Sopan Deb, writing in the New York Times Sunday, profiles Steve Stoute, the marketing consultant the Knicks hired to re-brand their faltering franchise.
Most of the article is about how Stoute, described as a “lifelong Knicks fan,” hopes to revitalize the franchise he calls, in a moment of rarefied, almost laughable, exaggeration, “the premier global brand in basketball.”
But, as Deb writes, the hiring of Stoute also suggests that the Knicks may finally be admitting the Nets pose a threat to their dominance of the New York market.
Hiring Translation is a rare acknowledgment by the Knicks that they may be losing clout.