Patrick Ewing

Patrick Aloysius Ewing (August 5, 1962-) was the Number 1 overall by the New York Knicks in the 1985 NBA Draft benefitting from the first ever Draft Lottery that includes the 14 teams that missed the playoffs from the previous season. (The Draft Lottery was implemented to keep teams from deliberately losing to improve their draft standing.) Already a young superstar, having been one of the first college freshman players to start and star on the varsity squad and guiding the Hoyas to the NCAA National Championship Game three of his four years at Georgetown, Ewing was a star on the rise on the biggest stage in the NBA with the New York Knicks. Despite suffering through injuries, Ewing captured the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 1986 and was selected for the NBA All-Rookie First Team. Patrick played 17 seasons in the NBA, primarily with the Knicks (1985-2000), SuperSonics (2000-01) and Magic (2001-02). Despite never winning an NBA Championship title, he was an 11-time NBA All-Star selection, All-NBA First Team once, All-NBA Second Team six times and All-Defensive NBA Second Team three times. In 1996, still active with the Knicks, Patrick was named to the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History list. Unfortunately for Ewing, he played in the Eastern Conference during the remarkable era of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls dominance who won six titles in eight years from 1991-1998. In his only appearance in the NBA Finals, the Houston Rockets beat Ewing and the Knicks in the 1994 NBA Finals. Ewing’s effectiveness was hampered by various injuries as his career progressed and he retired in 2002 as a member of the Orlando Magic. Ewing finished his career with 24,815 points 11,617 total rebounds, 2,214 assists and 2,894 blocks. Patrick Ewing was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008. Patrick Ewing was hired as an Assistant Coach for the Orlando Magic in 2007.