00:00well it's been quite some time but we are back with another edition of Sundays with Serby the
00:06Knicks they are four wins away from a trip to the NBA finals and that has the city buzzing right
00:12now
00:12about this current Knick team and New York Post sports columnist Steve Serby well he caught up
00:17with a man who knows exactly what this moment feels like for the Knicks and he's been four
00:23wins away from the finals he's made the finals that is Hall of Famer Knicks legend and also
00:28current team ambassador Patrick Ewing Steve Serby caught up with him and now we are going to catch
00:33up with the New York Post sports legend Steve Serby himself who joins me now Steve what's going on my
00:39friend how you doing great to see you again Dex hope all's well with your Achilles I'm doing well
00:46getting there getting better getting stronger by the day so I can't complain at all whatsoever I'm
00:51really fine but here's the thing but you know I do a lot of stuff around the Knicks and I
00:55love
00:55seeing you talk to Patrick Ewing and he talked a lot about sacrifice he talked about everybody doing
01:01their part in this Knicks team how much do you think this current Knicks team reminds him of the
01:08teams that he played on those 90s Knicks teams that he led does does he see any similarities at all
01:13what did you get from him on that well the biggest similarity he sees is the similarity between
01:20Josh Hart and John Starks big on intangibles both of them obviously Starks was a better shooter except
01:32for that game seven against Houston but both were energizer buddies bunnies both were tough as hell
01:40tough as nails both infected the team with energy and effort and defiance and that would be the biggest
01:50similarity that Patrick Ewing saw between those 94 Knicks and these Knicks of course those Knicks
01:59Patrick's Knicks did not have Jalen Brunson and Patrick mentioned to me that he didn't get a chance to play
02:07with a clutch talent an elite talent like Brunson and that would have made life so much easier for him
02:17during those playoff runs but uh that 94 Knicks team you remember that team Dex what do you remember
02:23about it well I know what I remember about that team a lot I remember that spring you know the
02:29Knicks
02:29were going for it the Rangers were going for it obviously the Rangers won that year uh great year for
02:34that
02:34team uh the Derrick Harper trade really sparked that team in the second half um and the Knicks
02:39obviously fell up fell short uh there's a lot going on in that finals the OJ Bronco chase there's a
02:45lot
02:45going on so I remember a lot about that team I was 11 years old so I'm dating myself there
02:49but I
02:49remember a lot about that team uh my time in fifth grade rooting for them to win a championship but
02:54they came up just just a little short just a little short Steve just yeah well look that team you
02:58remember that team didn't back down from anybody they didn't yeah they didn't take crap from anybody
03:03this team doesn't have the enforcers like Oakley and Mason that that team did and of course Mike Brown
03:11has done a wonderful job but he's not a not a Hall of Fame coach like Pat Riley so those
03:17are the big
03:18differences now what do you remember about the uh 99 Knicks team that went to the finals well it's funny
03:24we are recording this uh I believe it's 27 years 27 years to the day of Allen Houston hitting the
03:31shot
03:32against Miami uh in game five of that 99 opening round series to win iconic shot off the front of
03:38rim off the back of the rim glass and then in um I just remember that I remember the city
03:43being on fire
03:43for that team because that was so improbable as the strike shortened year um the Knicks were not
03:48expected to do much they were an eight seed but they weren't a true eight seed uh because of the
03:53way
03:53that season was yeah the city was on fire for that team I remember the second round they swept the
03:57Hawks you had that great dunk by Marcus Camby on to Camby Batumbo um but you know the tough thing
04:03with
04:03that was Patrick Ewing with the Achilles tear which is where I was going to go with you next I'll
04:07bring
04:07that up in a second but he tore his Achilles and then that kind of changed the fortunes of the
04:12Knicks
04:12and that team but that was a fun team yeah that that well that team was big on toughness and
04:17intelligence and uh and Jeff Van Gundy did a tremendous job um but that team had five players
04:28including Patrick in double figures during that playoff run yeah pretty impressive that is
04:35impressive that was a very balanced team this next team is better I would agree with you on that I'd
04:41agree with you on that I do think this next team is better I do think this next team is
04:45more talented
04:46um but yeah it was interesting to hear Patrick talk about his teams you know in the 90s and the
04:52comparison there and and then for me Steve when I was reading your Q&A I thought one of the
04:57most
04:57powerful parts was when Patrick talked about that Achilles injury that I just mentioned in 99 right and
05:05playing through pain he's known you even brought this up to him you said he's known as a warrior I
05:10think
05:10that's the word a lot of people use to describe Patrick Ewing at the time but he also talked about
05:15the
05:15emotional impact of not being able to help the 99 team so after you heard him reflect on those moments
05:21and that what do you think drove him more than anything else in his career because he's aware of
05:26that warrior mentality and that label that was on him what do you think drove Patrick Ewing to be great
05:30in his career well winning drove him first of all he um he grew up watching Bill Russell win 11
05:38championships for the Celtics uh when he grew up in Cambridge Massachusetts after he moved from
05:44Kingston Jamaica so he thought it was going to be easy uh winning championships and he found out
05:50the hard way it wasn't of course he won the two Olympic goals he won one at one national championship
05:57at
05:57Georgetown in three tries losing of course once to his nemesis Michael Jordan and once to Villanova
06:05um but in 85 but um he remembers the pain of walking off the court in game seven with his
06:16buddy Alonzo
06:17warning who was there in Houston to support him he walked off the court depressed the Houston Rocket fans
06:24were hurling were trash talking him as he walked off and uh you know you don't forget those things when
06:33you come that close and then of course in 99 when he tore his Achilles and uh he remembers after
06:42a loss
06:43in San Antonio he couldn't help his team and he remembers walking to the bus or hobbling to the bus
06:50and crying alone on the bus um and and that that's has stuck with him to this day the heartbreak
07:01and the heartache of coming so close and he's such a prideful guy you know he is the ultimate warrior
07:09and he prides himself on being a warrior and when I think of warriors over the years in in New
07:15York
07:15sports you know I think of Messier I think of Eli Manning and I think of Derek Jeter among others
07:24there are others of course but um Patrick belongs in that warrior conversation and he his goal was to
07:34be the best version of himself which he always was and to bring home a championship for New York
07:41which he came so close so close so close indeed he came so I guess we'll wrap on this Steve
07:50because
07:51after talking to Pat and knowing what you just said about him being so close that he was never
07:56able to bring a championship to the city during his playing days the way he wanted to what do you
08:01think it would mean to him to see this Knicks team win it all in 2026 what do you think
08:06it'll mean to him
08:08well he talked to me about how the city embraced the Yankees and the Rangers when they won their
08:14championships and of course the Knicks haven't won since 73 so he would celebrate with this Knicks team
08:22he credits James Dolan and Leon Rose and World Wide West with welcoming the alumni back to the fold
08:33back to the garden back to celebrity role role you see uh Allen Houston there you see LJ there you
08:41see
08:42Sprewell there you see Starks there you see Bernard King there uh he would be in the huddle with them
08:48and he always wanted the embrace of New York City when he stood on that scorer's table after game seven
08:58after the monster game that he had against the Pacers with his arms up uplifted to the rafters
09:04he soaked in the love that he sought from New York City that sometimes was not there he had a
09:15love
09:16hate relationship with Knicks fans who deemed him the savior even though he didn't consider himself a
09:23savior but that's what he wants he wants one more time to feel the warmth and the love and the
09:32embrace
09:32of New York City for this Knicks team which he feels a part of now yeah no he should and
09:39it's great to
09:40always see him and the alums of the Knicks back at the garden it's always fantastic to see all of
09:45them
09:45there especially through these playoff runs over the last couple of years that is Steve Serby the
09:50great sports columnist for us with the New York Post he has a fantastic Q&A with the legend Patrick
09:54Ewing that is out now on newyorkpost.com check that out Steve it's been a while since we did this
10:00but it's good to see you once again my friend thank you so much for the time always a pleasure
10:04Dex and wish Simone Henry a happy birthday for me all right I will do my daughter's birthday is
10:09coming up a happy 10th to her too I appreciate that thank you Steve and continue good luck with
10:14your Achilles yes I I need all the good luck and rehab so I could be uh running around like
10:20you
10:20this summer that's that's what I need to do thanks Steve appreciate it thank you Dex
10:24all right
10:24you
10:26you
10:28you
10:28you
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