The Knicks Fix

Take a moment to recall a blog from the night before the season opener in Memphis. Never mind, I’ll just give you the part to remember:

“My guess is they head into the Minnesota game 4-8 at best. That might even be an optimistic outlook.”

Nostradamus ain’t got nothin’ on me.

Of course it was an educated guess. If I could have that kind of luck with the lottery, this would be my final blog.

(Hold your applause).

* * *

I wasn’t there on Monday, but I was told Isiah Thomas tried to compare 23-year-old Eddy Curry to a 23-year-old Patrick Ewing. “I remember Patrick at 23,” Isiah said. “Do you remember what the Knicks' record was when Patrick was 23? . . . I'm just saying, it takes a while.”

The Knicks won 23 games when Patrick was 23. But he averaged 20 points and 9 rebounds per game and was the Rookie of the Year. That’s right, it should be pointed out that Patrick, at 23, was a rookie.

Curry is 23 and in his fifth NBA season. When Patrick was in his fifth NBA season, he was an all-star. He dropped 28.8 points per night and grabbed 10.9 rebounds. He was the Knicks best player, the guy who accepted the weight of the franchise on his shoulders.

Curry is nothing like that yet . . . and there is little evidence that suggests he will ever come close to being that kind of player. As Bill Parcells once said, “If a dog won't bite when he's a puppy, he definitely won't bite when he's a big dog.” That quote has been attributed to Curry before, so I won’t even try to pretend I came up with that all on my own.

I'm not totally down on Curry at all. In fact, he has major potential. But he clearly needs some serious mentoring, something he never really had because he jumped right to the NBA and never spent any time in a college program, where some necessary coaching and mentoring takes place.

Ewing would be perfect for Curry, who is genuinely a nice guy and I believe he wants to be good. He just needs direction. Look at the job Ewing did in helping Yao Ming develop (Yao loved working with Ewing and Jeff Van Gundy tried to talk Ewing into staying on the Houston staff). Curry could also learn something from Ewing’s work habits and dedication to conditioning. And how to handle the officials.

Look, there’s no hiding it: Ewing was my favorite Knick. That was my guy. And I used to defend him to anyone who would try to say he wasn’t a great player. So maybe he wasn’t better than Olajuwon for most of his career. But even when it seemed he was catching up to Hakeem, David Robinson and Shaquille O’Neal came along and Patrick’s opportunity to be considered the best center in the game was gone.

Still, he was named one of the top 50 players of all time. That’s a hell of an honor for a guy who was often the target of the Garden fans – and that’s when his teams were winning.

I got the chance to meet him Saturday night after the Boston game at the Garden. I rank him up there with my other sports favorite, Bob Nystrom of the Islanders. When you meet a childhood hero, you hope they don’t disappoint you. Nystrom never did; great guy. I’m glad I can say the same about Patrick. Makes me feel like I didn’t waste my time all those years rooting for him.

It would be great to see him back in the Knicks organization again. He has plenty to offer and the Knicks need his experience, expertise and, most of all, his presence.