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Post by jbnewyork162 on May 10, 2021 18:26:50 GMT -5
What is your favorite moment or memory of that last ring/championship/season?
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Post by ReneNYG1 on May 10, 2021 19:07:53 GMT -5
Clyde making a steal
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Post by jbnewyork162 on May 10, 2021 21:11:50 GMT -5
Did you go to any of the playoff games that year or did you watch it live? What was the city like then if you lived there?? |
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Post by ReneNYG1 on May 11, 2021 9:08:46 GMT -5
I didn't go to any games just watch them.I was 16,I remember the 1969 year more since it was the Jets,Mets and Knicks,Being a Giant fan I did like Joe Willie and the Mets blew my mind really after the Mets win in 69 nothing surprised me,I remember 73 because of pearl's addition but I really liked Barnett and he wasn't on 73 team I believe.Those years I was in the gym shooting hoops nightly so the Knicks were huge.
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Post by rxmeister on May 11, 2021 9:42:37 GMT -5
What I remember most about that team were the additions to it from the first championship team. Jerry Lucas and Earl Monroe, although I think that was not ether’s first year with the team. As a teenager I was the last of the 6 ft 2 inch centers and my favorite weapon was the hook shot. As a result the player I admired the most on other teams was Jerry Lucas, because he had a great hook shot. Kareem of course had an even better one, but because he was killing the Knicks and his shot was impossible for someone my height to reproduce, I related more to the smaller dude. I remember turning on 1010 Wins one morning and hearing that the Knicks had acquired Jerry Lucas and I was so excited I ran to tell my father and tripped over my cat and yelled “the Knicks got Jerry Lucas!” while lying on the floor! My father replied, “was that worth almost getting killed for?” Of course it was! I hated to lose Cazzie, but I loved Lucas. A quick Cazzie story too. I lived right near Lost Battalion Hall, and used to play there all the time. The main court there was always taken by the best players in the area, so we usually played on the side courts, although occasionally I got lucky enough to play with the best players. If you remember the Knicks used to practice there, and one Saturday Cazzie Russell came down by himself to play. The best player at the Batallion those days was a high school legend from Forest Hills High named Rudy Jackson and he was really good. They played a three against three game and Rudy and Cazzie were guarding each other. Cazzie was pretty much going through the motions and Rudy was out playing him, and Cazzie didn’t seem to care, until Rudy rejected his dunk attempt and the crowd went nuts! Immediately the expression changed on Cazzie’s face and the rest of the game he just destroyed the poor overmatched kid. After they lost Rudy walked past me with a sheepish grin and said, “I guess I shouldn’t have made him angry!” Back to Lucas though. An injury to Willis made him the starting center and he couldn’t shoot those hook shots against the Kareem’s and Wilt’s of the league, so he had to go outside and shoot these uncanny long jump shots that he released from his hip that seemed to never miss. I remember Bill Russell, who now did the games for ABC, saying he got there early and Lucas was moving in a semi circle (he was shooting threes before the three!) in practice and went completely around the court and didn’t miss a single shot. Bill said he asked Jerry what he was doing and Jerry replied, “shooting layups!” Willis returned for the playoffs and was his MVP self again, and the Knicks won it all. I think though because of Jerry and the excitement of what I thought was the greatest backcourt of all time, (Clyde and Earl) I loved that second championship more than the first!
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Post by jbnewyork162 on May 11, 2021 10:21:24 GMT -5
What I remember most about that team were the additions to it from the first championship team. Jerry Lucas and Earl Monroe, although I think that was not ether’s first year with the team. As a teenager I was the last of the 6 ft 2 inch centers and my favorite weapon was the hook shot. As a result the player I admired the most on other teams was Jerry Lucas, because he had a great hook shot. Kareem of course had an even better one, but because he was killing the Knicks and his shot was impossible for someone my height to reproduce, I related more to the smaller dude. I remember turning on 1010 Wins one morning and hearing that the Knicks had acquired Jerry Lucas and I was so excited I ran to tell my father and tripped over my cat and yelled “the Knicks got Jerry Lucas!” while lying on the floor! My father replied, “was that worth almost getting killed for?” Of course it was! I hated to lose Cazzie, but I loved Lucas. A quick Cazzie story too. I lived right near Lost Battalion Hall, and used to play there all the time. The main court there was always taken by the best players in the area, so we usually played on the side courts, although occasionally I got lucky enough to play with the best players. If you remember the Knicks used to practice there, and one Saturday Cazzie Russell came down by himself to play. The best player at the Batallion those days was a high school legend from Forest Hills High named Rudy Jackson and he was really good. They played a three against three game and Rudy and Cazzie were guarding each other. Cazzie was pretty much going through the motions and Rudy was out playing him, and Cazzie didn’t seem to care, until Rudy rejected his dunk attempt and the crowd went nuts! Immediately the expression changed on Cazzie’s face and the rest of the game he just destroyed the poor overmatched kid. After they lost Rudy walked past me with a sheepish grin and said, “I guess I shouldn’t have made him angry!” Back to Lucas though. An injury to Willis made him the starting center and he couldn’t shoot those hook shots against the Kareem’s and Wilt’s of the league, so he had to go outside and shoot these uncanny long jump shots that he released from his hip that seemed to never miss. I remember Bill Russell, who now did the games for ABC, saying he got there early and Lucas was moving in a semi circle (he was shooting threes before the three!) in practice and went completely around the court and didn’t miss a single shot. Bill said he asked Jerry what he was doing and Jerry replied, “shooting layups!” Willis returned for the playoffs and was his MVP self again, and the Knicks won it all. I think though because of Jerry and the excitement of what I thought was the greatest backcourt of all time, (Clyde and Earl) I loved that second championship more than the first! Wow thanks for sharing those personal stories. |
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Post by pearl on May 11, 2021 18:03:59 GMT -5
JB,
So many memories.
Game 7 in the Boston Garden, Eastern Conference finals. No team ever beat the Celtics in Boston in a game 7. The Knicks destroyed the Celtics that afternoon. Clyde was brilliant. Phil Jackson had a great series and a great game 7. Earl was having an off game and Red Holzman had the balls to play Dean Meminger most of the game and the dream came through.
I do remember Rx's and Bill Russell's recall of Jerry Lucas coming out 45 minutes before each game and shooting 25 foot shots in a perimeter around the court. he never missed a shot and he took 5 or so from the same spot and then moved a few feet away for his next seqquence. can you imagine hitting 100 straight 3 pointers!!!
Of course, it was great Earl and Jerry got their first and only rings of their brilliant careers. Game 5 and the last game versus the Lakers, DeBusschere turns his ankle with 7 minutes left in the 4th quarter and the Knicks keep their composure and win the game and NBA Championship. The 1973 Knicks team was as good as it gets.
Pearl
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