Patrick Ewing may very well be the best Knick ever, but the Big Fella never would have gotten the chance to rule Madison Square Garden for over a decade if it wasn’t for a major event that took place 57 years ago this week: his birth.
For the uninitiated, Ewing was born in Kingston, Jamaica on August 5, 1962, to parents Carl and Dorothy. The concept of being part of a team probably came relatively easy to Ewing, who is one of seven children (five sisters, one brother).
Ewing’s father was a mechanic, an occupation that requires strong hand-eye coordination, which is a skill Ewing possessed plenty of on the court.