knicks

"The goal is always to win a championship. So we've got eight [playoff] wins, we need 16 and each one gets harder and harder. So you've got to keep fighting and you've got to understand how important that is."

After making them wait a quarter-century to celebrate advancement into the Eastern Conference Finals—as well as one extra year to commemorate a clinched playoff series at MSG—the Knicks made sure that fans could savor this special victory.

New York took a lasting double-figure lead at the onset of the second period and never looked back, going up by as much as 41 before somewhat relenting in the final stages. Thibodeau even surrendered to fan demands for the insertion of PJ Tucker and other deep reserves, ending one of the few sources of drama in the final of a rollercoaster series.

The celebration of the Knicks themselves, however, was relatively muted. Relatively blank faces dotted the sidelines, breaking out into smiles only while shaking hands and sharing well-wishes with the vanquished Celtics. Had it not been for the warm weather outside and the playoff decals plastered on the sideline, one would be excused for asking if the win came in early February rather than late May.

Knicks captain Jalen Brunson, who began his term at the on-court helm by expressing his desire to see Manhattan shatter its second-floor ceiling, was more than happy to explain why he and his proteges were so sheltered in victory.

“I feel like we played 48 minutes tonight," Brunson said, per Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News. "The way we competed and communicated, definitely one of the better performances, I feel like we have a long way to go, just [because of] the confidence we have in each other and everything, just knowing who we are, we have to be unsatisfied.”

The same critics that doubted the Knicks' chances will no doubt be ready to crown this season a success after the upset of the defending champions. It appears that Brunson's message about healthy discontent, however, has already broken through.

"It's just more to go. We're not done," Mikal Bridges said in video from SNY. "That's what it is. We came out there tonight and played hard, handled business. But ... our season's not over. We've got so much more to go. I think we play on Wednesday, so we get ready, prepare for [the Pacers], whole different team, whole new series."