As a young sports fanatic growing up in Brooklyn, I had many New York sports heroes. Don Mattingly, Mark Messier, Lawrence Taylor … the list goes on. One man however, stood above them all, literally and figuratively. This man was a 7-foot-tall Jamaican basketball player out of Georgetown University. His name was Patrick Ewing.
Last Friday, I returned to New York to honor my hero as the Knicks retired Ewing’s jersey. Patrick Ewing was the heart and soul of the Knicks team for 15 years. He amassed the most points, rebounds and minutes of any Knicks player ever and earned himself a spot among the NBA’s 50 greatest players ever.
I was only five at the time, but I still remember the buzz in New York when Ewing was picked No. 1 in the NBA draft and came to the Knicks. “Our Savior is here,” the newspaper headlines read. Everyone thought that this would be the man to bring the Knicks a championship. That never happened. While the Knicks made it to the championship twice in Ewing’s career, both times they came up short to teams from Texas with dominant big men. The difference between these teams and the Knicks? The Knicks never gave Ewing the complementary players he needed to win a ring. We had some great role players and fan favorites in Starks, Oakley and Anthony Mason, but there was never a superstar to add extra offensive power and draw other teams away from double-teaming Ewing in the post. (Sound familiar? Can you say Mike Sweetney?) That said, Ewing never complained and always played his heart out, which showed in his constantly sweaty brow and aching knees.
As I watched Ewing’s No. 33 get raised to the rafters and listened to the roar of the crowd which filled Madison Square Garden, I thought about Ewing’s years at Georgetown and his record in the NBA. I also thought about our current Georgetown team. Much like Ewing’s Knicks teams, we have great players, but we don’t have the complete package needed to make it all the way to the top of the Big Dance. It is time that we bring back the excitement of the 1980s, when Georgetown dominated the NCAA.
So I came up with an idea. Original it is not, but timely and pertinent it is. Bring Patrick Ewing to coach the Hoyas! I repeat, Patrick Ewing should be Georgetown’s Head Coach.
Patrick Ewing would revive our program. Next to Bill Clinton, Ewing is Georgetown’s most famous alumnus. If he were to come home and coach the Hoyas, not only would alumni of the Ewing years be gung-ho about supporting and giving money to the team, but students from our generation, who grew up watching Ewing in the NBA, would want to get in on it, too. Ewing is respected by everyone in the basketball community, and his potential to recruit would be unmatched by any coach Georgetown has ever had, even John Thompson. Ewing is a hero to almost every young player coming out of high school. Furthermore, Ewing is a big man. People forget Georgetown is a program built on post players. Mike Sweetney is our best player, but with the right coach for a big man, Mike Sweetney might be the best player in the country. Ewing would bring back the scrappy dominance of the low post that defined us throughout the ‘80s and early ‘90s. Ewing would be leaving an assistant coaching position with the Wizards, giving him the credibility and experience he needs to step into the job. Last but not least, Ewing’s son, Patrick Ewing, Jr., is a senior this year and will soon decide where to go to college. While he is not the dominating presence his father was, Ewing Jr. has been an excellent high school player, and might choose to play for Georgetown if there was a chance his father could coach.
I know that this idea is far from reality. Coach Esherick has a long contract that will probably get extended, making it impossible for my dream to ever come true. I can only say that Patrick Ewing is a god among men. He is the reason I heard about and attended Georgetown. He has dominated every level of the game. And most importantly, he is a role model to everyone who will ever play basketball at any level.
I met Patrick Ewing outside McDonough Arena during one of my first weeks on campus in 1999. The Knicks had lost to the Spurs in the NBA Championship the year before, and Ewing was still wearing a cast from the wrist injury that took him out at the end of that season. I turned to him as he left the gym and said, “Hey big fella, what are you gonna do now?” In typical Ewing fashion, he just smiled back, waved and said, “Back to work, back to work.” That’s the way he played his entire career. So now I say to my hero, thanks for the memories. And to Georgetown, it’s time for a new era of memories.
