The New York Knicks resigned Taj Gibson, and Taj notes why it was an easy decision to return to the orange and blue.
In a recent interview with Ian Begley of SNY, Taj Gibson revealed his feelings and reasoning for returning to the New York Knicks this offseason. Gibson, who turned 36 in June, hasn’t taken much of a holiday this summer. He has spent the offseason working with the younger members of the Knicks’ roster and young players from the Fort Greene area. Between preparing for the upcoming season and helping out with his foundation, Gibson admitted that “It was really tough to take a break and get out of town”.
On returning to the Knicks, Taj stated that it was always a great feeling to put on a Knicks jersey. He says walking into the Knicks practice facility to see the coaching staff and everyone in the organization, especially Team President Leon Rose and Vice-President William “World Wide Wes” Wesley, is a great boost. He described the tone of the franchise as “like one big family. It’s such a great atmosphere, full of jokes.”
The fact that Taj is a native New Yorker and grew up following the Knicks also played into his decision, and he admitted that he is still taking it all in.
Gibson revealed his thoughts on free agency, saying he believes that it is always a tough situation because you have the problem of either going after the money or taking less cash while going to a better situation. He admits that he took his time to evaluate all the offers he received and that he was grateful to all the teams that gave him offers. But in Gibson’s mind, returning to New York was undoubtedly the right decision. He even declared, “I knew I’d made the right decision. Even if it’s (less) money, money doesn’t move me. I just wanted to be a Knick.”
Gibson enjoys being a veteran presence on the team and knows that the organization has the confidence in him to step up whenever he is called on. He also admitted that he is relishing the opportunity to build a culture with the young Knicks core. He revealed that while he hasn’t been playing five on five with the young players they’ve all spent the summer in the gym together.
Taj believes that after their acquisitions in both free agency and the draft that the Knicks are looking stacked this season. He name-dropped players like Jericho Sims, who he called “a talent,” along with new signings Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier. He believes that last year’s team secured the 4th spot with an injury-riddled roster, and hopes that with all the new additions that they can take the next step.
Despite this hope, Taj conceded that the Eastern conference has gotten better as a whole. “The whole East, the Pacers are tough. Everybody’s going to be better.”
One team Taj is looking out for is his old team the Chicago Bulls, who he believes is going to be trying to stake a claim as one of the teams to beat in the East. Taj also predicted that the team that will come out on top is the one who establishes good chemistry in their roster and stays healthy. He then adds that the loss of Mitchell Robinson was a big blow to the Knicks in his eyes.
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