Patrick Ewing
(Born 1962)
Hall of Fame Induction: 2008
Card Shown:
2003-04 Upper Deck Legends
Legendary Signatures
Position: C
Height: 7’0″
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Patrick Ewing was a hard working player who was a defensive stopper, an excellent rebounder, and prolific scorer. Known as a defensive stopper while playing college ball at Georgetown, Ewing developed a deadly baseline jumper in the pros. He played fifteen of his seventeen NBA seasons with the New York Knicks and led them to the playoffs thirteen times. However, Ewing often had to face the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan in his prime and the Bulls defeated the Knicks five times in the playoffs. Although he never did win an NBA Championship, Patrick Ewing will always be remembered as one of the best centers to play the game.
Awards and Honors
- Ewing led the Georgetown Hoyas to three Final Fours including the NCAA National Championship in 1984. He was named the outstanding player of the Final Four that year.
- Patrick won two Olympic gold medals for Team USA in Los Angeles (1984) and in Barcelona (1992) as part of the Dream Team.
- In 1985-86 Ewing was selected the NBA Rookie of the Year.
- Patrick was named to the All-NBA First Team once and the All-NBA Second Team six times during his seventeen year NBA career. He also made the All-Defensive Second Team three times.
- Ewing was an eleven-time NBA All-Star and was named one of The 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996.
Points of Interest
- Patrick was one of the best shooting centers to ever play the game. When he retired in 2002 he had amassed 24,815 points, making him the NBA’s 13th all-time leading scorer at that time.
- Ewing was selected with the first overall pick in the 1985 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks. This was the first year that the NBA Draft Lottery was instituted and the Knicks, with the third-worst record in the NBA, benefited from the new system.
- Some hold Patrick’s failure to win an NBA Championship against his legacy of greatness. Though his teams made the playoffs fourteen times, the closest Ewing came to a championship was losing in Game 7 in the 1994 Finals to Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets. Ewing had beaten Olajuwon and the Houston Cougars in 1984 to win his NCAA Championship.
- Ewing finished his Hall of Fame NBA career averaging 21 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game.
- The New York Knicks retired Ewing’s #33 jersey at halftime of a game on February 28, 2003. The appreciative New York crowd chanted his name, louder and louder, in honor of his tremendous heart, dedication, and efforts on behalf of the Knicks.
Statistics
Patrick Ewing Statistics
provided by Basketball-Reference.com