Overview
- Pablo Torre aired the previously unseen recruitment videos on Pablo Torre Finds Out, detailing the Knicks’ 2019 efforts to court Kawhi Leonard and Kyrie Irving.
- The Leonard pitch was an SNL-style sketch headlined by Jay Pharoah impersonating Leonard with appearances from Ben Stiller, Kenan Thompson and Michael Che.
- The Irving video was framed as a mixtape that opened with New York basketball legends praising his fit and jumped to a fictional 2027 where children were named after him.
- The clips were never released publicly and the Knicks did not secure a formal meeting with Leonard, who ultimately chose Los Angeles in free agency.
- Ben Stiller recalled the long-forgotten shoot vaguely and noted that the Knicks now project a different identity, pointing to Jalen Brunson’s leadership and Karl-Anthony Towns’ buy-in.