Timestamp Notes
00:00 Dave introduces the emergency Knicks episode with Kevin McEnroe and pitches the idea of Addicted to the Knicks / KA.
01:15 Kevin talks about being “hooked on the Knicks” before drugs and how Knicks fandom became one of the first things he truly lived and died by.
02:16 Kevin connects Knicks fandom to sobriety — rituals, obsession, hope, and learning to embrace that part of himself again.
03:00 Dave talks about the Dopey audience slowly becoming Knicks fans through his insanity.
03:25 Kevin describes NYC buzzing with Knicks energy — orange and blue, subway nods, camaraderie, “Let’s go Knicks.”
03:55 Dave connects the Knicks Finals to his own timeline: 27 years ago he was on heroin, now he’s 52 and sober.
04:25 Kevin talks about losing the ability to care during addiction and getting that childhood sports purity back in recovery.
04:50 Kevin tells his first Knicks memory: going to a game with his dad and brother in 1995.
06:00 Kevin recalls leaving early with his dad and hearing Reggie Miller score eight points in nine seconds from a cab.
07:15 Dave and Kevin talk Knicks superstition, merch rituals, and not wanting to jinx the team.
08:30 Dave remembers becoming a Knicks fan during the Pitino / Bomb Squad era with Trent Tucker, Mark Jackson, Gerald Wilkins, and Johnny Newman.
10:00 Kevin compares Knicks fandom to church, hope, fate, and something bigger than himself.
11:24 Dave tells the story of sneaking into Madison Square Garden during a Knicks/Bulls playoff game.
13:00 Dave tries multiple failed schemes to get into the Garden before finding an open door into the Paramount Theater.
14:20 A “greasy stoner kid” helps Dave and his friend sneak through the kitchen into MSG.
16:09 Dave says the Knicks didn’t win, but the experience became Knicks lore and a defining memory.
16:45 Kevin talks about missing the 1999 Knicks run because he was too strung out and disconnected.
17:45 Kevin says getting sober helped him care again — about the Knicks, family, writing, and life.
18:30 Kevin explains the Knicks watch party at MSG for the away Finals game in San Antonio.
19:15 Dave and Kevin talk about Knicks fans gathering like church, and how the team creates New York community.
20:05 Kevin reflects on the bad Knicks years, loving David Lee, Nate Robinson, Knicks Tape, Melo, JR Smith, Tyson Chandler, and Steve Novak.
21:00 Dave and Kevin talk about recovery giving people back “interest” — the ability to actually care about something.
22:00 Kevin explains how drugs stripped away interest, relationships, and the ability to care beyond getting well.
23:00 Kevin talks about becoming a raw version of yourself again in sobriety, like being twelve years old and loving the Knicks.
23:30 Kevin remembers Anthony Mason as his Knicks hero — tough, unafraid, New York carved into his head.
25:15 Dave talks about getting furious at NBA analysts picking San Antonio and how his daughter tells him to lower expectations.
26:00 Kevin says he likes when people pick against the Knicks because it gives them the underdog energy.
27:20 Dave decides this will go out as the full emergency Knicks episode.
28:00 Kevin previews Game 1 and says he believes the Knicks can win, maybe Knicks in six.
29:00 Dave and Kevin talk about Brunson, Wembanyama, KAT pulling Wemby out, and Mitchell Robinson concerns.
30:00 Dave worries about Mitchell Robinson and says he should be in a hyperbaric chamber.
31:20 Kevin talks about the Knicks team chemistry and how different this team feels from old Knicks teams built around one star.
32:00 Dave and Kevin talk Brunson, Mike Brown, trusting teammates, and the Knicks unlocking something special.
33:30 Kevin admits he was wrong about firing Tibbs and wrong about Karl-Anthony Towns.
35:00 Dave talks about Knicks fans at Katz’s, including people who abandoned the team for the Nets.
36:00 Dave says fans can come back, while Kevin says the people who never bailed get to feel something extra.
37:00 Dave says this moment feels as sweet as he always imagined.
38:00 Kevin talks about being in a daze, trying to stay in the moment, and embracing the joy of the Knicks making the Finals.
39:30 Dave and Kevin agree: if the Knicks lose, it will hurt — but if they win, they don’t know how they’ll deal with it.
40:00 Kevin plugs Serenity Side Down on Substack.
40:30 Dave invites non-Knicks fans onto the bandwagon and closes with Kevin: stay strong Dopey Nation and toodles for Chris.