Respectfully, the Knicks had been pretty buns in the 2000s before Amar’e Stoudemire stepped up and revived the franchise. His grand arrival during the first week of free agency in July 2010 was ceremoniously bookended by four simple words: “The Knicks are back.”

Madison Square Garden hadn’t seen a winning season since 2002. The World’s Most Famous Arena hadn’t hosted a playoff game since 2004. It had only been home to three All-Stars in the 2000s. 

Stoudemire switched all of that up. He became an All-Star in his first season wearing blue and orange, helped get the ‘Bockers back to the postseason and guided them to a winning record. 

His press conference statement proved to be true. 

The buzz around New York got loud quick. Real loud. Real quick. 

Because SLAM has always been headquartered in New York, we knew how much the city was falling in love with the Knicks again. It was obvious that S.T.A.T. had earned a cover. His post-dunk snarl and his burgeoning-signature spectacles in tow, Stoudemire didn’t just get the All-Star nod, head to the postseason and finish over .500–he became the first Knick on the cover of SLAM in over a decade. 

The Knicks were certainly back and it was in large part because of Amar’e Stoudemire.

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