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New York Knicks

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"Knicks" redirects here. For other uses of the word, see Knickerbocker.

Template:NBA team The New York Knickerbockers, better known as the "Knicks", are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They play in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

According to Forbes Magazine, the Knicks are the most valuable basketball franchise in the United States, valued at approximately $608 million.[1]

At one point, the Knicks were owned by Gulf+Western, which was renamed to Paramount Communications in 1989, and sold to Viacom in 1994. Viacom then sold the team to current owners Cablevision.

Franchise history

File:Knicks Logo early 60s.gif
The official logo of the New York Knickerbockers, c. 1946–1964.

The Knicks, the shortened form of Knickerbockers, named for Father Knickerbocker (a popular symbol of New York), are one of only two teams of the original National Basketball Association still located in its original city (the other being the Boston Celtics). The Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League merged in 1949 to form the National Basketball Association.

File:NewYorkKnicksOld.png
The classic Knicks "Roundball" logo from 1964 to 1992.

Early years

The Knicks' (and the BAA's) first game was played on November 1, 1946 against the Toronto Huskies as the New York Knickerbockers at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens, where the Knickerbockers won 68-66. The Knickerbockers first head coach was Neil Cohalan. The Knickerbockers were consistent playoff contenders in their early years. During the first decade of the NBA's existence, the Knickerbockers made the NBA Finals in three straight years (1951–53), and they were respected by basketball players and fans. For the remainder of the 1950s, the Knicks would field decent, if not spectacular teams, and made the playoffs in 1955, 1956 (where they lost a one-game playoff to the Syracuse Nationals), and 1959.

Lean years

From 1960 to 1966, the Knicks fell on hard times, and they finished last in the NBA's Eastern Division each year. Some of the biggest losses in Knicks history occurred during this time. One such game occurred on November 15 1960, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers by a score of 162-100. Another notable loss occurred on March 3 1962, as the Philadelphia Warriors' Wilt Chamberlain scored a NBA-record 100 points against the Knicks, and the Warriors won the game 169-147 in a game played in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

Championship years

The current version of Madison Square Garden has been the home of the Knicks since 1968.

During the Knicks' slide into futility, there were signs of better things to come. In 1964, the Knicks drafted Willis Reed, who went on to become 1965's NBA Rookie of the Year. In 1965, the Knicks were given an extra first-round draft pick by the NBA (as were the San Francisco Warriors, who owned the worst record in the league's Western Division in 1964-65) and took advantage by drafting Bill Bradley and Dave Stallworth. Willis Reed was the MVP of the finals

In 1967, right after the Knicks made it to the playoffs for the first time since 1959, the Knicks hired Red Holzman as their head coach. With Holzman at the helm, and young players such as Bill Bradley and Walt "Clyde" Frazier, the Knicks were a playoff team again in 1968. The next season, the team acquired Dave DeBusschere from the Detroit Pistons, and the team went 55-27. In the ensuing playoffs, the team made it past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 1953, sweeping the Baltimore Bullets in three games, before falling to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Division finals.

In the 1969–70 season, the Knicks had a then-NBA record 18 straight victories en route to 60-22 record, which was the best regular season record in the team's history. After defeating the Bullets in the Eastern Division semifinals and the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Division finals, the Knicks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in seven games to capture their first NBA title. Without question, the defining moment in the series occurred in Game 7, where an injured Reed limped onto the court right before the start of the game.

On a re-creation of that moment, Marv Albert described it: "Here comes Willis! The crowd is going wild! Willis passes the scorers table, he grabs a basketball. The Lakers have stopped (shooting), the Lakers are watching Willis!"

He scored the game's first two baskets before sitting out for the remainder of the contest. Despite his absence for most of the game, Reed's heroics inspired the team, and they won the game by a score of 113-99. The entire starting line up for the 69-70 Knicks had their jerseys retired by the New York Knicks. The jerseys of Walt Frazier (#10), Willis Reed (#19), Dave DeBusschere (#22), Bill Bradley (#24), and Dick Barnett (#12) all hang from the rafters at Madison Square Garden. Reed walking on to the court was voted the greatest moment in Madison Square Garden history.

The Knicks' success continued for the next few years. After losing to the Bullets in the 1971 Eastern Conference finals, the team, aided by the acquisitions of Jerry Lucas and Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, returned to the Finals in 1972. This time the Knicks fell to the Lakers in five games. The next year, the results were reversed, as the Knicks defeated the Lakers in five games to win their second NBA title. The team had one more impressive season in 1973–74, as they reached the Eastern Conference finals, where they fell in five games to the Celtics. It was after this season that Reed announced his retirement, and the team's fortunes took turn for the worse.

After the championship years

In the 1974–75 season, the Knicks posted a 40–42 record, their first losing record in eight seasons. However, the record still qualified them for a playoff spot, though the Knicks lost to the Houston Rockets in the first round. After two more seasons with losing records, Holzman was replaced behind the bench by Reed. In Reed's first year coaching the team, they posted a 43–39 record and made it to the Eastern Conference semifinals, where they were swept by the Philadelphia 76ers. The next season, after the team got off to a 6–8 start, Holzman was rehired as the team's coach. The team did not fare any better that season, finishing with a 31–51 record, their worst in thirteen years.

After improving to a 39–43 record in the 1979–80 season, the Knicks posted a 50–32 record in the 1980–81 season. In the ensuing playoffs, the Chicago Bulls swept them in two games. Holzman retired the following season as one of the winningest coaches in NBA history. The team's record for that year was a dismal 33–49. However, Holzman's legacy would continue through the players he influenced. One of the Knicks' bench players and defensive specialists during the 1970s was Phil "Action" Jackson. Jackson went on to coach the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers to nine NBA championships, tied with Red Auerbach for the most in NBA history. Jackson has cited Red Holzman as the best coach he ever played for and a major influence on his coaching philosophy.

Hubie Brown replaced Holzman as coach of the Knicks, and in his first season, the team went 44–38 and make it to the second round of the playoffs, where they were swept by the eventual champion Philadelphia 76ers. The next season, the team, aided by new acquisition Bernard King, improved to a 47–35 record and returned to the playoffs. The team beat the Detroit Pistons in the first round with an overtime win in the fifth and deciding game, before losing in second round once again, this time in seven games to the Celtics. The team's fortunes again turned for the worse the next season, as they lost their last twelve games to finish with a 24–58 record. The first of these losses occurred on March 23, 1985, where King injured his knee and spent the next 24 months in rehabilitation. Some figured that his career would end from this injury, but he proved them wrong and resumed his career near the end of the 1986–87 season.

The Patrick Ewing era

As a result of the Knicks' dismal performance in the 1984–85 season, the team was entered into the first-ever NBA Draft Lottery. The team ended up winning the number one pick in that year's NBA Draft. They selected star center Patrick Ewing of Georgetown University.

In Ewing's first season with the Knicks, he led all rookies in scoring (20 points per game) and rebounds (9 rebounds per game), and he won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. The team would not fare as well, though, as they posted a 23–59 record in his first season, and a 24–58 record in his second season.

The team's luck changed in the 1987–88 season with the hiring of Rick Pitino as head coach, and selection of point guard Mark Jackson in the draft. Combined with Ewing's consistently stellar play, the Knicks made the playoffs with a record of 38–44, where they lost to the Celtics in the first round. The team would do even better the next season as the team traded backup center Bill Cartwright for power forward Charles Oakley before the season started and then posted a 52–30 record, which was good enough for their first division title in nearly twenty years. In the playoffs, they defeated the 76ers in the first round before losing to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

Before the 1989–90 season began, a couple of major changes occurred. Pitino left the Knicks to coach the University of Kentucky's basketball team and Stu Jackson was named head coach. The Knicks went 45–37 and defeated the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs, winning the final three games after losing the first two. They went on to lose to the eventual NBA champion Detroit Pistons in the next round. In the 1990–91 season, the team, who hired John McLeod as head coach early that season, had a 39–43 record and were swept by the eventual NBA champion Bulls.

Sensing that the team needed a better coach in order to become a championship contender, new Knicks president Dave Checketts hired Pat Riley prior to the 1991–92 season. Riley, who coached the Lakers to four NBA titles during the 1980s, taught the Knicks hard, physical defense, and immediately gave them a boost. That season, the team, which now included fan favorite John Starks, posted a 51–31 record, good enough for a first place tie in the Atlantic Division. After defeating the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs, the team battled with the Bulls for seven games, before once again letting the Bulls get the best of them.

The 1992–93 season proved to be even more successful, as the Knicks won the Atlantic Division with a 60–22 record. Before the season, the Knicks traded Mark Jackson to the Los Angeles Clippers for Charles Smith, Doc Rivers, and Bo Kimble while also acquiring Rolando Blackman from the Dallas Mavericks. The team made it to the Eastern Conference finals, where once again they met the Bulls. After taking a two games-to-none lead, the Knicks lost the next four games.

After the Bulls' Michael Jordan made what would be his first retirement from basketball prior to the 1993–94 season, many saw this as an opportunity for the Knicks to finally make it to the NBA Finals. The team, who acquired Derek Harper in a midseason trade with the Dallas Mavericks, once again won the Atlantic Division with a 57–25 record. In the playoffs, the team played an NBA-record 25 games; they started by defeating the New Jersey Nets in the first round before finally getting past the Bulls, defeating them in the second round in seven games. In the Eastern Conference Finals, they faced the Indiana Pacers, who at one point held a three games-to-two lead. They had this advantage thanks to the exploits of Reggie Miller, who scored 25 fourth quarter points in Game 5 to lead the Pacers to victory. However, the Knicks won the next two games to reach their first NBA Finals since 1973.

In the finals, the Knicks would play seven low-scoring, defensive games against the Houston Rockets. After splitting the first two games in Houston, the Knicks would win two out of three games at Madison Square Garden and came within one game of winning their first NBA title in 21 years. In Game 6, however, a last-second attempt at a game-winning shot by Starks was tipped by Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon, giving the Rockets an 86–84 victory and forcing a Game 7. The Knicks lost Game 7 90–84, credited in large part to Starks's dismal 2-for-18 shooting performance and Riley's stubborn refusal to bench Starks, despite having bench players who were renowned for their shooting prowess, such as Rolando Blackman and Hubert Davis available.

The next year, the Knicks were second place in the Atlantic Division with a 55–27 record. The team defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers before facing the Pacers again in the second round. The tone for the Knicks–Pacers series was set in Game 1, as Miller once again became a clutch nuisance to the Knicks by scoring eight points in the final 8 seconds of the game to give the Pacers a 107–105 victory. The series went to a Game 7, and when Patrick Ewing's last-second finger roll attempt to tie the game missed, the Pacers clinched the 97–95 win. Riley resigned the next day, and the Knicks hired Don Nelson as their new head coach.

During the 1995–96 season, Nelson was fired after 59 games, and, instead of going after another well-known coach, the Knicks hired longtime assistant Jeff Van Gundy, who had no prior experience as a head coach. The Knicks ended up with a 47–35 record that year, and swept the Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs before losing to the eventual champion Bulls (who had an NBA record 72 wins in the regular season) in five games.

In the 1996–97 season, the Knicks, with the additions of such players as Larry Johnson and Allan Houston, registered a 57–25 record. In the playoffs, the Knicks swept the Charlotte Hornets in the first round before facing the Miami Heat (coached by Riley) in the second round. The Knicks took a 3–1 lead in the series before a brawl near the end of Game 5 resulted in suspensions of key players. Many of the suspended Knicks players, Ewing in particular, were disciplined not for participating in the altercation itself, but for violating an NBA rule stipulating that a benched player may not leave the bench during a fight (the rule was subsequently amended, making it illegal to leave the "bench area"). With Ewing and Houston suspended for Game 6, Johnson and Starks suspended for Game 7, and Charlie Ward suspended for both, the Knicks lost the series.

The 1997–98 season was marred by a wrist injury to Ewing on December 20, which forced him to miss the rest of the season and much of the playoffs. The team, which had a 43–39 record that season, still managed to defeat the Heat in the first round of the playoffs before having another meeting with the Pacers in the second round. This time, the Pacers easily won the series in five games, as Reggie Miller once again broke the hearts of Knicks fans by hitting a three-pointer in the final seconds of regulation in Game 4, en route to a Pacers victory. For the fourth straight year, the Knicks were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs.

Prior to the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, the Knicks traded Starks in a package to the Golden State Warriors for 1994's 1st team all league shooting guard Latrell Sprewell (whose contract was voided by the Warriors after choking Warriors' head coach P. J. Carlesimo during the previous season), while also trading Charles Oakley for Marcus Camby. After barely getting into the playoffs with a 27–23 record, the Knicks started an improbable postseason run. It started with the Knicks eliminating the #1 seeded Heat in the first round after Allan Houston bounced in a running one-hander off the front of the rim, high off the backboard, and in with 0.8 seconds left in the deciding 5th game. This remarkable upset marked only the second time in NBA history that an 8-seed had defeated the 1-seed in the NBA playoffs. After defeating the Atlanta Hawks in the second round four games to none, they faced the Pacers yet again in the Eastern Conference Finals. Despite losing Ewing to injury for the rest of the playoffs prior to Game 3, the Knicks won the series (aided in part to a four-point play by Larry Johnson in the final seconds of Game 3) to become the first eighth-seeded playoff team to make it to the NBA Finals. However, in the Finals, the San Antonio Spurs, with superstars David Robinson and Tim Duncan, proved too much for the injury-laden Knicks, who lost in five games. The remarkable fifth game of this Finals is remembered for its 2nd half scoring duel between the Spurs' Tim Duncan and the Knicks' [[Latrell Sprewell], and was decided by a long jumper by Avery Johnson with less than 10 seconds left to clinch the title for the Spurs.

The 1999–2000 season would prove to be the last one in New York for Ewing, as the Knicks, who had a 50–32 record that season, lost in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Pacers. After the season, Ewing was traded on September 20, 2000 to the Seattle SuperSonics, and the Ewing era, which produced many successful playoff appearances but no NBA championship titles, came to an end.

Post-Patrick Ewing era decline

Despite the loss of Ewing, the Knicks remained successful in the regular season, as they posted a 48–34 record. In the NBA playoffs, however, they fell in five games to the Toronto Raptors, failing to get past the first round of the playoffs for the first time in a decade.

Soon, the Knicks began suffering through a steep decline. After starting the season 10–9, the team was stunned on December 8, 2001 by the sudden resignation of Van Gundy. The team, which named longtime assistant Don Chaney as their new head coach, ended up with a 30–52 record, and for the first time since the 1986–87 season, they did not qualify for the playoffs.

The Knicks attempted to improve during the 2001–02 season by initiating a number of trades and free agent signings. Among these included acquiring guards Shandon Anderson and Howard Eisley, both of which carried expensive, long-term contracts. [1] These moves were criticized by many analysts and Knicks fans, as it was considered that not only were these players overpaid in light of their recent performances, but also because the contracts took up valuable salary-cap space. [2] Such trades heavily contributed to the Knicks sky-rocketing payroll, which would burden them in the years to come. The Knicks improved slightly in 2002–03 but still delivered a disappointing season, posting a 37–45 record and failing to qualify for the playoffs for the second straight season.

Arrival of Isiah Thomas and Stephon Marbury

After a 15–24 start to the 2003–04 season, the Knicks underwent a massive overhaul. Isiah Thomas was named the Knicks' president on December 22, 2003 after the firing of Scott Layden, and eventually replaced Don Chaney with Lenny Wilkens behind the bench. At the same time, Thomas orchestrated several trades, including one that brought star point guard Stephon Marbury to the team. The team qualified for the playoffs that year with a 39–43 record, but were swept by the New Jersey Nets in the first round.

2004-05

The Knicks fared worse in the 2004–05 season, as they ended up with a 33–49 record. Wilkens resigned during the season, and Herb Williams served as interim coach for the rest of the season. During the off-season, the team signed Larry Brown to a five-year contract worth about $50 million, hoping he would lead the Knicks back to the NBA playoffs.

2005-06

The Knicks' payroll was the highest in the league at over $130 million, but the team was among the worst in the NBA, having finished the 2005-06 season with a dismal 23-59 record and capped off with the firing and $18.5 million buy-out of [3] coach Larry Brown.

Over the last two years, Thomas' trades have been highly critiqued, bringing in expensive players, such as Stephon Marbury, Jamal Crawford, Jerome James (signed as a free agent), Malik Rose, Jalen Rose, and Steve Francis. Moreover, Thomas has also accepted many bad contracts to make these trades, such as those of Penny Hardaway, Jerome Williams or Maurice Taylor, and given up draft picks. To Thomas' credit, his draft picks of David Lee, Channing Frye (later traded by Thomas), Trevor Ariza (later traded by Thomas) and Nate Robinson are considered wise, as was his signing free agent center Jackie Butler who later signed with the Spurs. Conversely, many considered his 2006 first-round draft pick of Renaldo Balkman very foolish [4], although Balkman's better-than-expected play has led many to reverse this early sentiment. [5]

Numerous anti-Knick websites have sprung up, most notably SellTheKnicks.com [6], who organized a march on Madison Square Garden, the home of the Draft, to protest Dolan's "abysmal" management of the Knicks' players and coaching staff.

The New York Knicks today

2006-2007

On December 16, 2006, the Knicks and the Denver Nuggets broke into a brawl during their game in Madison Square Garden.

Further information: Knicks-Nuggets brawl

On December 20, 2006, with many players still serving the suspension above, David Lee created one of the most memorable plays in recent Knicks history during a game against the Charlotte Bobcats. With a tie game and 0.1 seconds left on the game clock in double overtime, Jamal Crawford inbounded from the sideline, near half-court. The ball sailed towards the basket, and with that 0.1 seconds still remaining on the game clock, Lee tipped the ball off of the backboard and into the hoop. [7] Because of the Trent Tucker Rule (instituted in 1994), a player is allowed solely to tip the ball to score when the ball is put back into play with three-tenths of a second or less remaining. Because of this rule, the rarity of Lee's play increases. The Knicks won, 111-109 in double overtime.

The Knicks improved by 10 games in the 2006-2007 campaign, and were only eliminated from playoff contention in the last week of the season. Injuries ravaged the team at the end of the year, and they ended with a 33-49 (.402) record, avoiding a 50-loss season by defeating the Charlotte Bobcats 94-93 in a thriller on the last day of the season.

2007-2008

At the 2007 NBA Draft, Thomas traded Channing Frye and Steve Francis to the Portland Trail Blazers for Zach Randolph, Fred Jones, and Dan Dickau. The draft also featured the Knicks selecting Wilson Chandler with the 23rd pick and later acquiring the rights to Demetris Nichols — the 53rd pick in the draft — from the Blazers. Dickau was traded to the Clippers for draft pick Jared Jordan Marist. Jordan and Nichols were both released by the end of the preseason, bringing the roster to 15 players. The Knicks started out 2–1 after an exciting victory over the Denver Nuggets at Madison Square Garden but since then have struggled and have lost 8 straight games twice this season. Many Knicks fans called for the firing of coach/GM Isiah Thomas,[2] feeling that he is the cause of the current state of the Knicks team. The chant "Fire Isiah" became common at Madison Square Garden over the first few weeks of the season.

On November 29 2007 the Knicks were handed one of their worst defeats in the history of the franchise by the Boston Celtics. The Celtics, playing at home and led by their newly acquired "big three" (Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in addition to Paul Pierce) defeated the Knicks by a score of 104–59. This matched the third largest margin of defeat ever for the Knicks. They avoided the worst loss in history by a last second 3 pointer by Nate Robinson. [3]

Season-by-season records

Main article: New York Knicks seasons

Home arenas

Players of note

Basketball Hall of Famers

Retired numbers

Current roster

Current depth chart

Pos. Starter Bench Reserve Inactive
C Eddy Curry Jerome James
PF Zach Randolph David Lee Malik Rose Randolph Morris
SF Quentin Richardson Renaldo Balkman Jared Jeffries Wilson Chandler
SG Jamal Crawford Fred Jones
PG Nate Robinson Mardy Collins Stephon Marbury

Additional players of note

Coaches and others

Basketball Hall of Famers

Notables

High points

Franchise leaders

Individual awards

NBA MVP of the Year

NBA Finals MVP

NBA Rookie of the Year

NBA Sixth Man of the Year

NBA Coach of the Year

All-NBA First Team

All-NBA Second Team

All-NBA Third Team

NBA All-Defensive First Team

NBA All-Defensive Second Team

NBA All-Rookie First Team

NBA All-Rookie Second Team

Primary logo design

The current logo has been used since 1995, and it is a modernized version of the "roundball" logo the Knicks have used since 1964. The logo displays the words "NEW YORK KNICKS" (with "KNICKS" being larger than the other two words) above a basketball on top of an upturned isosceles triangle. The design is featured on the Knicks uniform shorts.

Other logo designs

File:NewYorkKnicksAlternate.png
The Knicks "Subway" logo.

The Knicks also use a circular emblem, with the letters NYK, designed to look like a subway token. From the late 1960s to 1990, the Knicks used an orange interlocking NY logo—the same design as on the New York Yankees' jerseys—on their warmup jackets and later their shorts (sometimes within an "apple" silhouette, sometimes by itself); it remains on their throwback-uniform shorts.

Trivia

  • The Knicks played in what is considered the first game in NBA history, against the Toronto Huskies. The league was then called the BAA (which through a series of mergers evolved into the NBA) and the game was played on November 1, 1946. The Knicks won 68-66.
  • The Knicks were the first team to have a non-Caucasian player on their roster, Japanese player Wataru Misaka who joined the team in 1947.
  • The Knicks were the first team to sign an African-American player to a contract, Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton in 1950. Although Clifton was signed first, Earl Lloyd was the first African-American to actually play in an NBA game. And in that same season, Chuck Cooper became the first African-American to be drafted to an NBA team. All three players are credited with breaking the NBA "color barrier" much like Jackie Robinson did for baseball.
  • The Knicks are the only 8th seeded team to ever make it to the NBA Finals, a feat they accomplished in 1999 (although it should be noted that this was the lockout season; such a feat has never been accomplished in a full season.)
  • The Knicks are one of only 5 teams to never have lost 60 games in a season. The other teams are The Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers, The Rochester/Cincinnati Royals/Sacramento Kings, The New Orleans/Utah Jazz, and The Seattle Supersonics.

See also

References

  1. ^ Forbes: 2007-08 NBA Team Valuations
  2. ^ Beck, Howard (2007-12-01). "Counted Out, Knicks Show Their Resolve". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-01.
  3. ^ Spears, Marc J. (2007-11-30). "Celtics light up Knicks". boston.com. Retrieved 2007-12-01.

Official

Father Knickerbocker (Original Team Logo)

History

Preceded by NBA Champions
New York Knicks
1970 		Succeeded by
Preceded by NBA Champions
New York Knicks
1973 		Succeeded by
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