For The Series: HO: 26.9p/9.1r/3.9b/3.6a/1.6s 50% FG 86% FT PE: 18.9p/12.4r/4.3b/1.7a/1.3s 36% FG 71% FT www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/1994-nba-finals-knicks-vs-rockets.html
Olajuwon doing his thing, and I think he's perhaps the best all-around center of all time, certainly better than Kareem, but I'm also very impressed with Patrick Ewings play throughout this series, he was quite the competitor. I saw him win the state championship twice in high school when his Cambridge Rindge & Latin team beat our Holy Name and North High teams back in '80 and '81.
The 1993-1994 NBA Finals is The Greatest Finals Ever Houston Rocket's vs New York Knicks Both teams where evenly match up both teams where the top 2 best teams of that year Every game was super close each game was won less then ten points the series went back and fourth no other finals has had this kind of level and energy and excitement.
@kao8well maybe .....but what's NOT AN OPINION....is that the '94 playoffs was the best ever.....SEVEN.....SEVEN.!!!...series went to the limit(remember back then the first round only went ta 5)....56
What a series !! with my 80s - 90s Knicks team. Hakeem just lived up to his name and deservedly. For me it was the last great Big Man Battle !! Shaq would dominate later with the Lakers. Although my Knicks would get another shot late in the 90s.along side a bearded Larry Johnson .If I recall Ewing was older and injured for the series .thankfully we have folks like this that let us all enjoy these series again ..xoxox
This series was a big man battle for sure. The battle of the frontcourts was maybe the best in history. Knicks fans had to be salivating at the thought of that amount of muscle. But, there’s a reason it didn’t work. Coach Riley made this same exact mistake in the ‘86 Rockets vs Lakers Western Conference Finals. Riley loaded up on big men to try and stop Olajuwon and Sampson. It didn’t work then, and it hurt the Knick’s here. At this point, Hakeem was unstoppable. Coach should have focused on the backcourt. Harper mostly, and Starks somewhat, could give the Rockets fits. Harper had a history of torching the Rockets going back to his days in Dallas. If the Knicks could have brought in another shooter in anticipation of facing Hakeem, maybe they could have taken this series.
Yes I agree - I was flipping away and this came up. Thank God - I quit watching bb 2023 - 3pt. YAWN fest. I always liked Akeem as my number 1 center of all time. Ewing would be his backup - what a defensive work horse and good shooter and a true leader.
Lmao dude im not a hater. But there's been some years where there was zero obstacles and no physicality on the way to certain chips. But only work done as a Man sticks on earth. Propaganda is for tha fakes
The NBA was so freaked out that Jordan had left the league they were almost apologetic about this series, which is what they get for over-marketing a single player. This was a big man’s dream series, and one for the ages. For my money, the best ever. Olajuwon, Thorpe and Horry vs Ewing, Mason, Smith and Oakley. We’ll never see the likes of that again. The NBA should have focused on that, bringing Bill Russel and Wilt Chamberlain in to add commentary. Now that would have been fascinating IMO.
2:12:44 Outfield - Winning it All. NBA on NBC knew how to present and make the NBA games seem like a theatrical moment. I didn't know they kept using that for their ending Finals credits though... I always thought that was a Bulls thing.
45:30 may be the cleanest face up spin move i ever seen, also i dont think iv seen a nba series with as many contests of shots in and around the paint, hakeem and ewing were going for every block they could on eachother and others
Rockets have always been my team so I was excited about this big man battle. The Knicks frontcourt was so tough and Ewing defensively was a beast the whole series, but Olajuwon was simply the best at this point in his career and wasn't going to be denied. Knicks backcourt really outclassed Houston's backcourt for 90% of this series, and had me worried after game 5, but thank God Hakeem Olajuwon was so athletic to block Starks shot in game 6.
@@hectorlopez1069DEF was going in.....starks was on fire in that fourth......but even with the block the Knicks still could've won game 7.....even with starks having a horrible game they lost by a measly 6 point.....and they gave away game 3 in the garden if u ask me
@@YuriyKhasidov-ee8zdThe fact is, Pat Riley tried to control Hakeem with Mason, Oakley, Smith and Ewing but it didn’t work. He made the same mistake in ‘86 with the Lakers when he brought in Maurice Lucas and Mitch Kupchak to go along with Kurt Rambis and Kareem in the hopes they would intimidate Olajuwon and Sampson. Instead it slowed down the Showtime Lakers, and the Rockets won the Western Conference Finals. The Celtics tried the same thing with Parish, Kevin McHale and Bill Walton. That was a little more successful because they didn’t get away from their game and let Larry Bird and the backcourt overwhelm the depleted Rocket’s backcourt, who had lost their PG before the playoffs started.
Great video/editing, man! I was only 5 years old remembering very little of this series however, I recall my mom not wanting to leave the house out here in LA amidst the OJ Simpson chase in Game 5
This series was a battle for sure. The battle of the frontcourts was maybe the best in history. Olajuwon, Thorpe and Horry vs Ewing, Mason, Smith and Oakley. That’s a serious big man’s game. Knicks fans had to be salivating at the thought of that amount of muscle. But, there’s a reason it didn’t work. Coach Riley made this same exact mistake in the ‘86 Rockets vs Lakers Western Conference Finals. Riley loaded up on big men to try and stop Olajuwon and Sampson. It didn’t work then, and it hurt the Knick’s here. At this point Hakeem was unstoppable. Coach should have focused on the backcourt. Harper mostly, and Starks somewhat, gave the Rockets fits, despite the Rockets deep, 3-point shooting backcourt, other than Vernon Maxwell and Mario Ellie, they weren’t great defenders of tall shooting guards. Especially Harper who had a history of torching the Rockets. If the Knicks could have brought in another shooter in anticipation of facing Hakeem, maybe they could have taken this series.
@@elbertbass9259 Yes, you’re right! They had Blackmon on that team? I forgot about that. Yeah, Rolando Blackman and Harper could have caused serious problems for the Rockets assuming their health and age hadn’t caught up with them. Riley made the same mistake twice. He was scared of Hakeem, but for good reason.
@TheSteveSteele yea Blackman would kill the Rockets when he was a Maverick, and I thought he was hurt during the finals but later found out Riley was punishing him for arguing about wanting their wives to travel with them on the road. Starks was a great player but in game 7, he was Houston's MVP.
Yeah, I was never a fan of his because his high school team beat our 2 high school teams in consecutive years and he was also a Hoya and a Knick, but I got to give it up for him he played great in this series and with a lot of heart. I'd take him over Abdul-Jabbar every time.
Scottie Brooks was standing on the court for every key defensive possession in Game 6, acting like a 6th defender. He did it again in Game 7. I can't believe the refs let that happen. And he was front and center on the podium for the trophy presentation. He sure thought he was the main character.
Having a 3-2 lead come Game 6 is a make-or-break thing. It is hard to close a series, and more so if the trailed team forced Game 7. Patrick Ewing missed joining "a hat trick" club winning in elite hoop levels (won 1984 NCAA title and Olympic Gold), although he's not alone (e.g., Sam Perkins, Grant Hill, Christian Laettner). New York is currently on a 50-year drought (upon this comment) with 1994 as the closest win-it-all opportunity. Second-closest is the magical 1999 run, which don't mean a thing. If they ceded in ECF, Phil Jackson was the reported waiting replacement and could bring the Knicks to its glory years entering the new millennium until early 2000s at least. Glad having this review almost 30 years later. Now time to move forward anew. Thank you for sharing, as always.
The Knicks don't have glory years: 1. If Havlicek hadn't separated his right shoulder in the '73 Finals, the Knicks would NOT have won that series. Proof is in the pudding - Hondo 1974 Finals MVP as Celtics beat Jabbar and the Bucks. 2. If Russell and Sam Jones hadn't retired, the Knicks would NOT have won in 1970 either. Still waiting for our thank you card Knick fans. 3. Oh, and while we're at it, it took a miracle to beat the 2007 Patriots, good for you, you did it, and you did it again 4 years later, but you disappeared after that while the Pats continued to contend for another 12 years and another 3 Super Bowl wins. 4. Don't worry, I won't mention the 2004 ALCS
@@jamespenny9482 As if "breaks of the game" and key Celtics players retiring or getting injured tainted those Knicks titles. Regardless of backstories, Knickerbockers took these opportunities by getting the job done at least in 1970 and 1973.
Shaq had at least 1 HOFer on the teams he was on for most of his career (Penny's injuries prevented him from being one) so he had it easier compared to the other 2.
The closest finals ever. Neither team did had a win with a double digit margin.... and so close. Hakeem better then Ewing but the Backcourt of the Knicks was eliminating that for 6 games....in the end it was one guy who made the difference- a rookie called Sam Cassell in Game 3
Ah, man, I miss those days. The intensity and REAL physics were every move and action made sense to the eye because people were not flopping on every single touch. Sometimes you just don't know what's real anymore with way the game is being played.
I have to say that this title was bittersweet regardless of who won because there was no Jordan. I do not think Knicks make the finals if Jordan was playing
@MaalDweb2 I'm new to this but if your making videos of 80's/90's - you have my unwavering support and gratitude. I hate watching 2023 bb - it's a 3 pt. yawn fest devoid of strategy and DEFENSE !!!!
I've noticed a lot of history is being rewritten lately. I saw a post yesterday about how David Robinson was better than Hakeem Olajuwon. In my opinion, Robinson was great and the 2nd best 90 center, but he wasn't Hakeem the Dream.
Yes Hakeem was the most dominant center BUT the knicks shouldve won......the knicks had 3 players who scored over 100 pts and the rockets had 1......patrick ewing led the whole series in reb and blocks and Harper led the whole series in steals and assist.....the knicks gave away game 3 and starks was on fire in the 4th qrt of game 6 so we know that last 3 was going in had haleem not got a piece of it.....and imagine if starks only made a few J's in game 7
The Rockets won because the MVP made the big plays when it mattered most. G3 the assist to Cassell for 3, G6 2 defensive stops on Starks who wasn't missing in the 4th, and G7 the assist to Maxwell for 3.
I won't go as far as saying the Knicks should've won but they definitely got screwed by that awful old rule at the end of game 3 where you only got 2 FT's for a foul on a shot behind the 3 point line, that game probably would've gone to OT if that ridiculously outdated rule wasn't still in existence.
@@coreyrowe4119it's not really an opinion. It's a fact that the Knicks should've won.....I mean they lost by a measly 6 point even with starks playing terrible in game 7. The Knicks were FAR more balanced.....re-read my initial comment......and imagine if Hakeem had shorter fingernails lol ... .the 3 in game 6 was going in.....
@@brianwilliams6167 Starks also was 3-18 in G1, that's just the kind of player he was. What gets overlooked is Ewing not scoring a single point in the 4th quarter of G6, as good as Starks and Harper were throughout most of the series the Knicks chances of winning the championship still depended on how Ewing performed overall.
Jokic would be fine. He's strong and he likes to post guys and throw his shoulder on their chest just like in the 90s. He's also really talented. American players of this generation are soft and couldn't play in the 90s. Jokic would be fine.
This is a really good upload my guy.....ima download it while its here b4 fuckN utube police take it down kike they do with all kinds of other good shit
That last shot that Starks missed and Hakeem blocked, Ewing was standing too close to Starks which is what made Hakeem helping out on him a little easier. Had Ewing been closer to the basket if Hakeem double teamed, Starks could have passed it to Ewing for a game tying shot. Or Starks probably would have made the game winning shot. Good gamble by Hakeem in that situation.
Gracias Bball, cuántos recuerdos,para mí esos Knicks merecían ser campeones, aún forzando al séptimo partido la derrota de ny se debió al mal juego de Starks en el juego 7. Pero imposible reprocharselo porque absolutamente toda la temporada fue electrizante para el y para todo NY, y casi estoy seguro que ése año fueron al All Star game, : Big Patrick,Starks y Oakley.
G6 he was scoreless in the 4th while Starks had 16. Winning that game was the best chance for the Knicks winning the championship and he didn't score a single point in the most important quarter of the game.
@@ChrisM07 Pat had responsibility also. But I think, his bad offence came from his body conditions. He couldn't use various offence options, because of bad knees. Until 92 his move was smooth and quick. But in 94 his move was rigid. Between elite battles, that was fatal weakness.
@@swl5587 His shooting % in this series in general was significantly below his normal average both before and afterwards. The Rockets did a pretty good job scouting him when preparing for the Knicks.
Can I make a request can u make highlights or the full game of Bulls & Blazers March 1 1992 . As well the Lakers vs bulls where Worthy Magic Pip and Jordan ball out in that 1990 game in Chicago 👀🤔🤔
please tell me which individual playoff year you all feel was best between 1993 and 1994 for superstar patrick ewing and please tell me which individual playoff year you all feel was best between 1994 and 1995 for legend hakeem olajuwon
@@carlburton3152 you make sense and you PROBABLY still know the 1994 defensive player of the year and mvp were awarded to hakeem olajuwon and that both 1994 and 1995 finals mvp's were also awarded to hakeem olajuwon
please tell me who you all feel was the most elite between the 1993 and 1994 knicks and please tell me who you all feel was the most elite between the 1994 and 1995 rockets
The new York Knicks way always one of the elite team in the seventies going to three championship wining two and then 21 years later to the 1994 final Wich they where competitive and then again in 1999 /2000 Wich they where competitive to some degree but did not have a healthy Patrick Ewing . Note the knick would find a way also some how to make the eastern conference finals.
crazy, that tip in ewing had that was called offensive interference was actually clean, if that would have counted the game would have been tied and who knows how it would have ended, it was over 30 years ago so who really cares but, just saying
Nah bulls woulda won man.....Jordan AND PIP..... c'mon.....hakeem and ....lol who...?....Maxwell? Cassell..?....Jordan would've outscored everyone and the rockets guards wouldn't have done shit
If you watch the game's 1 to 7 Hakeem steel the ball alot and block and rebound then scoring he steel the ball alot from Ewing I play basketball 🏀 high-school I watch every think Hakeem top 10 steel as a center then 1st block then scoring top 10 land rebound
