Newsday Sports' Steve Popper on historic Knicks championship + what's to come this offseason (6/17/26)

Newsday Sports' Steve Popper on historic Knicks championship + what's to come this offseason (6/17/26)

Audio from June 17, 2026's episode of 'The Recess Bell: On Air', airing live every Wednesday from 6-8pm on 90.3 WHPC-FM. Joshua welcomes longtime Newsday sports columnist Steve Popper back to TRB. The Knicks have won their first championship in 53 years, and the fans are getting set to party like it's 1973 — especially at the Canyon of Heroes ticker tape parade. Joshua and Steve chat about whether there is a historical precedent for the run the Knicks just went on, James Dolan's extremely recent comments about his unwillingness to go into the second apron, Mike Brown's success story, where Jalen Brunson now ranks among New York Sports greats, KAT's pending extension, and where OG Anunoby's legendary game-winning tip-in ranks among the greatest sports plays/moments in New York history. 0:00 Knicks Finals highlight montage 3:33 Steve Popper joins, recaps fresh James Dolan radio appearance 8:07 Is there a precedent for the run NYK just went on? 11:11 How Mike Brown found success with this group 13:59 Jalen Brunson's leap into superstardom + rarefied air 18:39 KAT's next NYK contract 22:48 Has narrative now changed on James Dolan as an owner? 27:46 Is OG Anunoby's tip-in the greatest New York sports moment ever?

TRB Sports: Erik on the Knicks' incredible NBA Finals performance to win the chip

They've done it! The New York Knicks defeated the San Antonio Spurs by the score of 94-90 in Game 5 of the 2026 NBA Finals to win the franchise's first championship since 1973, with Knicks captain Jalen Brunson winning Finals MVP. Erik reacts to everything that this incredible Finals brought us: the Knicks' repetitive comeback efforts in literally every single game of the series, what the championship means for NYC, and where the Spurs go from here. Also, does Erik have any regrets for leaving the Knicks for the Phoenix Suns as a fan a decade ago? And will he really pull up to Thursday's parade?? 0:00 Intro  3:23 Yes, the Knicks are your 2026 NBA Champions! 25:30 Where do the Spurs go from here?

Meleny's Chronically Online Update: the wonderful eventfulness of Love Island S8

Audio from June 10, 2026's episode of 'The Recess Bell: On Air', airing live every Wednesday from 6-8pm on 90.3 WHPC-FM. Season 8 of Love Island is in full swing, and you know the 'Chronically Online' queen, Meleny, is very much locked in. Mel with Love Island fans Joshua and Lay discuss all that's happened in Fiji thus far: Sincere and Melanie's tumultous (and highly entertaining) relationship, which relationship is the most legitimate, and who will be next to depart the villa?

TRB Sports: Erik reacts to the Knicks' HUGE and historic Game 4 comeback

The latest development in what has already become a classic NBA Finals: the Knicks overcoming a 29-point deficit to pull off an incredible and impossible win, marking the largest single-game comeback in Finals history. Was the game truly more about the Spurs choking it away? Erik reacts to Wemby's lacking performance in the clutch in this series, if the Spurs can mentally recover from such a devastating loss, and how the Knicks pieced together an all-time "walk-down." 0:00 Intro, is Erik valid at a Knicks parade? 3:07 Is it fair to question Wemby in big moments? 5:53 How can the Spurs bounce back? 9:56 Overall reaction to Game 4

Full Show: State of the Knicks/NBA Finals, Gen Z's dating pool, Joshua takes Kory to friendship court (6/10/26)

Audio from June 10, 2026's episode of 'The Recess Bell: On Air', airing live every Wednesday from 6-8pm on 90.3 WHPC-FM. Joshua, Meleny, Lay, Erik and Kory preview a monumentally big Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the hometown Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs, as Joshua laments that the fact that the NBA has allowed the conversation of a classic Finals matchup to be dominated by "ref talk". The crew then discusses the many challenges of dating in today's day and age, and Joshua airs out a problem with Kory on the airwaves in another edition of TRB Court. 0:00 Intro, Joshua and crew on NBA Finals ref discourse 40:19 TRB Announcements: updates on shows and Men's Mental Health Awareness Month 46:36 State of the current dating climate of Gen Z 1:04:09 Joshua takes Kory to friendship court 1:17:22 Sha Boing Boing of the Week: Knicks owner James Dolan 1:26:20 Outro, the crew gets hyped up for the Knicks