Patrick Ewing

Patrick Aloysius Ewing (born August 5, 1962) is a former NBA player. He played most of his career with the New York Knicks as their starting center.

Ewing was born in Kingston, Jamaica; when he was 12 years old, he came to the United States with his family, who settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he attended Cambridge Rindge and Latin. He played college basketball for Georgetown University, where he led the Hoyas to the NCAA championship game in 1982, 1984, and 1985, winning in 1984. By the time he arrived at Georgetown, he had become a naturalized U.S. citizen, making him eligible for membership on the U.S. Olympic team in 1984; he won a gold medal with that team.

In 1985 he was selected first overall in the NBA Draft by the Knicks. Although injuries marred his first year in the league, he was named NBA Rookie of the Year by averaging 20 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks per game. Very soon, he became one of the premier centers of the league. Ewing was an eleven time NBA All-Star, was named to the All-NBA First Team once, to the All-NBA Second Team six times and to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team three times. He was a member of the original Dream Team at the 1992 Olympics, winning a second gold medal. In 1996, he was also given the honor of being named one the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.

In spite of all his honors, Ewing never managed to lead the Knicks to a NBA championship, although he was a key contributor to the Knicks' run to the Eastern Conference championship in 1994 (the Knicks returned to the NBA Finals in 1999, but Ewing missed the latter part of their playoff run due to a hamstring injury). This incident of the New York Knicks making it to the NBA Finals despite Patrick Ewing being injured is the prime evidence for a theory called the "Ewing Theory". In 2000, he finally left the Knicks, being traded to the Seattle Supersonics. After a year with the Supersonics and another with the Orlando Magic, he finally announced his retirement on September 18, 2002.

On February 28, 2003 Patrick Ewing's jersey with number 33 was retired in a large ceremony at Madison Square Garden. Although he failed to win a NBA championship, he remains one of the best centers to ever play and perhaps the greatest player in Knicks history. Patrick Ewing continues his career as an assistant coach with the Houston Rockets.