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Patrick Ewing

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Patrick Ewing
Ewing in 2008
Charlotte Bobcats
PositionAssociate head coach
Personal information
Born (1962-08-05) August 5, 1962 (age 62)
Kingston, Jamaica
NationalityAmerican / Jamaican
Listed height7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High schoolCambridge Rindge and Latin
(Cambridge, Massachusetts)
CollegeGeorgetown (1981–1985)
NBA draft1985: 1st round, 1st overall pick
Selected by the New York Knicks
Playing career1985–2002
PositionCenter
Number33, 6
Coaching career2002–present
Career history
As player:
19852000New York Knicks
2000–2001Seattle SuperSonics
2001–2002Orlando Magic
As coach:
2002–2003Washington Wizards (assistant)
20032006Houston Rockets (assistant)
20072012Orlando Magic (assistant)
2013–presentCharlotte Bobcats (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points24,815 (21.0 ppg)
Rebounds11,617 (9.8 rpg)
Blocks2,894 (2.4 bpg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing the  United States
Gold medal – first place 1984 Los Angeles Team competition
Gold medal – first place 1992 Barcelona Team competition

Patrick Aloysius Ewing, Sr. (born August 5, 1962) is a Jamaican-American retired Hall of Fame basketball player. He played most of his career with the NBA's New York Knicks as their starting center and played briefly with the Seattle SuperSonics and Orlando Magic. He is currently the associate head coach of the Charlotte Bobcats, working under Steve Clifford.

Ewing was named as the 16th greatest college player of all time by ESPN.[1] He won Olympic gold medals as a member of the 1984 and 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball teams. In a 1996 poll celebrating the 50th anniversary of the NBA, Ewing was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. He is a two-time inductee into the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts (in 2008 for his individual career, and in 2010 as a member of the 1992 Olympic team).[2] In 2009, he was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame as a member of the "Dream Team". He was inducted into the Hall of Fame on September 5, 2008 along with former NBA coach Pat Riley and former Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon. His number 33 was retired by the Knicks in 2003.

Biography

Early life

Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Ewing excelled at cricket and soccer. In 1975, a 12-year-old Ewing joined his family in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[3] He learned to play basketball at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. While in high school, Ewing's team bus was often rocked by opponents when his team traveled to play an away game.[4] In order to prepare for college, Ewing joined the MIT-Wellesley Upward Bound Program. Upward Bound is a federally funded TRIO college-prep program for disadvantaged high school students. He went to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and became a citizen of the United States while attending Georgetown.[5]

College career

Ewing signed a letter of intent to accept to play for Coach John Thompson at Georgetown University. Ewing made his announcement in a room full of fans who wanted him to play for Boston College or Boston University. When Ewing announced his decision to play at Georgetown, the fans left the room.

As a freshman during the 1981–1982 season, Ewing became one of the first college players to start and star on the varsity team as a freshman. While at Georgetown, he developed a habit of wearing a short sleeved t-shirt underneath his sleeveless jersey. This started a fashion trend among young athletes that lasts to this day.

In the 1982 NCAA final against the University of North Carolina, Ewing was called for goaltending on the first five possessions of the first half, setting the tone for the Hoyas and making his presence felt. The Hoyas had a shot at winning the game until Fred Brown threw an infamous bad pass to James Worthy at the tail end of the game.

In the 1983–84 season, Ewing and Georgetown took the NCAA title with an 84–75 win over the University of Houston. In Ewing's senior year of 1985, Georgetown was ranked number one in the nation and was heavily favored to beat unranked Villanova in the title game, but the Wildcats shot a record 78.6 percent from the floor (22 for 28) to upset the Hoyas 66–64. Ewing was one of the best college basketball players of his era, as Georgetown reached the championship game of the NCAA tournament three out of four years. He was a first-team All-American.

While at Georgetown, however, Ewing was frequently forced to endure racist chants from white college students.[4] At times, spectators even threw objects at him while he was playing. In one game, after Ewing was nearly struck by an orange, coach Jim Boeheim of Syracuse borrowed a microphone and threatened to forfeit the game if fans continued to throw objects at Ewing.[6]

NBA career

New York Knicks

Ewing played 15 seasons (19852000) with the New York Knicks.

We've had the Mikan era, the Russell era, the Kareem era … now we'll have the Ewing era.

— 15px, 15px, Pat O'Brien, quoting an unnamed NBA scouting director just before the 1985 NBA Draft lottery.[7]

In 1985, the NBA instituted the first ever Draft Lottery to prevent teams from deliberately losing games to secure a better chance of obtaining the ultimate prize, Patrick Ewing. The New York Knicks won the Draft Lottery of 1985, and selected Ewing first overall.

Although injuries marred his first year in the league, he was named NBA Rookie of the Year, averaging 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game. Soon after he was considered one of the premier centers in the league. Ewing enjoyed a successful career; eleven times named an NBA All-Star, once named to the All-NBA First Team, six times a member of the All-NBA Second Team, and named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team three times. He was a member of the original Dream Team at the 1992 Olympic Games. He was also given the honor of being named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.

The Knicks played the defending NBA Champion Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan in the 1992 Eastern Conference Semifinals. Ewing was unstoppable in Game 1, finishing with 34 points, 16 rebounds, and 6 blocks, and the Knicks beat Chicago 94–89. With the Knicks facing elimination, Game 6 is regarded as one of the greatest of Ewing's career. The Knicks trailed 3–2 in the series and Ewing was limited physically by a bad ankle sprain,[8] but he helped the Knicks beat the Bulls 100–86 by scoring 27 points. NBC announcer Marv Albert called it a "Willis Reed-type performance", but the Knicks were ultimately eliminated in Game 7 in a blowout, 110–81.

In a 1993 game[9] between the Knicks and the Charlotte Hornets, the 7'0" (2.14 m) Ewing suffered a moment of embarrassment when guard Tyrone "Muggsy" Bogues, who stands a mere 5'3" (1.60 m), managed to block his shot.[10] The team looked like it was going to advance to the NBA Finals when they took a 2–0 lead over Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls. Both teams battled well, each winning on its home court in the first 4 games. However, the Bulls stunned the Ewing-led Knicks, winning Game 5 in New York 97–94 after Ewing's teammate, Charles Smith, was repeatedly blocked down low by Bulls defenders on the game's final possession. The Bulls would go on to win Game 6 96–88 and then claim their third straight NBA title. This would be one more season in which Ewing had to deal with no championships, despite the fact that the Knicks had the best regular season record in the Eastern Conference at 60–22 and had the second best record in the NBA, behind the Phoenix Suns, who were 62–20.

With Jordan out of the league, 1993–94 was considered a wide open year in the NBA, and Ewing had declared that 1994 would be the Knicks' year. He was a key contributor to the Knicks' run to the 1994 NBA Finals, in which the Knicks – in the finals for the first time since 1973 – lost in the final seconds of Games 6 and 7 to Hakeem Olajuwon's Houston Rockets. The Knicks, with Ewing leading them, had to survive a grueling trek through the playoffs simply to reach the Finals. They defeated Scottie Pippen's Bulls in seven games in the 1994 Eastern Conference Semifinals (all seven games were won by the home team), and defeated Reggie Miller's Indiana Pacers in the Conference Finals, which also took seven games to decide. In the Finals, the Knicks stole Game 2 in Houston, but couldn't hold court at home, dropping Game 3 at the Garden. The Knicks then won the next two games to return to Houston ahead 3–2. However, the Rockets won the next two games. Ewing made the most of his playoff run by setting a record for most blocked shots in a Finals series (only later to be broken by Tim Duncan). He also set an NBA Finals record for most blocked shots in a single game, with 8 (later surpassed by Dwight Howard).

The following year, a potential game-tying finger roll by Ewing rimmed out in the dwindling seconds of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, resulting in a loss to the Indiana Pacers. In the 1995–96 season, Ewing and the Knicks were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 5 games by the record-setting Bulls, who won 72 games that year en route to their fourth championship.

In the 1997 playoffs, the Knicks faced the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Ewing was involved in a Game 5 brawl where both team's benches got involved. The Knicks, who were up 3–1 in the series going into Game 5, lost the next three games and were eliminated.

In the next season, Ewing's career almost came to an end due to an injury. On December 20, 1997, in a game against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Bradley Center, Ewing was fouled by Andrew Lang while attempting a dunk.[11] He then fell to the court hard and landed on his wrist, breaking it, dislocating the bone, and tearing ligaments. The injury was so severe that it required immediate surgery to prevent nerve damage. Ewing, who had only missed 20 games in the previous ten seasons, missed the remaining 56 games of the season.[12] However, he was able to rehabilitate the injury faster than expected and as the playoffs began, Ewing was talking about returning. The Heat and Knicks met up in the playoffs for the second straight year. This time, the 2 teams met up in the First Round of the playoffs. The series went to a decisive 5th game, but the Knicks avenged their loss to Miami the year before by beating the Heat in Miami 98–81. Ewing returned for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Indiana Pacers. His presence wasn't enough however, as the Knicks fell to the Pacers in 5 games.

The following season, Ewing and the Knicks qualified as the East's #8 seed in a lockout-shortened campaign. Although battling an Achilles tendon injury, Ewing led the Knicks to another victory over the Heat in the First Round, 3–2. They followed that up by sweeping Atlanta, and defeated the Pacers in the Conference Finals in 6 games, despite Ewing's injury finally forcing him out of action. However, the Knicks couldn't complete their Cinderella run, as they lost in the Finals to the Spurs 4–1.

In Ewing's final season as a Knick (1999-00), the team finished as the #3 seed in the East behind the Pacers and Heat. The team advanced to the Conference Finals again, sweeping the Raptors and beating the Heat for the third straight year in 7 games, but could not defeat the Pacers and fell in 6 games. During his final season as a Knick, Ewing played in his 1,000th NBA game, finishing his Knick career with a franchise-record 1,039 games played in a Knick uniform (He is the only player to play 1,000 games with the Knicks).

After the Knicks

In 2000, he left the Knicks as part of a trade to the Seattle SuperSonics. In the trade, the Knicks sent Ewing to Seattle and Chris Dudley to Phoenix, and received Glen Rice, Luc Longley, Travis Knight, Vladimir Stepania, Lazaro Borrell, Vernon Maxwell, two first-round draft picks (from the Los Angeles Lakers and Seattle) and two second-round draft picks from Seattle. After a year with the Sonics and another with the Orlando Magic, he announced his retirement on September 18, 2002. That season, he took a job as an assistant coach with the Washington Wizards.

In 1,183 games over 16 seasons, Ewing averaged 21.0 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game, and averaged better than a 50 percent shooting percentage. As of 2014, Ewing was ranked 18th on the NBA scoring list with 24,815 points.[13]

In 2001, Ewing testified in part of the Atlanta's Gold Club prostitution and fraud federal trial. The owner Thomas Sicignano, testified that he arranged for dancers to have sex with professional athletes. Ewing admitted he went to the club and received oral sex twice in the club. Ewing was never charged with any criminal wrongdoing.[14]

On February 28, 2003, Ewing's jersey number 33 was retired by the Knicks, for whom he played 1,039 games, in a large ceremony at Madison Square Garden. He continues to be considered one of the greatest players in the Knicks' storied history, as well as one of the greatest in NBA history. In his last year with the Knicks, Ewing had a game-winning slam dunk over Alonzo Mourning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals to lead the Knicks to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Awards and honors

Patrick Ewing college jersey in the Basketball Hall of Fame museum in Springfield, Massachusetts.[15]

NBA statistics

In 1993 he led the NBA with 789 defensive rebounds. He was top ten in field goal percentage 8 times, top ten in rebounds per game as well as total rebounds 8 times, top ten in points, as well as points per game 8 times, and top ten in blocks per game for 13 years.[16]

In 1999, Ewing became the 10th player in NBA history to record 22,000 points and 10,000 rebounds.

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Averages

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1985–86 New York 50 50 35.4 .474 .000 .739 9.0 2.0 1.1 2.1 20.0
1986-87 New York 63 63 35.0 .503 .000 .713 8.8 1.7 1.4 2.3 21.5
1987–88 New York 82 82 31.0 .555 .000 .716 8.2 1.5 1.3 3.0 20.2
1988–89 New York 80 80 36.2 .567 .000 .746 9.3 2.4 1.5 3.5 22.7
1989–90 New York 82 82 38.6 .551 .250 .775 10.9 2.2 1.0 4.0 28.6
1990–91 New York 81 81 38.3 .514 .000 .745 11.2 3.0 1.0 3.2 26.6
1991–92 New York 82 82 38.4 .522 .167 .738 11.2 1.9 1.1 3.0 24.0
1992–93 New York 81 81 37.1 .503 .143 .719 12.1 1.9 0.9 2.0 24.2
1993–94 New York 79 79 37.6 .496 .286 .765 11.2 2.3 1.1 2.7 24.5
1994–95 New York 79 79 37.0 .503 .286 .750 11.0 2.7 0.9 2.0 23.9
1995–96 New York 76 76 36.6 .466 .143 .761 10.6 2.1 0.9 2.4 22.5
1996–97 New York 78 78 37.0 .488 .222 .754 10.7 2.0 0.9 2.4 22.4
1997–98 New York 26 26 32.6 .504 .000 .720 10.2 1.1 0.6 2.2 20.8
1998–99 New York 38 38 34.2 .435 .000 .706 9.9 1.1 0.8 2.6 17.3
1999–00 New York 62 62 34.2 .435 .000 .731 9.7 0.9 0.6 1.4 15.0
2000–01 Seattle 79 79 26.7 .430 .000 .685 7.4 1.2 0.7 1.2 9.6
2001–02 Orlando 65 4 13.9 .444 .000 .701 4.0 0.5 0.3 0.7 6.0
Career 1,183 1,122 34.3 .504 .152 .740 9.8 1.9 1.0 2.5 21.0
Playoffs 139 135 37.5 .469 .348 .718 10.3 2.0 0.9 2.2 20.2
All-Star 9 3 21.1 .537 .000 .692 6.7 0.8 1.2 1.8 11.8

Career highs

Stat High Team Opponent Date
Points 51 New York Knicks vs. Boston Celtics March 24, 1990
Field Goals Made 22 New York Knicks vs. Charlotte Hornets December 1, 1990
Field Goals Attempted 37 New York Knicks at San Antonio Spurs March 26, 1991
Three Point Field Goals Made 1 New York Knicks N/A 19 Times
Three Point Field Goals Attempted 3 New York Knicks N/A 2 Times
Free throws Made 18 New York Knicks vs. Indiana Pacers January 10, 1991
Free throw Attempts 23 New York Knicks N/A 2 Times
Offensive Rebounds 11 New York Knicks vs. Milwaukee Bucks February 20, 1996
Defensive Rebounds 22 New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat December 19, 1992
Total Rebounds 26 New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat December 19, 1992
Assists 11 New York Knicks vs. Charlotte Hornets April 19, 1996
Steals 5 New York Knicks N/A 4 Times
Blocks 9 New York Knicks N/A 3 Times
Minutes played 54 New York Knicks at Atlanta Hawks December 7, 1991

Coaching career

Ewing played his final season (2001–02) with the Orlando Magic and became an assistant coach for the team in 2007.

From 2003 through 2006, Ewing was an assistant with the Houston Rockets, before resigning to spend more time with his family. On July 3, 2007, Ewing was one of four assistants hired to serve under first-year Orlando Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy[17] for the 2007–08 season.

Ewing was enshrined into the Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2008.[18]

Ewing was a key factor in the Magic's run to the 2009 NBA Finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers. He guaranteed a win in Game 7 of the second round against the defending champion Boston Celtics.[19] The Magic beat the Celtics 101 to 82 to win the series 4 games to 3. As a result, Ewing saw Magic captain Dwight Howard set a new NBA Finals record, for most blocked shots in a single finals game, with 9 in Game 4 of the finals, surpassing the previous record of 8, which Ewing himself set in Game 5 of the 1994 Finals.

In 2010, Ewing finally got the opportunity to coach his son Patrick Ewing Jr. in the 2010 summer league. Ewing Jr. played for the Magic.[20]

In 2013, Ewing became an assistant coach with the Charlotte Bobcats.[21] On November 8, 2013, Ewing would end up coaching for the Bobcats as their interim head coach due to the team's regular head coach Steve Clifford having heart surgery during that time. He would end up losing in his first stint by the score of 101-91 against his former team, the New York Knicks.

Off the court

Other work

Ewing was in the 1996 movie Space Jam as himself, one of five NBA players whose talent was stolen (along with Charles Barkley, Shawn Bradley, Larry Johnson, and Muggsy Bogues). Ewing had a brief appearance, again as himself, in the movie Senseless starring Marlon Wayans.

Ewing made cameos as himself in the sitcoms Spin City, Herman's Head, Mad About You, and Webster.[22] Most recently, he appeared in a 2009 ad for Snickers, suggesting that those who eat the candy bar might "get dunked on by Patrick Chewing".

He co-wrote In the Paint, a painting how-to book for children.[23]

Endorsements

Ewing's first sneaker endorsement was with Adidas in 1986.[24] In 1991, Next Sports signed a licensing deal to release footwear under Ewing's name in the United States under a new company, Ewing Athletics, which would operate until 1996.[25] In 2012, David Goldberg and his company GPF Footwear LLC successfully teamed up with Patrick to resurrect the old Ewing Athletics line, and bring it back into stores, capitalizing on the current retro trend in the footwear market. [26]

Personal life

After friend and rival NBA center Alonzo Mourning was diagnosed with a kidney ailment in 2000, Ewing promised that he would donate one of his kidneys to Mourning if he ever needed one.[27] In 2003, Ewing was tested for kidney compatibility with Mourning, but Mourning's cousin was found to be the best match.[28] Ewing's son, Patrick Ewing, Jr., attended his father's alma mater, Georgetown University after two years at Indiana University. Ewing, Jr. wore the same jersey number that his father wore, #33. He was drafted by the Sacramento Kings in the second round with the 43rd pick of the 2008 NBA Draft, but was then traded to the New York Knicks, his father's old team. He did not make the Knicks' final roster, however. He has spent most of his career in the NBA D-League and in Europe.

Ewing has been a resident of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.[29]

Ewing, in addition to his son, has two daughters named Corey and Randi.

See also

References

  1. ^ 25 Greatest Players in College Basketball: No. 16 Patrick Ewing – ESPN Video. Espn.go.com (March 8, 2008). Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  2. ^ http://www.hoophall.com/hall-of-famers/tag/1992-united-states-olympic-team
  3. ^ Wise, Mike (March 13, 2008). "Ewing Gives Hoyas a Little Pop". Washington Post.
  4. ^ a b Bunn, Curtis (September 11, 1994). "Journey Recalls Racism For Ewing -- South Africa Trip Eye-Opener For Knicks Star". New York Daily News.
  5. ^ Vecsey, George (December 3, 1993). "Basketball Surviving Quite Nicely". New York Times.
  6. ^ Patrick Ewing. Georgetown Basketball History Project]
  7. ^ ESPN.com: Links while tossing around conspiracy theories. Sports.espn.go.com (May 22, 2007). Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  8. ^ Brown, Clifton (May 17, 1992). "BASKETBALL; Ewing Feels Good Enough". New York Times. Retrieved September 6, 2009.
  9. ^ 04/14/1993 NBA Box Score at CHA –. Basketballreference.com (April 14, 1993). Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  10. ^ @Herald: The agony of short people. Yaleherald.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  11. ^ Lang: Hit On Ewing Wasn't On Purpose. Articles.nydailynews.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  12. ^ "New York Knicks' Patrick Ewing out for season after two-hour surgery following wrist injury". Jet. 1998.
  13. ^ http://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/pts_career.html
  14. ^ "NBA star Ewing testifies at strip club trial". CNN. July 24, 2001. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
  15. ^ "Patrick Ewing Selected to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame". Georgetown University Athletics. April 7, 2008.
  16. ^ Patrick Ewing Statistics –. Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  17. ^ "Ewing, Malone, Clifford, Beyer hired as Magic coaches". ESPN.com. Associated Press. July 3, 2007.
  18. ^ "Ewing, Hakeem, Vitale headline 2008 Naismith Hall of Fame class". ESPN.com. Associated Press. April 28, 2008.
  19. ^ Berman, Marc (May 18, 2009). "EWING PROPHETIC AS MAGIC BEAT CELTICS IN GAME 7". New York Post. Retrieved September 17, 2009.
  20. ^ Ewing coaches his son. Google.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  21. ^ Ewing Meets Media. Nba.com (June 19, 2013). Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  22. ^ Patrick Ewing. imdb.com
  23. ^ In the Paint: Patrick Ewing, Linda L. Louis: 9780789205421: Amazon.com: Books. Amazon.com (April 1, 1999). Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  24. ^ Halfhill, Matt. (January 8, 2014) Throwback Thursday – Original Adidas Attitude Ewing. NiceKicks.com. Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  25. ^ Lee, Sharon (February 11, 1991). "Next Sports receives Ewing rights in U.S." Footwear News. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  26. ^ Former New York Knicks center Patrick Ewing relaunching shoe brand - ESPN New York. Espn.go.com (August 28, 2012). Retrieved on January 30, 2014.
  27. ^ "Patrick Ewing Offers Kidney To Ailing Friend Alonzo Mourning". Jet. 2000.
  28. ^ Lopresti, Mike (June 10, 2006). "Donating kidney 'a no-brainer' for Mourning's cousin". USATODAY.com. USA Today.
  29. ^ Ewing takes stand – barely, The Record (Bergen County) by Jason Tsai, October 27, 2006. "Former NBA star Patrick Ewing told jurors Thursday that he felt "violated" and frightened for his family's safety after his Englewood Cliffs home was ransacked seven years ago of more than $300,000 in property."

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