Discussing The Next US Sports Team to Win a Championship

We present a great article by guest contributor Jack Mcdaniels on the prospects of New York Sports teams in the next seasons.

Whisper it, but New York City sports teams are in a drought era. Since the New York Giants won Super Bowl XLVI in February 2012, no team from the city has triumphed in any championship of the Big 4 US sports leagues – NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL.

Of course, a gap of a dozen years or so between championships is standard for most cities. Yet, this is New York City, and a couple of teams should always compete for championships. By our calculations, the current championship drought is the longest in the city’s history, surpassing New York teams' ten-year wait in the 1970s.

But which teams are most likely to break the drought? We can look at the league standings, factor in NBA Championship and NFL Super Bowl betting odds and consider general trajectories to make some assessments. It’s completely unscientific, yet our list reflects the likelihood of each team winning a championship.

1. New York Knicks (NBA)

The Knicks are currently third-favorites behind the Celtics and Thunder to win this season’s NBA Championship, so we will rank them as the most likely to bring a championship back to the Big Apple next. It will be tough for them, of course, and some pundits believe they are still a year or two away from being genuinely competitive, but they look good.

2. New York Yankees (MLB)

Of course, the Yankees came very, very close to winning a championship after reaching the World Series in the fall. They remain the best team in the American League, so they will fancy their chances of returning next year, making them number two on our list.

3. New York Rangers (NHL)

The Rangers are doing okay in the NHL this season, although we wouldn’t lump them in with the favorites for the Stanley Cup. They are in a strong position to make the Playoffs, though, although plenty of games remain left to play.

4. New York Mets (MLB)

Will Juan Soto deliver the championship that Mets fans crave? The deal to sign Soto is considered the most significant contract in sports history. We don’t think he alone is enough to deliver a World Series for the Mets, but it shows their ambition. Their odds suggest that they have a good chance. What hope for a Mets-Yankees World Series next fall?

5. New York Islanders (NHL)

The Islanders have an outside chance of winning the Stanley Cup this term – they certainly could get into the Playoffs – so that’s enough to make it to number five overall on this list. They don’t often get the media coverage afforded to the Rangers, but they have been an almost permanent fixture in the Playoffs over the last eight years.

6. New York Jets (NFL)

How far away are the Jets from being contenders? There was some hope that Aaron Rodgers's arrival would kick-start a mini-revolution for the Jets, but the experiment just hasn’t worked. The cold, hard truth is that the Jets have not been in the Playoffs since 2010, and they don’t look like that is going to change anytime soon. Still, they have been better than their neighbors this season…

7. New York Giants (NFL)

We started talking about the Giants being the last New York team to bring home a championship, but this season has been one to forget. They have arguably been the worst team in the NFL, so it’s clear that a major rebuild is on the cards. It’s difficult to gauge just when they will be competitive again, but for performances this season, they are at the bottom of our list.

 

The New York Mets Can Take Over This Town

There is a plethora of bold talk coming from the New York Mets these days and sports in this town needs it. Aside from the fact that the NY Rangers and NY Islanders seemed to have revived an old rivalry this year, NY Sports has been as unexciting as I can ever remember it being.

Even the New York Yankees who seem to always get the headlines are having trouble appearing in our line of vision unless we are reading a handwritten apology or perhaps retiring every uniform number in their history. And then there are the New York Mets who have been down for so long that twitter followers have developed an art form criticizing them for everything from snowy weather to original sin.

But make no mistake--The New York Mets are the best chance New York has right now of reclaiming the national sports spotlight. That's right I said the Mets. Why? Pitching, Pitching, Pitching combined with the fact that 2 Wild Card teams gain entrance into the MLB's 2015 post-season party makes them a team that could win the hearts of New Yorkers in a time where NY sports fans have plenty of room in their hearts to adopt a team.

In the past weeks, the Mets have not run from the fact they have a chance to win NY. In fact they have boldly spoken that this is their time. Young pitchers like Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, and Zack Wheeler along with a bullpen that brings out hard throwers by the handful with no fear and a winning attitude have been very clear with their message to Met fans that meaningful games in September are not enough for them--they want games in mid to late October.

Even though I believe pitching is 75% of this game, you have to have offense too and the team did add Michael Cuddyer who along with Lucas Duda, a healthy David Wright, and a Curtis Granderson who is hell bent on being the old Curtis Granderson form the middle of the lineup. Daniel Murphy, Travis d'Arnaud, Wilmer Flores, and Juan Lagares round out a lineup that will never be confused with the '27 Yankees. But I will say this--it is better than it has been in the last 4 years.

You can debate the Mets should have done more or spent more but this team as presently constituted is a playoff caliber team. I can't say that about the team in the Bronx and we all know in this town if Met fans get a small taste of success they will hop on the bandwagon.

A bandwagon that currently only has the Rangers and Islanders on it and a vehicle that always has room for baseball fans. It is a great opportunity for a franchise that has sit in the shadows of the Yankees for quite a few years. If you don't think it could happen, you don't know NY baseball history. Twice in my life (late 60's to early 70's and 84-90) the Mets owned this town and that team that plays in the Bronx played second fiddle.

They had personalities that people gravitated to like Gooden, Seaver, Strawberry, Carter, and Hernandez. Matt Harvey fits that personality mold as he backs down from nobody and takes on everybody much in the way the Mets I just mentioned did. Think about this--those 80's Yankee teams had stars like Don Mattingly, Dave Winfield, Ricky Henderson, and Dave Righetti and nobody put them ahead of the guys who worked at Shea Stadium.

History in baseball repeats itself more than you think--Sandy Alderson's plans may have taken longer than he wanted them to but the time is now and the players inside that Met locker room know it. You can say the Mets need this or need that but recent baseball history has proven you could find offense to get to the playoffs but pitching is precious which was never better illustrated than in MLB's 2014 post-season.

It was also illustrated that division winners and wild card winners can flip report cards in a NY second. Ask the Dodgers about that one. Or more importantly ask the World Champion Giants or the pennant winning Kansas City Royals.