10K Mailbag, Part I

We reached a milestone. I celebrate with your questions.

Good morning! Anyone else enjoying a few days away from the grind? No? Just me? OK then.

Let’s get to your questions.

10K Mailbag, Part I

It’s been such a crazy last few weeks with so much Knicks stuff to dig into that I inadvertently let a minor milestone pass without so much as an acknowledgment in this space.

Late Monday night, this newsletter passed 10,000 subscribers, which is not a sentence I ever thought I’d write when I took it over from the great Jeffrey Bellone in the fall of 2019. Ultimately, 10,000 is just a number, no more important than 9,999 or 10,001, but it does change how KFS is listed on Substack’s top sports publications page, which gives me the equivalent satisfaction of finding a spot right in front of my building:

digital graphics by me

Honestly, the fact that a little old Knicks newsletter is still among Substack’s Top 25 sports missives is wild to me, especially as the platform has blown up in recent years and there’s so much great Knicks content on the internet.

This is all to say that I owe a massive thank you to everyone reading these very words. So…thank you. It’s been a pleasure and an honor, and I hope to continue doing this until my fingers are no longer capable of writing.

In the spirit of the moment, I put out a 10K-themed call for mailbag questions in the KFS Substack chat yesterday, and as usual, y’all did not disappoint. It was enough to cover two days worth of newsletters, with a good mix of current topics and more reflective stuff. We’ll start today’s six-pack of questions with a damn good one from frequent mailbagger, Steve F, who asks:

On this current roster, how many guys do you see eventually having their numbers in the rafters? Barring something catastrophic Brunson is a lock and I also think Hart will find his way there - dude is the epitome of this team. As for others, if we win a title and he keeps up this level of play for 3-4 years, maybe KAT? Anyone else? Personally I'd love for McBride to be a forever Knicks and earn a spot too one day.

To properly answer this question, we need a quick review of whose jerseys are in the rafters currently, and perhaps more importantly, whose aren’t.

• IN: Walt Frazier, Willis Reed, Patrick Ewing, Dave DeBusschere, Earl Monroe, Bill Bradley, Dick Barnett, Dick McGuire, Red Holzman (coach)

• OUT (in order of most to least points scored in NY): Allan Houston, Carl Braun, Richie Guerin, Carmelo Anthony, John Starks, Harry Gallatin, Charles Oakley, Bernard King.

That’s a pretty impressive out list, comprised of the fourth leading scorer in team history, four Hall-of-Famers (all of whom spent their entire prime with the Knicks), a no brainer future first ballot Hall-of-Famer, and the second and third most important players during the second most successful stretch in team history.

Among the eight players who do have their number in the rafters, five are the quintet of Knicks who played for both the 1970 and 1973 title teams. Phil Jackson was with the organization for both, but he missed the entire 1969-70 season with a back injury and was a reserve for the ‘73 team.

Patrick Ewing, while not unanimously considered the franchise GOAT by all parties, is far and away the most accomplished Knick where individual stats and accolades are concerned. He also helped guide the Knicks to 16 series wins - seven more than Reed and five more than Frazier.

Earl Monroe was only on the ‘73 title team, but was a Knick for nine seasons, is eighth on the franchise scoring list, made two All-Star teams in New York, and is one of the greatest players who ever lived.

McGuire, seemingly, is the one outlier, even if he did make five All-Star teams and help guide the franchise to three consecutive Finals appearances en route to the Hall-of-Fame. But the original Tricky Dick was also a Knick lifer in every sense, having served as player, head coach, assistant coach, and several other roles within the organization over several decades. When his No. 15 was retired in 1992 - notably six years after Monroe’s No. 15 went into the rafters - it was as much a thank you for his nearly 40 years of service as it was anything else.

In short, the Knicks have higher standards than Leonardo DiCaprio when it comes to this stuff.

So...who gets in? Let’s discuss.