scrabbarista wrote:Colbinii wrote:You are asking if this guy is Top 5?
Minutes: 17th
Points: 7th
Assists: 24th
Rebounds: 19th
Sad to say it's close.
Ewing, Frazier and Reed are an easy Top 3. Then you have Monroe, Houston, DeBusschere and Oakley who I consider in the next tier.
For a guy known almost exclusively as a scorer to not be in the top five in points... I would have to say a hard "no."
That was kinda my first-pass take on seeing that, too. Melo isn't particularly good at anything else [except scoring]; so if he's only 7th in Knick history in pts, his case as top 5 Knicks seems a bit shaky.
That said, Melo reached that point with only six and third seasons in a Knick uniform; I imagine most/all of the Knicks #1-6 played more seasons that that as a Knick. I will say that reaching "X" number of points in 6.3 seasons is more impressive and relevant than doing so in [for example] 12 seasons. Where does Melo rank all-time [as a Knick] in ppg, for example? Is he like #2 behind only Bernard King, perhaps???
To answer OP's question, I think very very VERY obviously #1-3 are Ewing, Frazier, and Reed. imo, in that order, with Reed a relatively distant 3rd by my criteria*.
*I find him historically overrated [because of accolades], even though I'm somewhat high on his peak. But his longevity is too decimated by injury, at least one FMVP is undeserved [clearly, imo], and his MVP is highly debatable, too.After that it becomes unclear.
I'm not sold that Dave DeBusschere is an obvious #4. He only played 5.5 seasons as a Knick. He's far better and more important than the limited box-based metrics of the era indicate, but I'm not sure it's by enough of a margin to make him a shoe-in for #4 [with just 5.5 seasons].
Charles Oakley played 10 seasons as a Knick, including the majority of his prime. His one All-Star season was as a Knick, he was the starting PF on the team that nearly won the title in '94, he was a key cog in that historically great defense under Pat Riley. He needs serious consideration as #4.
Era considerations apply, but nonetheless Harry Gallatin has to be a serious contender for #4, having played 9 seasons as a Knick, 7 of those as an All-Star, once led the entire league in rpg (a league that had George Mikan and Dolph Schayes), was key kog on THREE Knick teams that made it as far as the NBA Finals (twice losing to the Mikan dynasty, once to the Davies/Wanzer/Risen Rochester Royals).
John Starks played 9 seasons as a Knick, including basically his whole prime. Not a contender for #4, imo, but probably should be considered for #5.
Earl Monroe played over 8.5 seasons as a Knick, though at least two of them as post-prime. Was a member of the '73 title team, was twice an All-Star as a Knicks [which is perhaps about right, if a pinch generous]. He's overrated historically (perhaps dramatically so), but still needs to be considered.
Bill Bradley played all 10 seasons of his career as a Knick. Was never a star or a huge-impact guy, but was decent and a key piece of both title teams.
Mark Jackson played a little less than 6.5 seasons as a Knick, including his one and only All-Star season; was the starting PG on a really good '92 squad. Don't know if he's a particularly relevant option.....probably about as much as Bill Bradley, anyway.
Dick McGuire I'll mention, but he's perhaps a lesser candidate than Jackson.
That's about all I can come up with. Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson may eventually become valid candidates. And Bernard King basically only had three seasons as a Knick.
I'd lean toward Oakley and Gallatin, along with Melo [and DeBusschere, Starks, and Monroe as a dark horse options], as my primary candidates for #4-5; but my criteria leans heavily on meaningful longevity [this works against Dave, fwiw].
"The fact that a proposition is absurd has never hindered those who wish to believe it." -Edward Rutherfurd
"Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire
