After the New York Knicks won the NBA title following their Game 5 win against the San Antonio Spurs, one member of the team staff who will receive a championship ring is Casey Smith, the organization’s VP of Sports Medicine. Smith, who was a former Dallas Mavericks employee under Nico Harrison, seemingly took a shot at his former boss on social media after the win.
“Shout out to my real ones,” Smith wrote. “They said we weren’t a good fit for their culture. Said we weren’t good enough in our roles. Peter Patton, Heather Mau, Jalen. We did and will continue to do the work.”
Smith gave a shout out to Jalen Brunson, Knicks’ senior athletic trainer Heather Mau and development coach Peter Patton. Smith and Mau were among the staff fired by Nico Harrison during his tenure as Mavericks general manager. It was originally reported that Smith’s role with the Mavericks began diminishing right up until his firing.
The Knicks, who had been plagued with injury issues prior to his arrival, quickly hired him away. Smith is also a Hall of Fame inductee for his work with the 2008 and 2012 Team USA Olympic squads.
Smith played a key role in managing the Knicks’ injuries in the playoffs, including backup big man Mitchell Robinson’s finger injury.
The Knicks won the franchise’s first championship since 1973 amid the team’s first NBA Finals appearance since 1999. Jalen Brunson’s father Rick, who is an assistant coach on Mike Brown’s staff, was a member of the Knicks’ ‘99 team that lost to the Spurs no less.
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