North America is experiencing a sports boom. Basketball, American football, hockey, baseball - are wildly popular both among ordinary fans and in the eyes of potential advertisers. Standing apart on this list is basketball. An important factor of phenomenal interest can be the social component. Basketball to some extent smoothes the line between the well-to-do and socially disadvantaged. It was he who became the game with which many people from poor neighborhoods, children from low-income families found their place in life. At the initial stage, the accessibility of the game attracts. Almost every American yard is equipped with basketball hoops. A huge number of open basketball courts, where everyone can improve their game skills.
Patrick Ewing - basketball legend
If you look at the popularity of basketball globally, the National Basketball Association (NBA) has a huge impact on the growth of its popularity in the world . League, in the ranks of which the best basketball players of the world are gathered. The huge popularity of the game gives birth to its idols. One of them is a world-famous star Ewing Patrick.
Childhood
Among North American countries, Jamaica stood out exceptionally for short distance runners. Basketball in Jamaica has never been a particularly popular sport. It is therefore surprising that it was in this country that one of the greatest basketball players of our time, Ewing Patrick, was born.
Patrick was born on August 5, 1962 in Kingston, in an ordinary family. Already in childhood, among his peers, the boy stood out for his height. Such growth initially did not leave much choice in sports terms. The choice fell on basketball. In 1973, the Ewing family, in search of a better life, decided to move to the United States. It is in the United States that Patrick begins to seriously engage in basketball. Already at the school level, the makings of a future star were visible. Success in playing for the school team helped the teenager with admission to the university. A promising basketball player was in demand in university sports circles. In the end, he chose Georgetown University of Washington.
Student years
Ewing Patrick spent four years on the Goyas team. During this time, the team played three times in the NCAA finals. The main success was the victory in the 1984 finals. The successful game of the young basketball player did not pass by the attention of the coaches of the US national team, who included him in the team. At the 1984 Summer Olympics, Patrick Ewing won a gold medal with the United States.
NBA Career
In 1985, Ewing made his debut in the strongest basketball league in the world. As a result of the draft, Patrick Ewing, whose photo you see in the article, became a New York Knicks player. The debut season was twofold for the athlete. Injuries received during the season did not allow to fully realize their playing potential. But on the other hand, even having missed a number of matches due to injuries, Ewing became the best rookie of the season.
The basketball player spent 15 full seasons in the NBA in the New York Knicks, speaking in the center position. Ewing Patrick, whose height is 2.13 m, felt comfortable under someone else's ring. As a result of his performance for the New York team, he was awarded a huge number of personal titles, but the highest basketball top did not submit to the athlete. Ewing's team was not able to win the championship title. Great chances for the championship were in the 1993-94 season. “New York Knicks” reached the finals and there, in a dramatic struggle, lost to “Houston”.
Patrick Ewing is a basketball player who in 1992 became a two-time Olympic champion. At the Olympic Games in Barcelona, the American team did not leave a chance to rivals. According to experts, the 1992 United States team remains one of the strongest teams in the history of world basketball.
In 2000, a sharp turn occurred in the career of Patrick Ewing. As a result of the exchange, the athlete ended up in Seattle. As part of the Seattle Supersonics, Patrick spent only one season, after which he moved to the Orlando Magic. It was in Orlando, in September 2002, that the basketball player announced the end of his sports career.
Awards and Achievements
The main achievement of Patrick Ewing for a long sports career can be considered Olympic gold. In game sports, the value of the Olympic victory grows many times. And all the more significant is the fact that Patrick twice became the Olympic champion.
During the time spent in the NBA, a basketball player received a huge number of personal awards. Alone here are the awards to the best newcomer to the league and regular hits in the symbolic NBA team for the season. In 1996, Patrick was on the list of “50 Greatest Players in NBA History”. In the same year, he was included in the Basketball Hall of Fame at Madison Square Garden.
Life after a gaming career
At the end of Ewing's career, the NBA leadership decided to remove the 33 number under which the basketball player played from circulation. Which is further evidence of gaming authority and recognition of Patrick Ewing's sporting prowess. Also on Ewing's track record is being an assistant coach at Houston Rockets and Orlando Magic. At the turn of the 2000s, Patrick headed the NBA Players Association for four years.
Now in the footsteps of his father went Patrick Ewing Jr., a professional basketball player.