Pitino:" '69 Knicks My Favorite Team of All Time"

Jackson was out after back surgery and didn't play, but I think he and everyone else considered him a Knick.

 

Yes - he even did a photo book which I am looking at right now, but he didn't play that season.

I can't tell you how many people speak of him coming off the bench that year when the Knicks wanted to press.

 

BTW, I still can't believe how well Monroe fit in. When they got him, I thought it would ruin the Knicks because he was a scoring machine with Baltimore and I expected he'd be selfish. He turned out to be a great team player.

 

The Baltimore Bullets team of the early 70s was pretty solid, too. Earl Monroe at his most brilliant, before being slowed slightly by gimpy knees; Unseld when he was young and strong, before he gained 30 pounds he didn't need in the last 5 years of his career; Gus Johnson and Riordan. They went to the finals against the Bucks in Kareem's great year, but they could never get over the hump, until finally pulling it off in 1978, with a mostly-new roster.

 

Riordan's offense surprised me in those years after he got traded to the Bullets for Monroe. Bullets lost Monroe but added Elvin Hayes and Phil Chenier which kept them going.

 

That's right -- Riordan wouldn't have been on the team with Monroe. I think Jack Marin was in the Bullets' rotation at the time, along with Archie Clark.

 

earl "the pearl" monroe, aka "black jesus," was THE MAN back in the day. NO KNICK FAN worth his salt from the late '60s-mid '70s thinks he was on that knicks '69-70 championship team. the playoff series that year and the following season vs. monroe's bullets were too memorable to make that mistake.

and phil jackson was the off-beat hippie who didn't play in '69-70. he was a great source for phil berger, though, who penned a damn good book, "miracle on 33rd street," about the '69-70 knicks. it was sort of a "ball four" of basketball, showing that knicks team, warts and all.

monroe was why the '72-73 knicks were better than the first title team, imo. man, how i worshipped that guy. was he sweet. he'd hit shots off moves that made you shake your head -- and hecouldn't jump any higher than the white guys and wasn't fast, either.

he was pure magic, though. monroe brought spice to the knicks. he'd always give you a move you'd never seen before.

 

Shockey - it's an interesting debate as to which team was better. 72/73 team also had Jerry Lucus but a diminished Willis Reed.

69/70 team had Cazzie Russell and Dave Stallworth. Remember how electric the Garden got when Cazzie started to take off his warmups to come into game?

 

yup. there was nothing like msg for knicks games back then, boom. i loved the '69-70 team. but when healthy -- which wasn't often enough, granted -- the '72-73 knicks were better, imo. i'm biased 'cause of my affection for the pearl, but he was a huge difference. cazzie was a tremendous streak shooter but lucas was the far better all-around player off the bench.

damn, what i'd give to have a team on a par with either of holzman's title teams at msg again for my boys to enjoy.

 

The Knicks trail Royals 105-100 with 27 seconds left, come back to win 106-105 for 18th straight.
Incredible.

http://www.izix.com/stan/index.php?chapter=8&column=7

 

Still the most amazing come back that I've ever watched. I bet that Bob Cousy is still haunted by that game.