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| 1999 Leaders |
| Stat |
Leader |
No. |
Points
Assists
Steals
Turnovers
Rebounds
Minutes Per Game
Field-Goal %
3-Pt. Field-Goal %
Free-Throw %
Personal Fouls
|
Patrick Ewing
Charlie Ward
Charlie Ward
Patrick Ewing
Patrick Ewing
Allan Houston
Marcus Camby
Allan Houston
Allan Houston
Kurt Thomas
|
17.3
5.4
2.06
2.6
9.9
36.3
52.1
.407
.862
159
|
|
|
 The Knicks' catharsis occurred in the final moments of Game 5 of
last season's first-round playoff series against the Heat, when
Allan Houston's do-or-die shot bounced and bounced and finally
dropped through the net. That hoop not only boosted Houston's
confidence, but it also probably saved coach Jeff Van Gundy's
job, allowed Latrell Sprewell to prove that he doesn't choke in
the postseason, set the stage for Marcus Camby's emergence and
persuaded New York's players that they could contend for the NBA
title without injured center Patrick Ewing. "One good bounce did
a lot to determine the future of the Knicks," Houston says. "Who
knows what happens if that shot misses? At that moment we left
all the soap opera stuff behind and grew into who we are today."
But who are they exactly? Is New York the predictable half-court
team built around Ewing that struggled to reach the playoffs last
season? Or is it the flying circus of Camby, Houston and Sprewell
that nearly ran off with the championship trophy as an eighth
seed?
The answers won't come until the 37-year-old Ewing is ready to
play. He suffered a partial tear of his left Achilles tendon
against the Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals, an injury
that prevented him from running during most of the preseason, and
he has told friends that he could be sidelined until January. As
Sprewell willed the Knicks through the playoffs by averaging more
than 20 points a game, some observers felt New York might be
better off without Ewing. Van Gundy responds by saying that
during the postseason run, the Knicks were 8-3 with Ewing in the
lineup and 4-5 without him, and his absence proved debilitating
in the five-game loss to the Spurs and their twin towers, Tim
Duncan and David Robinson, in the Finals. "Without Patrick the
last two years we've been a .500 team," Van Gundy says. "This
notion that we may be as good without him is nonsense. To be a
successful team in this league you must create easy baskets in
transition and execute well in the half-court offense, where
Patrick gives us a primary option."
During training camp several Knicks grumbled about the
possibility of losing playing time when Ewing returns, but that
controversy was overshadowed by the absence of Sprewell, who was
AWOL for a week, saying only that he was visiting his new baby in
Milwaukee. The Knicks handled Sprewell's behavior with relative
restraint -- he was fined $130,000 but not suspended (though they
did hold him out of their first preseason game) -- because they were
considering either signing him to a long-term contract or trading
him. The former turned out to be the case; last week team
executives reportedly offered Spree a two-year, $23.3 million
contract or one for five years and $64 million. Sprewell said it
was "more than likely" that he would make one of the deals.
Even with Sprewell in the fold, the Knicks will still have their
share of controversies, beginning with who will fill in for
Ewing. One of New York's options is 6'11" Chris Dudley, an inept
shooter but a strong post defender and rebounder. Despite a leg
injury of his own (sprained right knee ligament), he should be
ready for the season opener. The Knicks' other natural pivot is
6'11" Andrew Lang, who has played for seven teams in 12 seasons.
The X factor will be Camby. After being perceived as a soft
replacement for Charles Oakley and sitting on the bench for much
of the 1998-99 regular season, he asserted himself when Ewing got
injured and, while playing both center and forward, averaged 14.3
points, 10.7 rebounds and 3.0 blocks against Indiana in the
conference finals. Despite his lithe 225-pound frame, Camby bangs
in the lane, and he's rediscovering the skills that made him the
second pick in the '96 draft. "Going from being buried on the
bench to starting in the NBA Finals gives me a big push going
into this season," Camby says. "Everybody knows what I can do
now, and it's up to me to keep producing."
Van Gundy says he will rotate Camby, Dudley, Lang and Kurt Thomas
at center, depending on matchups, and hope Ewing-less New York
can survive a schedule that includes 10 of the first 13 games on
the road. But when Ewing returns, how will he fit in? Ewing,
whose field goal attempts per game have decreased in each of the
past three seasons but who still averaged more shots than any
Knick last season, chafes at the notion of playing a supporting
role. It remains to be seen if the Knicks can integrate Ewing's
half-court post presence into their up-tempo attack, which will
at times feature Houston and Sprewell in the backcourt.
No team better illustrates the fine line between good and evil,
success and failure, than New York. In one of his first addresses
at training camp, Van Gundy held two fingers a half inch apart to
remind the Knicks how far they were from missing the playoffs and
also how far they were from winning the championship. Sprewell
wasn't there to see this demonstration, of course, which only
served to underscore Van Gundy's other message, on the importance
of teamwork. Says Van Gundy, "People keep asking me, 'Whose team
is it?' That's a silly question. It's not Patrick's team or Larry
[Johnson]'s or Allan's or Latrell's, it's our team. In the NBA
the ball is a lightning rod, and it can unite or divide you.
Every year there are going to be some problems with shots and
minutes, but we all need to sacrifice if we're navigating toward
the same dream."
Before the season Van Gundy passed out T-shirts that featured the
number 15 over the heart. A year ago New York won 12 of the 15
playoff games necessary to win the title, and deep down even the
resilient Van Gundy can't be sure whether this year's team will
implode or produce those three extra victories. Are these Knicks
Van Gundy's nightmare? Or are they his dream?
Issue date: November 1, 1999
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