I'm a huge Knicks fan, this piece was constructed a couple of months ago breaking down the Knicks of the 1990s and last season's Knick roster. Enjoy
Greetings facebook friends. I know the end of my last note said I would breaking down the greatest team in sports history, the NY Yankees, however the recent NBA Draft had me thinking and analyzing the selection my NY Knicks made and the path they have taken from well respected and competitive franchise, to occupants of last place annually.First I would like to explain the decline of the Knicks. From 1987 to 2001 the Knicks were in the playoffs, only losing in the first round twice. The key players during this period were sweet shooting Allan Houston, scoring machine Bernard King, floor general Mark Jackson (who was in my neighborhood visiting his mother last weekend), tough guys Charles Oakley and Anthony Mason (Springfield High School legend), my main man John Starks, and last but definitely not least, the WARRIOR Patrick Ewing. I’m not a person that usually makes excuses, but the only reason none of these hard nosed defensive oriented teams never won any championships was because God came down from heaven and disguised himself as Michael Jordan, who prevented greats like Charles Barkley and Reggie Miller from getting rings also. During the aforementioned time period, the Knicks made two appearances in the finals. One in 1994 and the other in 1999. The 1994 team won 57 regular season games and was coached by Pat Riley. This unit truly personified what it meant to be a team. Patrick was the spiritual leader, playing injured and completing an MVP caliber season on one leg and wearing knee pads. John Starks was the spark plug that provided instant offense and tenacious defense. Charles Oakley, Anthony Mason and Charles Smith made sure the opponent did not even get a taste of the rim. These guys would knock the snot out of anyone brave (or stupid) enough to attempt a lay-up. Oakley and Mason particularly instilled fear in opponents by owning the defense back board. This team was the number one ranked defense in the league during the regular season allowing only 91 points per game to their opposition. All of these factors carried them past the upstart Nets in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs, and then the Chicago Bulls and the Indiana Pacers in the conference finals. However, when the Knicks met the Houston Rockets in the NBA Finals they met a team as hungry and as determined as they were. The Rockets won 58 regular season games and also featured a great defense and a great coach in Rudy Tomjanovich. The Rockets also had a great big man in the middle by the name of Hakeem Olajuwon who was averaging 28 points per game and 11 rebounds a game during the western conference playoffs. Hakeem and Patrick pretty much canceled each other out during the series; neither was able to stop the other on the low block. After the first five games the Knicks held a three to two game series lead and my elementary school mates and I were ready to celebrate a NY championship. However, Patrick Ewing's shot failed to board the flight to game six. Ewing hit only six of his 20 shots, while Olajuwon scored 30 points. John Starks picked up the scoring slack by scoring 27 points and answering the shot making of Olajuwon. However, the game came down to which role players would be able to hit a big shot, and the role players that answered the bell were a young Robert Horry and sharp shooting Kenny Smith for the Rockets. The result was an 86 to 84 Houston victory, which meant the Knicks, would have to go back to Texas for a deciding game seven. After a great game six John Starks seemed to have left his jump shot where Patrick left his after game five. Starks only hit two of hit eighteen shots (0-11 from the three point line) and finished game seven with a disappointing eight points. The steady Knick point guard Derek Harper poured in a surprising 23 points to help keep the Knicks in the game. However the Rockets prevailed due to 25 points from Olajuwon, 21 from Vernon Maxwell, and 13 bench points from rookie point guard Sam Cassell. Although the Knicks lost, they were still a favorite to contend for a championship the next season. However the Rockets repeated as champions and then Jordan assumed his role as the "lord of the rings" after that.The 1999 Finals team was a surprise. This team adopted a run and gun style when Patrick went down with his 4,345,567th knee injury. Marcus Camby (still don’t know why we traded him), Allan Houston, and Latrell Sprewell ran their Eastern Conference opponents off of the court during the playoffs but got up ended by Tim Duncan and the Spurs. Although the series was only five games long, most of them were defensive struggles, including the clincher in the garden that ended 78-77 in favor of the Spurs. The stars of game five were Tim Duncan with 31 points, and Latrell Sprewell with 35 points. The next season the Knicks were eliminated in the conference finals, and the string of playoff success ended there.As the decade progressed, Patrick was traded (that almost made me a Net fan), Allan Houston's knees evaporated like a puddle on a hot summer day, and high priced (but unproven) talent was brought in. Latrell just went insane and started choking women on his yacht. These events started the transition from the tough Knick player, to the soft Knick player. The proof of this is in the dismal winning percentage from 2001 to this present day. The Knicks have only won about 40% of their games over this time period. During this period we've paid Jerome James and Jared Jeffries about $30 million each, traded (2007 defensive player of year) Marcus Camby, traded for Stephon Marbury, and signed Anfernee Hardaway. During the 2005-06 season, we paid "Starbury", $16,453,125, Antonio Davis 13,925,000, Penny $15,750,000, and even more astonishing than that, we paid draft bust Maurice Taylor $9,100,000. This habit of over paying for washed up talent has been our downfall.What makes these numbers so ridiculous is that during the 1994 Finals season, Patrick Ewing earned only $3,825,000, while John Starks, Charles Oakley and Anthony Mason earned an average of only $1,500,000. The recent Knick players made money, while the 1990s Knicks earned their salaries. This also got me thinking about how the 2008 starting lineup would match up against the 1994 lineup. First we start at the point guard position with a match up featuring Stephon Marbury and Derek Harper. Stephon Marbury has always been one of the most talented point guards in the league. For most of his career, he has averaged 20 points and 8 assists; this is a statistical feat only Oscar Robertson has reached. Derek Harper was an all-star caliber point guard for the Dallas Mavericks during the 1980s. The only reason his 18 point per game average, and 7 assist average were never all-start quality was probably because he played in the western conference with Magic Johnson, Kevin Johnson, and John Stockton. Harper was also a great defender, who made the all defensive second team in 1987 and 1990. Harper was traded to the Knicks during the 1994 Finals season and fit in nicely as a sure handed post entry passer to Patrick. His defensive prowess led to the Knicks number one ranked defense that season. There are different types of differences between Marbury and Harper. Marbury has been supremely talented since his days at Lincoln High School, and that continued onto his college season at Georgia Tech. Marbury's talent has never been questioned, and never should be. However his effort, focus, and mental toughness are always in question. Harper extended his career after the offensive was gone by playing tough defense and staying mentally tough enough to compete at the highest level. Marbury has never put much effort into playing defense (although he possesses the ability to). However, the talent Marbury has would overwhelm a 1994 Derek Harper. So this match up goes to Steph.Next we move over to the shooting guard position. This match up features John Starks and Jamal Crawford. In 1994 John Starks was in his prime as Jamal Crawford is now in his prime so this will make it difficult to list their differences, so I will list the similarities first. Both Starks and Crawford are great scorers that could take over a game on any given night. Starks was the fiery young energetic player that hit big threes and played tough defense that landed him on the all defensive second team in 1993. Crawford is also able to change games and has the desire and ability to hit big shots. I was in the garden the night he hit about 16 straight shots and scored 50 points against Dwayne Wade and the Miami Heat. Although Jamal Crawford is a very talented player, he has no idea what he is doing when it comes to defense. Crawford does try hard, but just doesn’t have what it takes to stop any talented player at the NBA level. His lack of size is really no excuse since Starks was two inches shorter than him and guarded 6'6" Michael Jordan. So at the end of the day, John Levell Starks' defense intensity wins out against Jamal Crawford's shooting touch.Next we move to the front court small forward position. This match up features Charles Smith and Quentin Richardson. This is a difficult match up because both of these players were great before they got to the Knicks. Charles Smith was a 20 point per game scorer with the Clippers, but arrived in New York with a new role. Richardson also experienced early success with the Clippers. Establishing a reputation as a great three point shooter and as a good post player. Q-Rich, was also a great rebounder and used his combination of strength and speed to become a pretty good defender. Injuries have cut many seasons short for both Smith and Richardson. Despite Smith's size he only averaged about three rebounds per game during the 1994 finals season. However, the moment imprinted on every Knicks fan's brain is the clinching game six of the 1993 conference finals against the Chicago Bulls when Smith grabbed about three offensive rebounds and was blocked three times by Scottie Pippen on shots he probably should have dunked in. Bottom line, he went up pretty weak, and has never really been forgiven by Knicks fans for that, even though it was a poorly planned possession and a broken play. Richardson has under performed since the day he arrived in NY. After a season in which he hit a record 226 three pointers in Phoenix, I anticipated Q-Rich playing great under the bright lights of NYC. However, he has not played in more than 65 games in a single season since being traded here. His shooting touch is still in Phoenix, it looks like he gave it to Raja Bell before he left. I hope Raja Fed Ex's it back to him before next season starts.Unfortunately I do have to pick a player, so the winner of this oft-injured three man match up is Quentin Richardson, on the grounds that on a healthy night he can still drop 18 and 6.Next we move over to the power forward position. This match up features Charles Oakley, and Zach Randolph (should be David Lee but dummy Isaiah didn’t start him). This match up only features differences. These two players are like night and day. We start with Zach. Zach Randolph is a supremely talented lefty scorer that has a great shooting touch and can face up to the basket as well as any player in the league. While playing in Portland Randolph averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds. Those numbers were a given in every box score the next morning for Zach. His defensive rebounding skills are second to none on most nights. Despite his exceptional rebounding stats, Randolph was as soft as tissue paper when it came to defense. He provides no opposition to his opponent at anytime. Randolph's lack of lateral mobility enables offensive players to walk past him to get to the rim. On offense, he is a beast, but he is a slow beast. Zach is famous for being a ball stopper, and settles for jumpers too much. Creating a fluid offensive game plan around him is impossible. Randolph’s commitment to conditioning and team play has been often questioned and has not been able to prove he actually wants to win or improve on his current skill set.Charles Oakley, on the other hand, built a career out of playing hard and using his strength and smarts to outplay and intimidate his opponents. Although Oakley was only 6’8” at the power forward position, he used his 225 pounds of muscle to control the offensive and defensive backboards against taller more athletic players at his position. Though scoring was not Oakley’s forte, his 12 foot jump shot led to a career scoring average of around 10 points per game. During the 1994 finals season, Oakley was at his best averaging 12 points per game and 12 rebounds per game which led to an all-star appearance. Oakley’s heart and all around effort was a staple for the Knicks from 1989 to 1998. So it seems that this match up features a supreme talent versus a hard working big man. If looking at number alone, it is easy to give this match up to Randolph. However, during Randolph’s career, he has proved to be an overpaid and overweight black hole. Randolph has never performed well on a big stage and will never unless his commitment to the game increases. So the run away winner of this match up is the Oak-man. Oakley struck fear in anyone foolish enough to attack him in the paint. Also, one thing that many people forget is that Oakley was on his way to being a very solid high scoring big man when he was in Chicago. During his second season along side Michael Jordan, Oakley had upped his averages to about 15 points per game, and 13 rebounds per game in 1987. Oakley commitment to winning and overall basketball IQ, led to him altering his game to compliment a young rising star in Patrick Ewing. Oakley did a lot of the dirty work that Patrick could not because of the scoring load he carried. Overall, Charles is a Knicks legend, and Zach should only hope to accomplish half of what Charles has.Finally our match up moves to the center position. This battle features NBA legend Patrick Ewing and Chicago high school legend Eddy Curry. Although this match up seems like slam dunk for Mr. Ewing, it is a lot closer than you may think. Patrick Ewing went down as the greatest Knick ever, even though he has never brought us a championship. Eddy Curry is known as a supremely talented (I know I have over used that term) big man with soft hands and great post moves. Curry possesses a better back to basket game than Patrick did, but, Patrick had more range and was great facing up to the basket. The features of each of these player’s abilities will bring this match up into better focus.First we analyze the warrior Patrick Ewing. When Patrick entered to league, he was a raw talent with unlimited athleticism. His rookie season featured averages of 20 points and 9 rebounds. Ewing quickly smoothed out his game, developing a fade away jumper that was unblockable. By the 1990 season, Ewing was averaging 29 points and 10 rebounds. Patrick made the Knicks a perennial playoff contender during his entire career, with the pinnacle being the aforementioned 1994 and 1999 NBA finals. Despite all of Patrick’s success and effort, he was overly criticized by Knicks fans and so-called sports experts. The lack of a championship during his tenure can attributed to his frequent injuries and lack of talent surrounding him. Although the Knicks teams of the 1990s were hard nosed defensively oriented teams, Ewing was the only all-star talent on the roster. By the time all-stars Allan Houston, Larry Johnson, and Latrell Sprewell arrived, Ewing was over the hill. The only real window of opportunity for Patrick and the Knicks was during Jordan’s retirement. Patrick will always wear the warrior moniker right next to the underachiever moniker.Next comes Eddy Curry. Both Ewing and Curry were high lottery draft picks with tons of potential. In all honesty, Eddy might be a more prototypical center than Patrick. Eddy’s massive 6’10”, 290 pound frame is impossible to get around or slow down. Along with being blessed with magnificent physical attributes, Eddy features an offensive package that is at time unstoppable. Curry’s soft hands and great touch give him the ability to score anywhere in the paint. Bottom line, Eddy has the ability to score at will. Also, Curry is an underrated passer out of doubles teams, and despite is defensive deficiencies, plays the pick and roll quite and weak side quite well. However, where Curry is exposed is in one on one defense situations and defensive rebounding. For a player of Curry’s size he should pull down 10 rebounds a night without much effort. Overall, Eddy has more talent than Patrick. The only reason the numbers might show differently, is that Patrick had coaching greats such as Hubie Brown and Pat Riley, who knew what set Patrick would flourish in most. Eddy has been coached by the much despised Isaiah Thomas and before that, the micro managing Scott Skiles. If Eddy ever has the fortune to be coached by anyone with half a brain, he will be an all time great.However, this analysis does not put value into hypothetical situations. By a very close margin, Patrick’s heart and emotional play win perhaps the closet match up of this piece. Patrick has never received the credit he deserves for playing all-star and mvp caliber basketball on one leg and with half a knee for a decade. In conclusion the match ups presented were never really to illustrate the statistical differences between the two groups of players. The only name the 1990s Knicks players ever worried about was the one on the front of the jersey, unlike the talent we have today which is worried about the name on the back. Despite this fact, I will continue to cheer and root for my Knicks, and attend every home game I can. Thats what a true fan does. (SHOUT OUT TO MY KNICKS DANCERS).Adios.
