James Dolan’s Playoff Speech to Knicks Players, and a Title Run That Followed

New reports in the United States on Sunday added new details to the New York Knicks’ remarkable championship run, which ended the franchise’s 53-year title drought. According to the story, owner James Dolan, long disliked in New York before the team’s recent success, walked into the locker room just before the playoffs began and delivered a speech that surprised the players.

NBA reporter Ian Begley said Dolan jokingly asked the team “not to have sex during the playoffs.” He also told the players to resolve any issues by speaking to each other directly, rather than sending passive-aggressive comments to the media. Beyond the joke, Dolan emphasized how much he believed in the team, how confident he was that it could end the club’s championship drought, and how important it was to put the team first over the next 10 weeks.

People familiar with the details said the speech appears to have had an effect. Ten weeks later, the Knicks won the championship, their first in 53 years.