There is a sense of hope and optimism surrounding the New York Knicks this season.

Now, here’s a sentence many fans thought they might never hear. However, under the leadership of veteran HC Tom Thibodeau, the Knicks have become an elite team, capable of hanging out with the big boys in their conference.

And that’s exactly what they have done this postseason, winning a thrilling 6-game series against Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the playoffs. But only to waver hearts further.

As a result, they booked an intriguing Eastern Conference Semis clash against the up-and-coming Indiana Pacers side. The New York Knicks made light work of the Pacers, as they jumped to a 2-0 lead in the series. However, Game 3 was a different ball game altogether. Hampered by OG Anunoby’s hamstring injury, the Knicks couldn’t keep tabs on Tyrese Haliburton, as he dropped a game-high 35 points. The Pacers eventually won Game 3 by a scoreline of 111-107.

The New York Knicks’ recent loss has dampened the hopes of a fanbase who thought that this year might finally be the year. However, New York native and legendary artist 50 Cent saw the writing on the wall after Ja Rule was pictured holding the Larry O’Brien trophy recently. 50 Cent took to Instagram to troll Ja Rule by using a viral meme. He captioned the video with, “Man I told yall don’t bet on the knicks this janky ass (emoji) was holding a trophy, the shit just didn’t feel right now look. I told yall stay away from that fool smh ya don’t listen!”

It was only a day earlier that rapper had commented on Rule’s post saying, “Oh shit don’t bet on the Knicks to win this next game… I’m bet my money on the wolves! ” And rightly so, considering the latter had been the only unbeaten team in the playoffs until last night. Interestingly, he isn’t alone in sharing the opinion on Knicks. “The Knicks are setting y’all up for right now,” Warriors’ star Draymond Green had remarked in his latest podcast episode.

Will the New York Knicks bounce back?

After winning 50 regular season games, the New York Knicks entered the playoffs as the second seed in the Eastern Conference. They were one of the few teams in the Eastern Conference with a legitimate chance of challenging Boston Celtics’ supremacy in the Eastern Conference. And their first-round series win against the Sixers proved exactly that. However, their chances of challenging the Celtics look slim now, following a string of unfortunate injuries to key players.

In Game 2 of their series, OG Anunoby, the small forward went down with a hamstring injury. The instance forced him out of game 3 and is expected to miss the next one as well. Thanks to his defensive dominance and an injury-ridden team, Anunoby has become an integral part of Tom Thibodeau’s rotation, playing an average of 35 minutes per game. In his presence, the Knicks hardly ever seem to lose, incurring just three losses in 23 games he played.

Apart from OG Anunoby, the New York Knicks also have key players like Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic out injured. Star man Jalen Brunson also hobbled off the floor in Game 2 because of an apparent foot injury. However, he played 38 minutes in Game 3. But the Knicks can’t win if they keep on losing their key players at the most important juncture of the season. But with a shallow roster, Tom Thibodeau’s hands are also tied.