The Knicks’ first NBA championship in 53 years had a local flavor.
Traded deadline acquisition Jose Alvarado, a Brooklyn native, offered his Christ the King in Middle Village, Queens coach a moment of reflection nearly a decade after the freshly minted champ played for him.
“I wasn’t thinking in this picture that Alvarado would one day win an NBA Championship. I was probably telling him to stop sneaking into the corner and get back on defense,” Joe Arbitello wrote on Instagram. “Proud is an understatement. This kid is a product of doing things the right way.”
Arbitello described some of the characteristics that make Alvarado such a successful player, noting his loyalty was notable, as he stayed at Christ the King and played for just one AAU team throughout his amateur career in what is a rarity, especially in this era.
The loyalty extended to his college decision, as he picked and stuck with Georgia Tech for his entire college career.
Another trait described by Arbitello was that whenever he was on the bench, Alvardo was always engaged in the game and never moped.
The coach recalled the young point guard telling him from the bench that he was “getting paid to have the best seat in the house.”
That quote proved somewhat prophetic as Alvarado became one of the Knicks’ first bench options after coming over from the Pelicans on Feb. 5.
His addition proved critical to the team’s championship run as he drained critical three-pointers during comebacks in Games 4 and 5 and gave star Jalen Brunson crucial rest by playing quality minutes.
Now, Christ the King, which boasts the likes of Lamar Odom, Jayson Williams, Speedy Claxton, Sue Bird, Chamique Holdsclaw and Tina Charles among its alumni, has another NBA champion among its graduates.