Probably one of the worst games I?ve seen him play. Wasn?t aggressive from the little I saw of him in the first half, you would think that his back problem maybe lingering because he looked out of sorts, wasn?t attacking, looked slow and he?s small. Been watching KP and while he?s not having a super preseason, he is coming along after being out a season. This trade has the worst trade in Knicks history written all over it.
Hold the mic... Nothing wrecked the Knicks like what happened in the 1987 draft!
This followed the pathetic 1986-87 season.... HC Hubie Brown fired after a 4-12 start (Rick Pitino would be hired during the offseason)....
This was Ewing?s second season.... B-King had badly injured knee that 1984-85 season, missed all of PE?s rookie campaign and played in just 6 games in the 1986-87 season...
Knicks finished 24-58 that 1986-87 season.... It was a season of rebuilding.... NYK has zero chance. Remember BOS had an all-time great squad...
October 2, 1986
NYK traded Darrell Walker to the Denver Nuggets for a 1987 1st round draft pick. This pick turned out to the the 8th pick of the draft!
October 30, 1986
Knicks quickly flip the DEN pick they acquired at the beginning of the month and a 1988 2nd round draft pick to the Chicago Bulls for Jawann Oldham. (Bulls would walk away with Scottie Pippen with this pick).
November 12, 1986
Knicks dealt their 1987 1st round draft pick (and this pick turned out to be the 5th pick in the draft) and a 1990 2nd round draft pick to the Seattle SuperSonics for Gerald Henderson and a 1987 1st round draft pick (Mark Jackson was later selected).
Knicks ended up with 7 picks for this draft. People forgot what happened, bc we walked away with a franchise favorite in M-Jax.... Still....
To Recap:
The Knicks traded their original first round pick to SEA for Gerald Henderson (and, guess what, GH was a 76er at the start of the 1987-88 season).... so, NYK flipped what became the 5th pick to rent GH for barely 1 season of service....
The Knicks flipped Darrell Walker for a first round pick.... but turned around and dealt that pick for Jawann Oldham. Guess what, like GH, Mr. Oldham would be suiting up for Sac-town to start 1987-88 season.
Somehow, in a lost season where team wins 24 games.... Knicks turned the 5th and 8th picks into thin air.... getting nothing for the franchise beyond 1987.... why? Well, both players they brought in played only 1 season with the team!
Check out the 1987 draft!
We already had Ewing; we took Rod Strickland 19th the following draft (and POR took our man Anthony Mason, who would soon join Starks and Riley at MSG)... in 1988, we flipped Cartwright for Charles Oakley....
Guess who available at 5 & 8 in the 1987 NBA draft: Scottie Pippen and Reggie Miller.
Instead of having this lineup for the 1990s:
Strickland
Miller
Pippen
Oakley
Ewing
*** w/ Starks and Mason off the bench....
We ended up with with a titleless era of b-ball, where NY was cast as that other team playing the Harlem Globetrotters.... always the bridesmaid.
Ewing should be Jeter times Reggie times Messier times Simms/Eli in this town.... instead....
Well, our irresponsible bungling of those two picks accomplished 2 things: it robbed NY of greatest dynasty in NBA history.... and it armed the 2 teams that stood in our way that decade!
Imagine that suffocating defensive front court.... Miller raining 3s.... Rod from DePaul running the show, with gritty Mason and Starks off the bench. Led by Riley, who would still be our president... running the show.... attracting free agents and signing deals!
Sure, we had a nice ride.... but imagine where our franchise is now? How many titles? We definitely get LeBron, and that means we would?ve had a seamless transition from Ewing to LJ....
Here?s how the 1987 draft turned out for us instead:
June 22, 1987
Drafted Mark Jackson in the 1st round (18th pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Drafted Ron Moore in the 2nd round (25th pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Drafted Jerome Batiste in the 3rd round (49th pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Drafted Mike Morgan in the 4th round (71st pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Drafted Glenn Clem in the 5th round (95th pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Drafted Howard Triche in the 6th round (117th pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Drafted Wayne Williams in the 7th round (141st pick) of the 1987 NBA Draft.
Knicks Should?ve had the 5th and 8th selections.... That draft should be a holiday for us.... instead...
But, yes, if Kp is a perennial all star and DSJ not here next year.... oh no!
Saving grace is look who DEN took with the last pick the ducked out of Walsh - Dolan in that Carmelo deal: Murray is a stud PG! Maybe those picks from DAL offer some redemption.... I doubt it tho.