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Was Patrick Ewing always nice to the fans and the New York media? Nope. Did he single-handedly win a championship a Ia Michael Jordan? Nope. But no one can deny the work ethic of the man known as the greatest Knick”, nor can they deny that Ewing always made the Knicks a serious contender. The New York Knicks of the early 90’s, featuring beloved henchmen like Charles Oakley, Anthony Mason and John Starks, were straight-up thugs on (and at times off) the court. With Tony Montana look-alike Pat Riley coaching the goon squad, the Knicks embodied the concrete-hard toughness of NYC itself, and opponents knew that they weren’t going to drive to the basket without feeling some physical pain. Much like the NYPD, the Knicks of old would use sheer brutality to impose their will, and they were always in the playoffs and even the NBA finals due to their tactics. At the end of his Knicks career, Ewing was the last man of this standing from this era, but he wouldn’t finish his basketball career as a Knick. Ewing was traded to the Seattle Supersonics in 2000. Fans and sports writers alike swore that things would get better for the Knicks franchise now that creaky old Ewing had hit the road. Perhaps now that elusive championship would finally arrive.

Oh how wrong these disparagers were. Fast-forward to the present. The Knicks have tasted the playoffs only once since 2001 and when they finally got there in 2004, they didn’t win a single game against the New Jersey Nets, who now run the block. After personnel changes in the front office, the coaching department and on the court, the Knicks are presently coached by Hall-of-Fame point guard Isaiah Thomas, who is also the team’s president and general manager. Stephon Marbury and Steve Francis are the team’s 1 & 2 guards.
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