5 BOROUGH SPORTS

If you look back to moment #12, you can read about the excitement of the first round of the 1999 playoffs for the Knicks. After defeating the heavily favored Miami Heat, the Knicks went on to take the Atlanta Hawks. Even though the Hawks were favored in the series, the Knicks swept Atlanta and forced a showdown against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals. After splitting the first two games in Indiana, the Knicks headed home for Game 3, but without their star center. In Game 2, Patrick Ewing suffered an injury to his achilles heel and would miss the rest of the postseason. Throughout Game 3, it seemed as if the Pacers were going to run away with the game, and ultimately the series. But the Knicks fought back and made it 91-88 with 12 seconds to go. Charlie Ward imbounded the ball to Larry Johnson. After waiting four seconds, LJ put up the three. During the shot, the whistle was blown. Everyone in the Garden knew if the shot went in, Johnson would have a chance for a four point play. As soon as the ball went through the hoop, the Garden, all at once, erupted. While watching the game uptown, I could hear people screaming from the streets. The city, as one unit, was rejoicing the improbable play. After settling down, Johnson made the clutch foul shot to put the Knicks up by one. The shot gave the Knicks a 2-1 lead in the series. The Knicks would eventually win the series in six games and become the first #8 seed to reach the finals in NBA history.

Here is a video about the 1999 New York Knicks. The story of the four-point play begins at 4:35.

This entry was posted on March 26, 2010 at 9:48 am and is filed under 5BS Greatest Sports Moments (since 1990), Knicks. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.