Madison Square Garden is known as the mecca of basketball. Despite this, the New York Knicks have only won two titles since the franchise was founded in 1946.
- The 1970 NBA Finals
- A Game 7 For The Ages
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The Knicks have made eight NBA Finals during the years 1951, 1952, 1953, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1994, and 1999. They won in 1970 and 1973.
The 1970 NBA Finals
The Los Angeles Lakers took on the New York Knicks in the 1970 NBA Finals. The Knicks had four Hall of Fame players on their roster during that edition of the big series and a player who’d become an eventual Hall of Fame coach in Phil Jackson.
The Knicks Hall of Fame players:
— Walt Frazier
— Dave DeBusschere
— Bill Bradley
— Willis Reed
The Lakers had three Hall of Fame players on their team during the 1970 NBA Finals.
The Lakers Hall of Fame players:
—Jerry West
—Elgin Baylor
—Wilt Chamberlain
The two teams split the first four games of the series and in the crucial Game 5 in New York, tragedy struck the Knicks.
The Knicks’ best player, Willis Reed, tore his thigh muscle early in Game 5, setting up panic for Knicks fans.
Luckily for Knicks fans, the Knicks’ players rallied together to defeat the Lakers by a score of 107-100, to take a 3-2 series lead.
Reed was ruled out for Game 6, and he was deemed “unlikely to play” if the series went to Game 7.
The Lakers would successfully defend their home court in Game 6 with a 135-113 victory, and the series shifted back to New York for Game 7.
A Game 7 For The Ages
As the players were getting ready for Game 7, Knicks fans were biting their nails, not sure if their team would defeat the heavily talented Lakers.
Then, Reed surprised fans as he walked out onto the court for warm-ups.
Knicks fans erupted at Reed’s entrance. His courage to play through his injury inspired his teammates and fans alike.
“I didn’t want to have to look at myself in the mirror 20 years later and say I wished I had tried to play,” Reed said about Game 7.
Reed started the game by hitting the first two baskets for the Knicks. These would be his only baskets of the game, but his impact wouldn’t be over.
Reed played incredible defense on Wilt Chamberlain, holding him to only 2-9 shooting before leaving the game for good with 3:05 remaining in the first half.
The Knicks were dominating the Lakers, leading them at halftime by a score of 69-42. The Knicks players truly were inspired by Reed, this was especially true of Walt Frazier.
“When I saw that, something told me we might have these guys,” Frazier said about Reed attempting to play.
Frazier played like a man possessed, scoring 36 points and handing out 19 assists. The Knicks won the game by a score of 113-99.
Despite Frazier’s incredible performance, the Finals MVP award went to Reed. This was rightfully so since Reed’s inspiring comeback helped lead his team to win their first championship in franchise history.
